I hope someday someone will spill the beans and tell us how big the percentage of free credit users is/was of the total usage. It has to be sizeable.

George Orwell had a few choice words about pacifism when the world was last this threatened by fascists.

"Pacifism is objectively pro-Fascist. This is elementary common sense. If you hamper the war effort of one side you automatically help that of the other."

RECOMMENDATION: The #Baltic region countries and #Ukraine, perhaps augmented by like-minded countries like South #Korea, should begin a joint R&D program to develop #nuclear weapons and their delivery systems, and the required infrastructure.

The goal: a credible independent "minimum #deterrent."

Apple’s new sci-fi series “Murderbot” to make global debut May 16, 2025 Today, Apple TV+ unveiled a first look at “Murderbot,” created by Chris and Paul Weitz and starring Alexander Skarsgård

I have been so excited since I found out this would be announced today! RIP any ability for me to concentrate: www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2...

Screenshot from "Letter from our correspondent" in "Papua New Guinea Courier"

The Papua New Guinea Courier is in rare form.

Osmo Soininvaara?

US influence and standing in the world will wane in the Trump years, empowering China. Not intentionally, but very effectively. Some examples. (Thread)

I fail to understand how that fixes the big disparity: democrats have complex policy solutions to problems. Populists are always offering easy solutions to complex problems, and no one seems to hold them accountable when these solutions fail. I don't see you offering a solution to this.

While most of my job is about wrangling the same IT stuff as every other IT person encounters every day (firewalls, access rights and MDM settings), sometimes it is nice to see these images that remind me that we are enabling our colleagues to send and manage actual satellites to/in space.

YouTube video by Jean-Louis Charlier Paul McCartney, Sting, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, Phil Collins-Hey Jude

That is not a bad rendition, but for most star studded i have to say that is hard to beat: youtu.be/Tpr_IDKVv9k?...

But i agree with the original post, because there is absolutely no additional value created by _private_ insurance. Your argument seems to omit that word, which is kinda important.

Also, (almost) no one who is raging against the insurance companies is looking to replace the current system with out of pocket paying, it is always about the government taking over as the pooling the costs. Isn't this whole thread a strawman argument?

Forprofit insurers as the only option make the US healthcare system dysfunctional. In most of the developed world the public sector directly acting as the backstop insurer (pooling the whole nation under their plan) is a much better system. Not perfect, but better.

Still the greatest interview exchange in the history of rock and roll. Bob Dylan. Playboy Magazine. March 1966.