m000

Isn't Europe just following US Army's example then? A similar incident in US Army commissaries has been reported since August [1]. It only took them two full months to launch an investigation [2].

[1] https://signalandsilence.substack.com/p/i-think-someone-hack...

[2] https://www.foxnews.com/us/mysterious-freezer-failures-us-mi...

Indeed, pricing has gone a bit out of hand. I got the top-of-the-line MBP when I was starting my PhD at the end of 2013, for something like $3,200. You couldn't get a more expensive consumer-oriented laptop at the time. It's mind-boggling that the equivalent purchase today costs around twice as much.

> I'm curious what use-cases you think are the most relevant here.

Watch, um... video podcasts while showering?

Hindsight is always 20/20. And as an outsider to the administration, it costs him nothing to admit the obvious failure.

If they had a better sense of humor, the only U2 songs on the device would be from Songs of Innocence [1].

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Songs_of_Innocence_(U2_album)#...

> governments also defer maintenance on the infrastructure; especially since you mention roads and transit

Roads are the outliers here because governments usually have direct oversight on them. They are more infrastructure rather than utilities.

Unlike roads, everything else discussed here (electricity, water, sewage, transit), even when public, is operated by a public company, not the government. Maintenance is part of the company's operating costs and is accounted for in the price consumer pays. And while there is no competition for reliability, there's also no obligation to maximize profits for the shareholders.

> retail functions such as metering, billing, and service connections are private and have competitive providers

I.e., socialize the costs and privatize the profits.

What value can private companies bring to end consumers when they're buying from the same public producer at the same base cost? This is nothing more than a disguised handout.

It's probably the first time I'm glad to hear about a government hacking into someone's phone.

So I guess that now you can make PiHole map hitster.jumboplay.com to a local address, print your own game cards and continue playing the game with the official app?

Many big investors may be too deep into this, so they prefer to extend and pretend rather than cut their (potentially massive) losses.

So, they choose to believe, lacking a better strategy. They will also try to lobby their belief into existence.

> these additional tools to keep them busy

Easy fix: Minesweeper and Solitaire should be mandatory on every police computer.

> It is clear from the beginning that the Chinese Open Model are a proxy for economic warfare.

I mean, what would you expect? Like USA isn't openly planning to weaponize their current AI primacy [1, 2].

[1] https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/07/prom...

[2] https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Americ...

The idea that "a known ISIS terrorist" could roam the UK without US consent is rather amusing. But yes, something is really, really wrong in Europe. /s

Tech bros can be real whiners when denied unfettered access to our savings.

> a British start-up focused on surveillance

Good for the British people then, and kudos to ESG. As if the UK doesn't have enough surveillance as it is.

Of course. But the idea that you can arm yourself to the point where you can stop any and all attacks is an imperial folly.

> but unfortunately you don't always get a choice

Arguably USA does have this choice, by virtue of sitting across the ocean.

Is there a directory of private equity acquisitions? Maybe even a browser extension that flags the websites of acquired companies.

Such acquisitions are often due to founders cashing out or retiring, and the first thing private equity does is switch gears to "extraction mode". As such, I would think twice before (a) making a long-term commitment to their services, or (b) spending time applying for a job there.

And centaurs!

Addendum to the content of Bullshit Jobs [1]:

"Stakeholder" ranks #1 among corporate bullshit roles. It serves a dual purpose: (a) representing a group so nobody can be blamed for excluding them, and (b) providing typically useless feedback so that the group appears to actually care or have a clue.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullshit_Jobs

Or a banana. Mario Kart suddenly starts making sense.

It matters a lot, when playing Top Trumps [1].

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Top_Trumps

With such a powerful suction system, I can see this replacing street-sweeping trucks in a few years.

Sounds like a positive and well meaning legislation, right? Well, wrong!

It's no secret that the current Greek administration has been in cahoots with the local energy cartel. In 2022, they amended Article 171 of Law 4951/2022 to allow 40-year rights of use over public land to be granted to renewable energy installations via direct contract awards [1]. This has led to an out-of-control expansion of wind farms [2], with suspected links to wildfires [3] ("mountain burns, wind farm pops up" has been a common pattern in recent years).

And of course, allowing them to build is one thing. Being profitable is another. But thankfully, the government has been turning a blind eye to the cartel's collusion [4]. But maybe that's not enough, so this new legislation is the next act: mandating renewables for data centers, so that demand for the power produced by wind turbines will be artificially high.

[1] https://www.e-nomothesia.gr/index.php/nomos-4951-2022-phek-1...

[2] https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20220211-turbine-tortu...

[3] https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1312087/wind-farms-investi...

[4] https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/energy/1286346/eu-sees-...

FYI, countries are made up too.

Being cut off from payment at a click of a switch is already happening. I can name at least 3 people off the top of my head that have been de-banked in western countries (USA, UK, Italy) simply for speaking out in favour of the "wrong" cause.

Democratic states need to constitutionally enshrine the right to banking, if they insist on being called democratic.

The bank still charges 2 SEK / transaction (~$0.2). This is a free handout to the banks, which already profit from keeping your money in their books. It's also a fee that affects mostly small vendors.

I think disempowering public education at every possible level has been covertly pushed for the past 30+ years under different pretenses. There's a lot of money to be made in private schooling...

The funny thing is that it's the parents who demand that their kids behave when they start paying a pretty penny for their schooling, while when it was "free", they let them run wild and put the blame on the (underpaid) teacher.

Zero tolerance also means zero opportunity for the minor to improve and learn. School is also for learning how to function in society, not simply to study the curriculum.

Not to mention that such sanctions end up being applied in a very selective and classist way. Try to send a kid from an affluent family to reform school, and you will have their parents, their parents' friends, the local council, and the local MP on your neck, trying to sway you. But it's "rules are rules" for the kid from the single-parent family who works 10h to make ends meet.

Small electric city cars are convenience mobility for affluent consumers, not a proper car proposition.

I want a car that I can also comfortably drive to the beach, or to the next town. And also looks good, and comes in colors other than black/white/beige.