Such a dismal tale about the UK govt: so obsessed w competing with far-right to keep out foreigners that it won’t let in the brightest & best from war-torn countries even when they’re hand-picked by the FCDO, lest they ask to stay. Soft power sacrificed, but how many Reform voters will it convert?
Normally the "digital divide" refers to *access* to tech, but as access becomes less and less of an issue, the real divide is between people who know how to defend themselves from the cruel indifference of technology designers and people who are helpless before their enshittificatory gambits.
7/
It's interesting how appliance labels have changed from 'Disconnect from mains before opening' to 'Do not open. No user seviceable parts inside.'
Besides the loss of skilled repairmen, I think there has also been a deskilling of the population through a discouragement of DIY repair for a mix of commercial and safety reasons.
with the possibility that the job could be much more time consuming than anticipated.
Exactly. I wonder to what extent the problem is a loss of skills and how much of it is an economic one - easier to just declare something dead and replace the whole appliance or to replace a whole expensive module rather than open the can of worms that is component-level repair ...
In the case of a resistor, probably only a few cents.
In many cases of dumped appliances, identifying the faulty part could have been as simple as visual inspection or a few minutes of poking about with a cheap multimeter.
Don’t forget to spread your legs instead of using the petrol car
Iceland and the Netherlands have joined Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Comoros, Cuba, Ireland, Libya, the Maldives, Mexico, Paraguay, Spain, Turkiye, as well as the State of Palestine in supporting South Africa’s case in the ICJ accusing Israel of #genocide.
aje.news/2s21hi?updat...
The problem is an apparent lack of a moral bottom line - a point at which pragmatic bending ends and a stand on principle is made.
I should add too that disillusionment largely does not come from people expecting purity. Many of those deeply frustrated with Labor recognise that compromise is need to win power and achieve change.
As in the UK, sneering at those who have become disillusioned with the party (or even disgusted by its moral flexibility) will not win them back.
Too often, it is more willing to punch down on those with little power (including those fighting on the frontlines to create a more just society) than to stand up for them.
The party, somewhere along the way, has lost its ability to articulate a bold vision for the country's future and its willingness to stand up to vested interests.
Evolution is better than revolution. However, what Labor seems to offer is often less evolution than simply tinkering around the edges of problems.
I think you misdiagnose the problem here. Many people are fed up with a status quo that does not work for them.
Too often it seems that all that is on offer is a choice between a particularly nasty neolib hellscape under the Liberals and a slightly kinder, gentler neolib hellscape under Labor.
Being diplomatic can be important at times, but, in a democratic society, political leaders need to be honest with the public.
If Australia's strategic position is so bad that it's in no position to break with the US, even as it descends into fascism, politicians should be honest about this.
At the moment, much of the public feels gaslighted and completely alienated as the political class acts as if all is normal when it clearly is not and explains away and normalises unconscionable acts.
It's also important that the public can hold those responsible for the country sleep-walking into this situation to account. Are the 'experts' who got the country into this position (even as the degredation of US political culture has been apparent for years) really the people to lead us forward?
The public can then decide whether we continue to rely on the US and tie ourselves even closer through AUKUS or whether we ramp up our own defence and diplomatic spending and strengthen other alliances so we can act independently.
Being diplomatic can be important at times, but, in a democratic society, political leaders need to be honest with the public.
If Australia's strategic position is so bad that it's in no position to break with the US, even as it descends into fascism, politicians should be honest about this.
Basically, we're being told to stick with the "lesser of two evils." That doesn't cut it anymore. The population and the planet don't have time for a "steady as she goes" approach. Voters want definitive, decisive action. Not this tinkering at the edges governing. #auspol
the stink of gender resentment coming off Silicon Valley has been obvious for a while. these men hate women because they hate being told no.
Today I am at the hospital (not me this time) and in the next cubicle there's an old guy with a head injury, so they did a cognitive impairment test including "who is the Prime Minister?"
He gives a chuckle and says "Luxon, but not for much longer" and the nurses go "well your mind seems to be ok"
Please be aware we have these smug shit smears in Aotearoa New Zealand too and they have done enormous damage our public history and archival infrastructure and the viability of history/history-adjacent careers over the past two years. Their ignorance is intentional and malicious.
This is exactly true for New Zealand too. Historically, when even the slightest improvements were offered, more Kiwis took the train. But NZR so often assumed existing demand was maximum demand, did not try to grow it, and by running minimum service level for that demand, eroded it until it was gone
The War Parties: Labor, One Nation and the Liberals just voted together to pass a Bill that will slam the door on Iranians fleeing a war they have cheered on.
This piece from Hayden Donnell is absolutely top hat #NZPol
Australia this is for you
Governments are perfectly entitled to ignore departmental advice. It is healthy that those accountable to the public make the final decision.
It is not healthy, however, for a government to keep dismissing almost all informed and expert opinion from both the public service and the general public.
