CRA receiving soaring volumes of objections from taxpayers, data show
The growing technical complexity of the Income Tax Act, which makes it harder for taxpayers to understand the rules and for the agency to apply them correctly, is likely one reason behind the rise in objections, Mr. O’Riordan said.But the soaring number of objections could also signal that Ottawa has put increased emphasis on tax compliance in recent years without proportionally increasing resources to help taxpayers comply with the tax code and to review disputes, he said.
theglobeandmail.com/investing/…
CRA receiving soaring volumes of objections from taxpayers, data show
Agency says the amount of requests has outpaced its ability to process the disputes in a timely mannerErica Alini (The Globe and Mail)
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Apple's Return to Intel Rumored to Extend to iPhone
Apple's Return to Intel Rumored to Extend to iPhone
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone. ...Joe Rossignol (MacRumors.com)
Berlin: Police can secretly enter homes for state trojan installation
In order to monitor encrypted communication, investigators will in future, according to the Senate draft and the Änderungen der Abgeordneten, not only be allowed to hack IT systems but also to secretly enter suspects' apartments.If remote installation of the spyware is technically not possible, paragraph 26 explicitly allows investigators to "secretly enter and search premises" in order to gain access to IT systems. In fact, Berlin is thus legalizing – as Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania did before – state intrusion into private apartments in order to physically install Trojans, for example via USB stick.
Berlin: Police can secretly enter homes for state trojan installation
To collect data from IT systems, investigators in Berlin can secretly search suspects' rooms. This is in a Police Act amendment.Stefan Krempl (heise online)
Berlin: Police can secretly enter homes for state trojan installation
cross-posted from: lemmy.zip/post/54414754
In order to monitor encrypted communication, investigators will in future, according to the Senate draft and the Änderungen der Abgeordneten, not only be allowed to hack IT systems but also to secretly enter suspects' apartments.If remote installation of the spyware is technically not possible, paragraph 26 explicitly allows investigators to "secretly enter and search premises" in order to gain access to IT systems. In fact, Berlin is thus legalizing – as Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania did before – state intrusion into private apartments in order to physically install Trojans, for example via USB stick.
Berlin: Police can secretly enter homes for state trojan installation
In order to monitor encrypted communication, investigators will in future, according to the Senate draft and the Änderungen der Abgeordneten, not only be allowed to hack IT systems but also to secretly enter suspects' apartments.If remote installation of the spyware is technically not possible, paragraph 26 explicitly allows investigators to "secretly enter and search premises" in order to gain access to IT systems. In fact, Berlin is thus legalizing – as Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania did before – state intrusion into private apartments in order to physically install Trojans, for example via USB stick.
Berlin: Police can secretly enter homes for state trojan installation
To collect data from IT systems, investigators in Berlin can secretly search suspects' rooms. This is in a Police Act amendment.Stefan Krempl (heise online)
What makes Maduro an dictator? He's popularly supported, was democratically elected, and is setting up participatory systems in the economy. I can agree that he's "authoritarian" against capitalists and fascists, but that's absolutely a good use of authority.
Secondly, there's no evidence to the notion that "power corrupts," just correlation. In systems like capitalism, corrupt leaders are pushed upwards because that's profitable, it wasn't the power that corrupted them but a system that selects for corruption.
Tell the cryptofash on MeanwhileOnGrad that they're a hoot, btw.
- They have a “tankie”-punching community, but we’re the brigaders?
- That comm is way more censorious than we’ve ever been. Wrongthink is an instant permaban.
The Marxist definition of imperialism is more specific than just "big country invade small country".
In, Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism Lenin lays out five aspects of what makes Imperialism:
- the concentration of production and capital has developed to such a high stage that it has created monopolies which play a decisive role in economic life;
- the merging of bank capital with industrial capital, and the creation, on the basis of this “finance capital”, of a financial oligarchy;
- the export of capital as distinguished from the export of commodities acquires exceptional importance;
- the formation of international monopolist capitalist associations which share the world among themselves, and
- the territorial division of the whole world among the biggest capitalist powers is completed. Imperialism is capitalism at that stage of development at which the dominance of monopolies and finance capital is established; in which the export of capital has acquired pronounced importance; in which the division of the world among the international trusts has begun, in which the division of all territories of the globe among the biggest capitalist powers has been completed.
The question of "Is Russia Imperialist" isn't a moral one, it's a technical one. So if Russia were do to something that we all agree is morally reprehensible, that's a separate concern from whether Russia is imperialist.
The technicality revolves around whether Russia has developed an oligarchy of Financial Capital, such that its invasion of Ukraine or other flexes of its influence, perpetuates the export of Russian finance capital around the world.
As it stands now, I don't think that's currently the case, but with Marxism being a dialectal philosophy, I do wonder if this war will accelerate that merging of Bank and industrial capital that Lenin discusses. It's a Bourgeois states, and there's financial capital in there somewhere that absolutely has an interest in forming a Russian imperialism.
So when people say "Russia isn't Imperialist", this is what's being referred to. You can take it or leave it, but it's worth getting into the weeds a bit, so we aren't all talking passed each other
Agree wholeheartedly.
It should be obvious to far more people that this country should get to decide it’s own destiny. We have no idea what a Chavismo…or even Castro Cuba would have looked like unmolested. It should also be obvious that what’s feared most in the west is the success of those systems.
The thing that absolutely floors me is that Trump had a Bay of Pigs…and nobody (in the mainstream) talks about it.
Yes I have listened to his speeches and read his lefislation…that’s why I’m saying what I’m saying.
You’re citisizing things I didn’t say…I know Maduro is popular there. I don’t know how else to say it: I believe he has the best interests of the working class in mind.
Just and free while being secure: "authoritarian"
Unjust and unfree while being insecure and overrun by bears: Libertarian
❤️Through the power of love ❤️
What are your real-world examples—bourgeois “democracies”? If it’s so easy, why hasn’t it happened?
The pure socialists’ ideological anticipations remain untainted by existing practice. They do not explain how the manifold functions of a revolutionary society would be organized, how external attack and internal sabotage would be thwarted, how bureaucracy would be avoided, scarce resources allocated, policy differences settled, priorities set, and production and distribution conducted. Instead, they offer vague statements about how the workers themselves will directly own and control the means of production and will arrive at their own solutions through creative struggle. No surprise then that the pure socialists support every revolution except the ones that succeed.The pure socialists had a vision of a new society that would create and be created by new people, a society so transformed in its fundaments as to leave little opportunity for wrongful acts, corruption, and criminal abuses of state power. There would be no bureaucracy or self-interested coteries, no ruthless conflicts or hurtful decisions. When the reality proves different and more difficult, some on the Left proceed to condemn the real thing and announce that they “feel betrayed” by this or that revolution.
The pure socialists see socialism as an ideal that was tarnished by communist venality, duplicity, and power cravings. The pure socialists oppose the Soviet model but offer little evidence to demonstrate that other paths could have been taken, that other models of socialism — not created from one’s imagination but developed through actual historical experience — could have taken hold and worked better. Was an open, pluralistic, democratic socialism actually possible at this historic juncture? The historical evidence would suggest it was not.
Decentralized parochial autonomy is the graveyard of insurgency — which may be one reason why there has never been a successful anarcho-syndicalist revolution. Ideally, it would be a fine thing to have only local, self-directed, worker participation, with minimal bureaucracy, police, and military. This probably would be the development of socialism, were socialism ever allowed to develop unhindered by counterrevolutionary subversion and attack.
One might recall how, in 1918-20, fourteen capitalist nations, including the United States, invaded Soviet Russia in a bloody but unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the revolutionary Bolshevik government.
"Bourgeois Democracy": What Do Marxists Mean By This Term?
By Scott Cooper Republished from Left Voice . In 1947, Winston Churchill famously said that “democracy is the worst form of government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.Scott Cooper (Hampton Institute)
Your position is there has never been a benevolent leader? Power corrupts universally and equally? That’s nuts, quite frankly.
It’s absurd to suggest that Trump and Maduro are equivalent. They’re not equal in a single way, even if you believe they’re both bad.
Marxist does not get to exclusively define what imperialism is
Marxism isn't the only analytical lens out there, no. But the people you're arguing with are working with that definition, which is why I took the time to clarify. Thank you for appreciating my effort post though lol
It's absolutely possible to remain just and free while being secure. Skill issue.
Maybe read it again?
Yeah, I have a friend who lives in Venezuela, he and his family can barely afford to eat, and I mean barely. Beans everyday and nothing else for years. I tried to send him some computer parts and it was going to be over 5 grand to send them, so I couldn't afford that, but his pc was genuinely very low end 5 years ago and I know he hasn't been able to upgrade, especially with all the money going to his 9 other family members living in the 1 bedroom apartment.
But whatever lies you have to tell yourself to sleep at night buddy.
First comment: Responded within five minutes
Second comment: 1 hour later and nowhere to be seen
If you want to get banned just start insulting people like the op.
additionally feel free to let your fashy friends know that I'm on payroll for both Putin AND Xi for my sfw online posting activities. I also collect checks from George Soros for in-person work that upsets conservatives.
it's important to have multiple income streams 💅
I've started tagging every single one i see. I should write them all down lol
The insatiable fascist urge to make lists of leftists
Venezuelan communes and participatory democracy is flourishing. In addition, massive social programs have been implemented, focusing on housing, food security, and poverty eradication
I think this really needs to be stressed. Venezuela is a country building Socialism. Maduro and the PSUV is in power because of a genuinely incredible mass movement of communes, neighborhood committees, and other organs of grassroots democracy. This is qualitatively different from say, any of the Gulf oil monarchies
I highly recommend the books Building The Commune: Radical Democracy in Venezuela, and Commune or Nothing: Venezuela's Communal Movement and Its Socialist Project, for a look at these aspects of Venezuelan politics, because it's often papered over in discussions about the country.
Building the Commune: Radical Democracy in Venezuela (Jacobin) - Anna’s Archive
George Ciccariello-Maher [Ciccariello-Maher, George] A Journey Through Venezuela's Experiments In Radical Democracy, After The Age Of Chavez. Since 2011, Verso Booksannas-archive.org
Well that was a lot of credulous Lemmy users. I should spend less time debunking imperial talking points and more time selling these people bridges. I’m leaving money on the table.
Some of them even fired up their dusty old alt accounts to vote multiple times.
aggression with an expansionist agenda.
especially by a country and especially unprovoked.
Economically or militarily.
D-day wouldn't be included because the goal wasn't expansion. Though I would be very surprised if the usa and Europe hadn't perpetrated many acts that should be included during the full course of the war.
And of course you can get into the argument of cultural imperialism as well
For sure, but there are a few problems with that definition. The first is that it doesn't apply to the Russian intervention in Ukraine that started this conversation, which is neither unprovoked nor being done to expand Russian territory.
The second is that it only includes atate actions meant to take territory in an official capacity, while many imperialist actions have been carried out under the auspices of private companies like Haliburton, Dole, the United Fruit Company, and the Dutch East India Company.
The third is that we already have the term Expansionist, which is perfectly fine and general enough for both capitalist and non-capitalist actions, while Imperialism describes a specific dynamic that arises from specifically capitalist causes.
The second is that it only includes atate actions meant to take territory in an official capacity, while many imperialist actions have been carried out under the auspices of private companies like Haliburton, Dole, the United Fruit Company, and the Dutch East India Company.
For the record, my stated definition does not limit it. When "especially" is used in definitions, it's not stated as a limiter but rather to show it primarily applies to as such.
which is neither unprovoked nor being done to expand Russian territory
This is a fundamental disagreement. Especially in regards to saying it's not to expand their territory as a goal.
One interesting thing I find with lemmy. Is equating ownership existing with capitalism. Presumably because that's how it's portrayed in communist literature.
D-day wouldn’t be included because the goal wasn’t expansion.
Wasn't it? They intended to take German territory to expand France, Belgium, the Netherlands, etc.
Power corrupts.
A meaningless platitude; as baseless as saying that lightning never strikes the same place twice. Liberals just think it's true because they've created a system where people who were already corrupt gain power.
The only true answer is not play,
Yeah man, people should just "not play" real life. Fuck me, Western liberals really are the most privileged fuckers: all just a game to them.
You’ll notice that there are no real arguments that he isn’t a authoritarian/dictator.
???.
Other than the arguments people are making that he was democratically elected. Those are objectively arguments, regardless of your feelings on them.
Maduro absolutely is an authoritarian
Name one country that is oppositional to the West that you don't "consider" authoritarian.
The problem is thinking you can have fair elections under extreme duress from sanctions. The whole purpose of those sanctions is to destroy as much as possible the democratic aspect, as the US itself admits.
From the official Office of the Historian US Gvt website, a key document regarding the logic behind the embargo in Cuba:
The majority of Cubans support Castro (the lowest estimate I have seen is 50 percent). [...]Communist influence is pervading the Government and the body politic at an amazingly fast rate.
Militant opposition to Castro from without Cuba would only serve his and the communist cause.
The only foreseeable means of alienating internal support is through disenchantment and disaffection based on economic dissatisfaction and hardship.
If the above are accepted or cannot be successfully countered, it follows that every possible means should be undertaken promptly to weaken the economic life of Cuba. If such a policy is adopted, it should be the result of a positive decision which would call forth a line of action which, while as adroit and inconspicuous as possible, makes the greatest inroads in denying money and supplies to Cuba, to decrease monetary and real wages, to bring about hunger, desperation and overthrow of government.
The entire point of the blockade in Cuba, and by extension Venezuela, is that the people DO support their government, and the ONLY way to make them waver in their support is to make them literally starve.
Two things can be true at the same time. Maduro can be a dictator and the US can exerciser its military power illegally and attempt to intimidate and topple him.
Both can be true at the same time.
Both can be true at the same time.
They can also not be, brainiac. Despite what Redditors may think, vagueposting is not an argument.
Well, the friends are right, because he is a dictator.
Which is still better than whatever USA has in store for Venezuela.
And which absolutely doesn't justify slaughtering Venezuelan civilians.
This is a vicious cycle of falling back to dictatorship to avoid imperialism, or some of it.
A) The country opens up and holds free elections, leading to an American puppet winning and the country turning into a vassal state at best, a glorified colony at worst.
B) The country turns into a dictatorship to limit foreign influence and fight back against imperialism, becoming a similarly terrible place to live, but at least without giving anything to the empire. Also note that as time passes, it's quite likely that the dictatorship will forget why it was even created, i.e. it will no longer be about rejecting imperialism.
There are often the only two realistic scenarios for countries targetted by the American Empire. Both are bad and I'm not sure I feel like analyzing which one is slightly less bad for the average person.
Chavez in his first few months/year of being in office would be a good example of a non-authoritarian in that role.
My problem with Maduro and many of those in the post early days of Chavez taking over is that far too many seem to have a tremendous amount of money that they cannot explain how they came across legally. Executives at PVDSA, the state run petroleum company, seem to be extremely vulnerable to this corruption.
You can make the case that dictatorships/authoritarian structures are needed to protect a socialist revolution, which Im not sure I entirely agree with, without supporting the theft of state resources by people in the government.
Venezuela is not a nice place to live in.
Hmm, I wonder why? 🤔
democracynow.org/2019/4/26/hea…
Report: U.S. Sanctions Have Killed 40,000 in Venezuela Since 2017
More than 40,000 people have died in Venezuela since 2017 as a result of U.S. sanctions. That’s the conclusion of a new report by the Center for Economic and Policy Research and the economist Jeffrey Sachs. The report examines how U.S.Democracy Now!
The country went to shit before Chavez died as a result of many backing away from trade as a result of US demands as well as a slew of bad policy choices that turned them from a food exporting nation to one that imported food which collapsed the economy. Chavez and Maduro instituted price controls which have harmed the agricultural economy significantly which further harmed things.
That being said while their results were bad their intentions were good which is not going to be true of whatever puppet government the USA would install.
It's okay that they think Maduro is a dictator. That's not a crazy idea, to be fair, but I believe it's a debatable idea, since parties in democracy may get overwhelming support, to the point, the leader of the State can accumulate enormous power. But I struggle to call it a dictatorship or an authoritarian regime, until they start changing laws so they can benefit from them directly without the stated support of the people by referendum. I honestly believe Maduro would have been out by now if it wasn't for the antagonism of the USA and their pets.
It's easier for me to call Bukele a dictator. He kind of bent the law, exercising his authoritarian faculties, so the authorities could allow him to have a license from his presidential duties in order to participate in presidential elections. How can anyone forget another symbolic fact? One time, in 2020, Bukele did enter the Legislative House guarded by soldiers and sat on the chair of the President of this power to make some speech. Dictators accommodate well enough to hegemonies since they will accept anything as long as they remain in power. They don't defend sovereignty, they just defend their position.
In the case of my country, we really can't be called a dictatorship, because reelection was banned by historical lessons. The USA plays a familiar game with us, they call it a narco state, instead. I wonder what's the third option in the CIA manual.
The fact is price controls are terrible policy and have never worked because we cannot predict the future needs of the market. Unless we magically get vastly better AI that runs the entire economy it is unlikely price controls will ever work so when Chavez instituted them it lead to a collapse of the agriculture sector leading to hunger issues.
Some of the economic problems were self created because many leftists have zero formal economic backgrounds and thus have trouble separating reasons for factual historical failures of specific leftist policies, like price controls or rent control being extremely problematic historically speaking, vs what is merely capitalist propaganda eg "capitalism is the only system that works" which isn't true historically speaking.
Some of the economic problems were self created because many leftists have zero formal economic backgrounds
That may well be, but at the same time, most economists in the world have a garbage education in neoclassical economics and carry neoliberal brain worms.
It isn't groundbreaking to say that people can be corrupt to different degrees. What you failed to do is provide any meaningful explanation for why you believe Maduro to be corrupt, authoritarian, a dictator, etc. We gave ample evidence pointing to his popular support, the robust system of democracy in Venezuela, the rising commune movement and participatory economy, etc, while you called us bad-faith.
To me, it looks like you think yourself above having to back up your claims and as outside of the conversation looking in, rather than actually communicating with us. This is compounded by your commenting both here and on the MWoG threads, a known cryptofash gathering spot. Is this behavior of yours "good faith" in your eyes?
The Russian RSFR, the Paris Commune, The Bavarian soviet Republic, The Rhine Soviet Republic, The Hungarian Socialist Republic, socialist Cuba, socialist Vietnam, socialist Laos...
Turns out you don't knwo what you're talking about! All of them were immediately invaded, their opposition showered in material support and sanctioned to hell and back.
It's disappointing that for years the up/downvote rhetoric has been for what really adds to the conversation and I find this reply more according to the reality from the PV of someone that is not Venezuelan but has roots and friends there but most importantly that we're not part of the meme, just average people that don't wish for anyone what means to live there as the average or below.
I do remember when I was a child and had the joy of go to Venezuela and to have fun on vacations, now I it's not joy but the feeling of accomplish humanitarian labor and donations to average and poor Venezuelans that at first supported the socialism that Chávez sold them and later Maduro, Cabello and others continue in a nonsense of left political system.
If someone downvote replies citing sources from the Venezuelan diaspora, let me remind you that that diaspora is not 100% from the people of this post meme but real Venezuelans that have left/lost almost everything because of really bad politics and actions of Chávez, Maduro and others that surprise: the last presidential election didn't got official acts published.
Rich people love dictators, as long as it's their chosen dictator.
I once worked with a guy from a wealthy family who had to escape Venezuela after Maduro took power. His family hated him, of course, because they'd become rich under the old system, but now they were in America, and he had to work a real job. He flat out told me that he felt like the best governmental system is when 5% of the population is wealthy, and 95% is dirt poor. Of course, he'd been one of the 5%.
had to escape Venezuela after Maduro took powerthey'd become rich under the old system
.... They didn't flee from Chavez? What's the timeline here?
“Calling out Trump” is clearly a rhetorical tactic to distract from your incorrect assessment of Maduro. It should be noted that you’re aligned with Trump when you say that, and it should give you pause.
You don’t seem to remember your own comment. You used the most extreme straw man, adorned with sarcasm, to asses Maduro…there was no reality in your reply.
Meh, the fact that you think you’re talking to liberals is pretty amusing. Why defend an argument when you can attack the messenger, right?
Exclusive: ICC shuns US demands to drop Israel war crimes probe and amend treaty
The oversight body of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has shunned US demands for the court to drop its investigation into Israeli war crimes and to amend its founding treaty to prevent the prosecution of nationals from countries that do not recognise the court’s jurisdiction, Middle East Eye can reveal.
In a statement issued on Wednesday after its annual meeting in The Hague earlier this week, the Assembly of States Parties (ASP) vowed to uphold the integrity of the Rome Statute and said it was “gravely concerned” by threats and coercive measures targeting the court.
Diplomats speaking on the sidelines of the event told MEE that the Trump administration had tried to exert further pressure on the ICC in the leadup to the ASP meeting by calling on the court to drop its investigations into war crimes in Palestine and Afghanistan as a condition for lifting sanctions.
The US also called on member states to amend the Rome Statute to prohibit prosecutions of citizens of non-signatory states, a move that would have effectively granted immunity to American and Israeli nationals. An amendment of that nature would also end the Ukraine investigation into alleged war crimes by Russia, a non-member of the ICC.
Exclusive: ICC shuns US demands to drop Israel war crimes probe and amend treaty
The oversight body of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has shunned US demands for the court to drop its investigation into Israeli war crimes and to amend its founding treaty to prevent the prosecution of nationals from countries that do not re…Sondos Asem (Middle East Eye)
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Hon Chan, B.C. Conservative MLA for Richmond Centre, expressed concerns about the broad definition of reckless driving.According to the bill, reckless driving could include late left turns in some cases, driving too closely behind another driver on the highway and driving behaviour that intentionally prevents another driver from passing.
I see the concern. Unsafe driving of those types is extremely common in Richmond. Those are driving decisions fully under the driver’s control, and illegal. If someone is intentionally doing something illegal under a government issued license, a temporary suspension while being investigated sounds entirely reasonable to me.
However, I can also see how easily it could be weaponized by an officer. Seems to me the suspension should be handled just like a speeding ticket — still disputable in court.
At least 11 killed in South Africa mass shooting
At least 11 killed in South Africa mass shooting
Gunmen stormed a hostel near Pretoria and opened fire, killing 11 people including a three-year-old.Jessica Rawnsley (BBC News)
illegal drinking establishments, where mass shootings are common?
police shut down 12,000 such premises outlets between April and September this year
Why is licensing bars so difficult, and why is there such "anger" over them? Sounds almost like 1930s US prohibition, where organized crime (police???) are intimidating for protection?
One of the very few businesses excluded from the municipal licence exemption.
Cannot start a watering hole without the municipality's blessings (some money needs to grease the wheels).
But basically led to a lot of underground drinking spots. They were a godsend during COVID lockdowns, any sale of alcohol was prohibited, there was some guy that was killed by the military when they found him drinking a beer in his own yard (which technically was legal).
But yeah some stupid alcohol rules here in SA, not all for example drinking and driving, but most
Sudo Clean Up My Workbench
Sudo Clean Up My Workbench
[Engineezy] might have been watching a 3D printer move when inspiration struck: Why not build a robot arm to clean up his workbench? Why not, indeed? Well, all you need is a 17-foot-long X-axis and…Hackaday
Michelle Yeoh, Jamie Lee Curtis – „Everything everywhere all at once“ (2022)
Ein Multiversum auf Speed – und Michelle Yeoh, die mit stoischer Ruhe durch alle Dimensionen stolpert. Ein Bagel verschluckt jede Existenz, eine Steuerbeamtin als Wrestling-Ikone des Behördenalltags, und die Daniels, Kwan und Scheinert, lassen die Genregrenzen so fröhlich explodieren, dass Hollywood alle traditionellen Regeln vergessen musste. Absurd, anarchisch, liebevoll und zutiefst menschlich zugleich, ich liebe einfach alles an diesem Film! (ARD, Wh.)
Zum Blog: nexxtpress.de/mediathekperlen/…
Ethical consumption, 1860
[orange character is smiling smugly, doing a finger gun, in front of the "1860 WEEKLY SLAVE MARKET" in which a crowd of people are browsing slaves, while some slaves ask "please help…"]
There is no ethical consumption under capitalism bro, everything is equally bad
I won't stop buying slaves until the state compels me not to, until then to each their own and let's agree to disagree and I'll have you know my family needs their labor
It's great that you can live without slaves though, keep being an anti-slavery activist it's awesome!
You're the best!
thebad.website/comic/no_ethica…
No ethical consumption | The Bad Website
No ethical consumption - A comic on The Bad WebsiteThe Bad Website
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I dont really know what to make of this mene, but this isnt really what 'no ethical consumption' is intended to communicate.
The challenge isn't to abstain from unethical practices directly like owning a slave yourself, the challenge is to avoid consumption that involves exploitative structures at all. It's a structural critique, not an individualized one - exploitation is so pervasive in capitalist production that it's nearly impossible to avoid entirely even if you're an activist with complete knowledge and can dedicate a large amount of energy perfecting ethical consumption
It bothers me how cynical this meme is, honestly.
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Sure, except a part of the critique is an acknowledgement that exploitation begets exploitation - most of the working class has only a limited amount of time, resources, or energy to participate in this level of market research before buying anything.
I find this satire to be similar to Milton Freedman libertarians who think consumers should simply know what theyre buying instead of having government consumer protections.
I'm not criticizing people who struggle to navigate exploitative systems.
Rather satirizing some bad faith individuals who use the excuse as a blank check to justify obviously unethical choices.
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I just dont think it's ever really that clear-cut.
Be kind to people, but be ruthless to systems.
Be kind to people, but be ruthless to systems
First I've heard this, really like it. Thanks.
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Michael Brooks and the Meaning of Socialist Internationalism
Michael Brooks’s ability to understand and analyze the similarities among authoritarians across the globe meant that he had little time for narratives that sought to portray non-Western culture as the source of barbarism and authoritarian rule.jacobin.com
This looks like a twist of what I call the "cat shit problem":
A cat shitting on your front yard is bad. But an elephant doing it is even worse. Both are shit and you want neither; but elephant shit is a considerably worse problem.
However, every bloody single time this subject pops up, you'll see two sets of muppets:
- "They're both shit, so there's no difference."
- "Elephant shit is worse, so cat shit is not shit."
So. The orange guy in your comic is in the first set.
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Sure, but the point of that idea is that capitalist exploitation can't be addressed through personal consumption choices to begin with.
I guess fine, that person is making a shitty choice. But moralizing over consumption habits is pretty counterproductive IMO.
Sure, but the point of that idea is that capitalist exploitation can't be addressed through personal consumption choices to begin with.
That's valid as long as it isn't used as an excuse to consume.
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people who interpret “no ethical consumption under capitalism” as a license to do whatever they want, because it’s all unethical.
Have you actually encountered someone who did this? Everyone I've ever known of who was in the 'do whatever they want' mindset, certainly wasn't because of how they interpreted that 'slogan', it was just because they don't give a shit to begin with—they almost certainly had never even heard it before.
I'm confused, didn't you answer your own question?
there are people who use that as an excuse to do whatever they like. they don't care
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I’m confused, didn’t you answer your own question?
No, there is a difference in motivation between doing whatever you want because you believe it's hopeless re 'consuming ethically', and doing whatever you want because you've never given a single thought to the matter of 'ethical consumption' at all.
My contention is simply that the vast majority of people who 'do whatever' are in the latter category, that's all.
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"liberation is when authoritarians operate via pieces of paper and text on a screen to purchase access to violence to exploit the workers"
— right-wing and adjacent "libertarians"
Now live in the 1850s US and try to buy a pair of underwear whose production didn't involve slavery at some point in the chain.
The problem is the same as it's ever been - supply chains are complicated.
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Yeah but this also works on a lot of vegan substitutes and staples.
Quinoa is a good example in that its popularity amongst american vegans and health food enjoyer's (myself included) caused damages to local food supplies in poorer countries. Forcing south american and I think African communities to consume shitty processed flour with little to know access to the same nutrients and proteins of quinoa.
TBH, I don't know how bad this still is, I haven't followed it for a while. But the point I think is that the industrial scale food production chain is always going to be questionable ethically.
And if you chose the local only route of going to farmers markets only you're probably limiting yourself to the point of risking malnutrition on a vegan diet (love my local FM, but they do not have beans in the quantity I eat them) and, based on my interactions with all the Kentucky Farmers I've met, you're probably financially supporting a fascism supporter.
The point of "No ethical consumption" I think has always been that things are very complicated supply chain wise and it will take a LOT of work to beat the system. I believe that was intended to make the people trying feel better when they can't possibly beat the system. But you're right, people take it to an extreme and justify not even trying.
There's a "The Good Place" moment where a guy gets sent to the Bad Place for buying flowers for his dying mom. The joke being that the flowers were harvested by slaves and flown on a plane causing un told pollution (I never actually watched the show, just saw the clip on a meme board at some point). But that's the consequences of "doing good" under capitalism. We just don't know how bad it is to do good all the time.
Using of KI Pictures with perchance.org.
Judge says referendum proposal on Alberta independence would be unconstitutional
An Alberta judge says a referendum proposal on Alberta separating from Canada goes against Charter and Treaty rights, in a decision given less than 24 hours after the provincial government introduced legislation that would have ended the court proceeding.
The province's Bill 14, which was introduced Thursday, would end court action on the issue once it came into effect. The proposed bill would allow citizen initiatives to go ahead even if they might violate the Constitution.
Court of King's Bench Justice Colin Feasby, who has listened to several days of arguments about the independence proposal, had sharp words for the government move to change the law.
"Legislating to pre-emptively end this court proceeding disrespects the administration of justice," he said in the Calgary Court of King's Bench on Friday.
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Why Danielle Smith's government is not withstanding many court challenges
It’s been hard to keep track of how many legal challenges and active court proceedings the United Conservative government has tried to quash or pre-emptively block in the last six weeks, but let’s try to tally:
- The notwithstanding clause to thwart separate constitutional challenges by the Canadian Medical Association (1) and 2SLGBTQ+ advocacy groups (2) against Alberta’s ban on some transgender youth health care.
- Notwithstanding clause against those advocacy groups’ challenge against the school pronouns law (3).
- Notwithstanding clause against any potential challenges against the ban on transgender women in women’s sports (4).
- Notwithstanding clause against teachers’ potential challenge to the strike-ending and imposed contract (5).
- Bill 12’s provision to block public sector pensions from suing over the Alberta wealth management fund’s past trading losses (6).
And then the measure in this week’s Bill 14 designed to discontinue the court hearing about the constitutionality of a citizen’s initiative petition for Alberta separation from Canada (7).
One could argue there’s an eighth case the UCP government’s legislation would nullify if passed — one filed by the United Conservative Party itself. That would be the governing party’s lawsuit against two of its former MLAs who had applied with Elections Alberta to rebrand the Alberta Party as the Progressive Conservative Party.
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Arnold Schwarzenegger – „Running Man“ (1987)
Hätte ich damals geahnt, dass dieser Film einmal wie eine Gebrauchsanleitung für eine Gegenwart, die sich selbst als Reality-Show inszeniert, wirken würde. Dann hätte ich sicher besser aufgepasst. Damals konnte ich das aber nicht. Das grelle Neon, der Schaumstoffkitsch, die überzeichneten Muskelkörper. Die gesamte Oberfläche dieses Films hat mich Arthouse-Snob damals abgestoßen. Dabei lag darunter aber ein Film über ein Amerika, auf das wir damals einfach noch nicht vorbereitet waren. Ein Amerika, das seine Entertainment-Industrie zu einem Werkzeug politischer Machtausübung gemacht hat. Kaum 40 Jahre später sehe ich das komplett anders. (ARD, Wh.)
Zum Blog: nexxtpress.de/mediathekperlen/…
UltraPlot -- a succinct wrapper for matplotlib
Hi everyone,
I’m trying to raise awareness of UltraPlot — a succinct wrapper for Matplotlib. The project is aimed at scientists and researchers who need to create professional, publication-ready figures while keeping their code expressive and minimal.
UltraPlot provides tools that simplify many common but cumbersome plotting tasks, including:
- subplot sharing and layout management
- panel and grid organization
- automatic subplot tagging
- easy geo plotting and better GeoAxes handling
- and many other quality-of-life features for complex figures
If you regularly work with Matplotlib and want a cleaner, more structured plotting workflow, UltraPlot might be helpful.
Checkout our docs at ultraplot.readthedocs.io/
or star us on github: github.com/Ultraplot/UltraPlot…
GitHub - Ultraplot/UltraPlot: A succinct wrapper for matplotlib
A succinct wrapper for matplotlib. Contribute to Ultraplot/UltraPlot development by creating an account on GitHub.GitHub
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I came ready to hate with bias because I often don't like wrappers, but at least the .format seems like an objective improvement.
But I never understood why matplotlib insists on ax, fig and that's still in there...
Directly working with matplotlib classes tends to be more clear and concise than pyplot, makes things easier when working with multiple figures and axes, and is certainly more “pythonic”.
I disagree.
Looks like a solid project overall! Thanks for your effort!
Thanks for not burning us to the ground immediately😉!
Since we don't intend to replace matplotlib, we still inherent the quicks but intend to smooth those out. For example we provide a custom gridspec that allows for 2d slicing (or linear slicing); layouts by default are flexible and sharing where it makes sense.
I do wonder, what would the alternative look like for the standard `fig, ax‘ paradigm? I am aware of plotly's approach, but am willing to explore other options.
ML applications are much better supported in Python, but for anything statistics related I would rather use R.
Fooling IoT devices as if they have internet access is it possible? (Yeelight minas ceiling light goes unavailable after physical switch-off without internet.)
I have recently enforced a better privacy practice for my smart home devices, that includes creating a new access point for those devices and blocking them of internet access with VLAN.
Since then, my yeelight minas celiing lights goes unavailable whenever I physically switch them off and turn them on afterwards.
One really stupid thing is it needs internet access for using LAN control feature. it's really really dumb.
but at the same time, in this kind of age where everything wants to phone their home, i need to somehow mitigate this in every possible way such as by fooling the devices as if they have access to the internet.
Is this kind of things possible?
thanks!
A blog requires a platform designed for blogging. Staying within the realm of federated software, the three natural alternatives are:
1) WordPress, which, thanks to the plugin that makes it compatible with Activitypub, has achieved a level of perfect integration with the Fediverse.
2) Ghost, which, federated a few months ago, is not only a blogging platform but is also specifically designed for creating mailing lists based on the Substack model.
3) Writefreely, which, despite being natively federated, is extremely focused on distraction-free writing and therefore has some seriously limiting features.
Friendica
As for Friendica, I'm a huge fan of that software and manage the second-most active instance in the entire Fediverse. I can assure you that I know it well and appreciate all its most important features. But don't be fooled by the fact that some call it macro-blogging software. In fact, if you visit a Friendica account's profile, it's not possible to filter the Timeline of their posts from the Timeline of the posts they've reshared. So, you could virtually create a page like this:
But you could only do that if you don't share too much other content, otherwise the result would be like this:
which would be much more confusing 😅
However, Friendica is a very powerful software that allows you to republish your blog feed, as well as automatically reshare your federated blogs. Here I've listed some very interesting Friendica features for blogging:
poliverso.org/display/0477a01e…
So, to recap, if you want to use Friendica to create your blog, you can: you can create a new account. Remember to define it as a "page account," if possible, but also remember that when you reshare content you like, it will appear on your profile page.
However, if you don't need the full suite of tools that characterize a social media platform, you're better off using WordPress.
Sharkey
We're talking about software with a very nice interface, but it's still a social networking software. Being essentially a fork of Misskey, it also has a section for creating static pages that can be easily viewed from outside the Fediverse, but these pages can't be federated with Activitypub 😭.
Ultimately, it seems even less suitable for creating a blog.
If you absolutely must use a Fediverse social media platform, then you'd be better off going with Friendica!
Hubzilla
PS: There's also a software called Hubzilla, which is compatible with Activitypub, although it has developed its own communication protocol. I'm only mentioning it because it's a feature-rich and well-designed product, but its interface is quite complex and unfriendly, so although I've chosen to mention it, I can't recommend it as an alternative.
Ho già un blog: a cosa potrebbe servirmi Friendica?
Friendica è un social molto particolare che consente di scrivere post lunghi, formattati, con immagini in linea e dotati di un vero titolo; inoltre presenta alcune primitive funzionalità di pubblicazione programmata che ricordano quelle delle piattaforme di blogging più utilizzate.
Ecco perché chi usa Friendica è spesso un utente proveniente da Mastodon, un sistema che con le sue limitazioni permette una fruizione passiva del Fediverso piuttosto completa, ma una capacità di pubblicazione attiva decisamente limitata.
Oggi cerchiamo di capire perché Friendica potrebbe essere una soluzione utile anche per chi possiede già un blog e che quindi dispone già di sistemi di pubblicazione avanzati o, addirittura, sta utilizzando piattaforme già federate, come Writefreely o come Wordpress con il fantastico plugin Activitypub for Wordpress.1) Impostare il proprio account Friendica per fare in modo che ricondivida automaticamente i post pubblicati dal proprio blog
Per attivare questa funzionalità (che funzionerà solo se il blog dispone di un feed RSS o se è federato con il Fediverso), è sufficiente inserire l'indirizzo del blog nella casella di ricerca di Friendica e premere il pulsante "Cerca". A quel punto bisognerà seguire il blog, che comparirà come un qualsiasi altro contatto, e selezionare tra le opzioni del contatto "Duplica come miei messaggi" (per i blog non federati) o "Ricondivisione nativa" (per i blog federati).
2) Sopperire alle mancanze di un blog Writefreely.
Writefreely è infatti la piattaforma di pubblicazione federata più semplice ma, nel suo obiettivo "distrazioni zero", l'utente che pubblica un post su Writefreely, in caso di risposta da parte di un qualsiasi utente del Fediverso, non solo non riceverà alcuna notifica ma addirittura non potrà vedere le risposte a meno che non disponga di un'utenza social. Per questo motivo consigliamo a tutti coloro che abbiano un'utenza social di inserire in fondo al post a mo' di firma il proprio identificativo social nella forma @nomeutente@istanza: in tal modo, chi risponderà al post Writefreely, risponderà anche a quell'indirizzo del fediverso. Purtroppo però l'utente, nella propria risposta, potrebbe anche cancellare il secondo indirizzo, per cui non ci sarebbe più alcuna possibilità di venire allertati su quella risposta! Proprio qui ci viene in aiuto Friendica: infatti, utilizzando il sistema spiegato nel punto 1), ossia la ricondivisione automatica, Friendica ci farà avere anche una notifica ogni volta che qualcuno risponde al post che il sistema ha ricondiviso! Questa limitazione di Writefreely può essere estesa a tutti i blog federati che hanno deliberatamente disattivato le risposte degli utenti: in quei casi, le risposte ci saranno lo stesso e saranno visibili dal Fediverso, solo che non verranno "viste" dal blogger.
3) Creare o usare un gruppo Friendica tematico
Un gruppo Friendica tematico (una sorta a metà tra una lista di distribuzione e un gruppo Facebook) che possa essere "menzionato" da tutti i blog Wordpress federati (il blog dovrà "seguire" il gruppo Friendica, una funzionalità prevista nei plugin di Wordpress). In tal modo, quando un post menziona il gruppo Friendica, il gruppo Friendica ricondividerà il post a favore di tutti coloro che già seguono il gruppo.
PS: approfittiamo per far sapere a tutti i nostri follower che esistono due account dedicati a chi è interessato ai blog federati
1) Il primo è @Il blogverso italiano di Wordpress dedicato a tutti i blog italiani wordpress che si sono federati attraverso il fantastico plugin sviluppato da @Matthias Pfefferle
Chiunque sia interessato a essere aggiunto tra i blog ricondivisi o a segnalare un nuovo blog Wordpress federato, può farci sapere direttamente a questo account2) Il secondo è writefreely@poliverso.org dedicato ai blog italiani basati su Writefreely. L'account al momento non ricondivide i post degli account, ma rispecchia i loro feed RSS. Ah, l'account è anche un gruppo Friendica e quindi se volete segnalare nuovi blog Writefreely, potete farlo menzionando quell'account
På uppdrag av Jordbruksverket har WSP producerat en rapport om arbetsmiljön inom yrkefisket i Sverige. Flertalet av de intervjuade har varit insjöfiskare men även en del fiskare i det pelagiska och demersala fisket i havet har svarat.
fiske.zaramis.se/2025/12/06/ar…
Arbetsmiljön inom yrkesfisket - Svenssons Nyheter - Njord
Arbetsmiljön inom yrkesfisket. På uppdrag av Jordbruksverket har WSP producerat en rapport om arbetsmiljön inom yrkefisket i Sverige.Anders Svensson (Svenssons Nyheter - Njord)
T00l_shed
in reply to sbv • • •MajorMajormajormajor
in reply to T00l_shed • • •kent_eh
in reply to T00l_shed • • •Is that not already a plan that is in motion?
canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/ca…
Slow motion, admittedly, but still in some form of motion.
Offering and expanding automatic tax filing services - Canada.ca
www.canada.caT00l_shed
in reply to kent_eh • • •9488fcea02a9
in reply to T00l_shed • • •Wait... you want the gov't to do your taxes for you, instead of making it so confusing that you end up paying HR block or turbotax to help you figure it out?
that sounds like communism!!