tomatolung

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

I think you are missing the last digit. https://share.libbyapp.com/title/11693967

Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism by Sarah Wynn-Williams

An explosive insider account charting one woman’s career at the heart of one of the most influential companies on the planet, Careless People gives you a front-row seat to Meta, the decisions that have shaped world events in recent decades, and the people who made them.

From trips on private jets and encounters with world leaders to shocking accounts of misogyny and double standards behind the scenes, this searing memoir exposes both the personal and the political fallout when unfettered power and a rotten company culture take hold. In a gripping and often absurd narrative where a few people carelessly hold the world in their hands, this eye-opening memoir reveals what really goes on among the global elite.

Sarah Wynn-Williams tells the wrenching but fun story of Facebook, mapping its rise from stumbling encounters with juntas to Mark Zuckerberg’s reaction when he learned of Facebook’s role in Trump’s election. She experiences the challenges and humiliations of working motherhood within a pressure cooker of a workplace, all while Sheryl Sandberg urges her and others to “lean in.”

Careless People is a deeply personal account of why and how things have gone so horribly wrong in the past decade—told in a sharp, candid, and utterly disarming voice. A deep, unflinching look at the role that social media has assumed in our lives, Careless People reveals the truth about the leaders of Facebook: how the more power they grasp, the less responsible they become and the consequences this has for all of us.

[–] [email protected] -2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

That's an idiotic statement. Realism or understanding what realpolitik is in a political situation is far more likely to allow you find and develop change in an organization, as well keep you from wasting your time on useless leverage points. In this case knowing both frames of reference is valuable so that action can be taken, as opposed to just writing five words.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago (3 children)

Post a summary at least OP:

Signal CEO Meredith Whittaker says her company will withdraw from countries that force messaging providers to allow law enforcement officials to access encrypted user data, as Sweden continues to mull such plans.

Whittaker said Signal intends to exit Sweden should its government amend existing legislation essentially mandating the end of end-to-end encryption (E2EE), an identical position it took as the UK considered its Online Safety Bill, which ultimately did pass with a controversial encryption-breaking clause, although it can only be invoked where technically feasible.

She made the claims in an interview with Swedish media SVT Nyheter which reported the government could legislate for a so-called E2EE backdoor as soon as March 2026. It could bring all E2EE messenger apps like Signal, WhatsApp, iMessage, and others into scope.

Other articles have mentioned

Sweden’s Armed Forces Opposed to the Bill

...

However, SVT reported that the Swedish Armed Forces (Försvarsmakten) oppose such a bill.

In a letter to the government, the Armed Forces said the bill could not be implemented “without introducing vulnerabilities and backdoors that could be exploited by third parties.”

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 month ago (16 children)

Being halfway between both sides, I can see the need for a monetary model to sustain development, yet I am challenged by the opacity that this feels like. The OP's point that it feels like a downward slide toward principles compromise is challenging. Especially in light of the enshittification of everything lately, Mozilla needs to do a better job communicating how this is not going down that path and yet also trying to sustain itself.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Correct me if I'm wrong but ladybird is focused on a new browser, and not a new browser that is privacy oriented? Their language is pretty specific about donations and independence, but I didn't catch anything that specifically denotes privacy.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 month ago (3 children)

I'm not an expert, but have read a decent amount on this. Others may have more and better info.

With that said, even if an Article 5 invocation won't bring the US into your fight, it provides a hefty infrastructure of value to countries in it. From basing, to logistics, to intelligence, to aid, it is valuable. Now the politics of it are complicated and the US can hinder some of that value, but it still means that in Europe if Russia provides an Article 5 reason, other countries in NATO can choose to help in various forms. That's not nothing. It's also faster and less arduous then negotiating individual defense treaties with neighbors and others.

So yes, overall probably still worth it. Even if just as an entree into other alliances.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 2 months ago (19 children)

As some who has been out literal in the woods, can someone give me more context?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

The PI's I deal with on Research Vessels almost always get their hands dirty. Both in the lab and on deck, so managing is more of an added responsibility, as opposed to a managerial shift to desk bound life.

Maybe not true for all areas.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 months ago

Gerbil vomit... ROFL She does invoke the passion for new descriptive expletives.

 

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/20923780

Household paper products have the highest rate of shrinkflation, the LendingTree analysis found. Out of 20 products it tracked from prior to the pandemic until today, about 60% had reduced their sheet count, the study found. (Only one item, a 2-pack of Scott multipurpose shop towels, declined in price per 100 count, according to the data.)

Breakfast foods had the second-highest rate of shrinkflation, with LendingTree finding that about 44% of the items they tracked were now sold in smaller portions. Family-sized Frosted Flakes, made by Kellogg's, has slimmed from 24 ounces to 21.7 ounces, resulting in a 40% increase in per-ounce pricing, the analysis found. 

About 38% of candy items are now sold in smaller amounts, including party-size Reese's miniatures (35.6 ounces now versus 40 ounces in 2019-2020) and party-size milk chocolate M&M's (38 ounces now versus 42 ounces previously.)

About 27% of snacks had gone through portion reductions, LendingTree said. That includes party-size Cheetos, made by Frito-Lay, which shrank to 15 ounces from 17.5 ounces while its per-ounce price rose to 40 cents from 17 cents. 

Other snacks that have gotten smaller but pricier include party-size sour cream and onion Lay's, family-size original Wheat Thins and party-size original Tostitos, LendingTree said.

 

New Jersey is one of many states that contracts with private telecom companies to provide communication services for its prisons, including phone calls, electronic messaging, and video calls. The state currently contracts with two companies: ViaPath, formerly Global Tel Link, and JPay, a subsidiary of Securus Technologies.[viii] Founded in 1989, ViaPath was one of the first companies to transform prison phone calls into a multimillion-dollar industry.[ix] JPay, founded in 2002 as a prison money-wiring service, has since emerged as one of the largest prison technology contractors in the country.[x]

ViaPath and JPay make up nearly 80 percent of the prison communication market share in the United States, and their monopoly contracts allow them to charge exorbitant fees and generate hundreds of millions of dollars in profit from incarcerated individuals and their families.[xi] The two companies have each faced their fair share of price-gouging complaints, with ViaPath, ordered to pay $67 million to settle a 2015 class-action lawsuit, and JPay ordered to pay $6 million in fines and restitution in 2021 for charging excessive and illegal fees.[xii]

 

“Shrinking the size of a product in order to gouge consumers on the price per ounce is not innovation, it is exploitation,” the Democrats wrote in their letters. “Unfortunately, this price gouging is a widespread problem, with corporate profits driving over half of inflation.”

The lawmakers pointed to a recent report by the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy that found that from 2018 to 2022, Coca-Cola made $13.4 billion but paid an average effective tax rate of 13.5 percent, PepsiCo made $22.4 billion but paid 15 percent and General Mills made $12 billion but paid 14.8 percent.

“No corporation should pay a lower tax rate than working Americans — especially when that same corporation turns around and gouges consumers on the other end through shrinkflation,” the lawmakers said.

 

Surrounded by more than seven miles of coastline and sitting just 14 feet above sea level at its highest elevation, MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida juts out into Hillsborough Bay like a uvula.

....

“Approximately 93% of MacDill AFB is within the 100-year floodplain,” according to a 2022 base resource management plan. “Tropical storms typically flood much of the southern and northwestern portions of MacDill, and all of the base proper would be flooded by a Category 3 or greater hurricane.”

...

In the meantime, CENTCOM personnel are working out of several locations, including Raymond James Stadium and Homestead Air Reserve Base near Miami, where the Joint Operations Center will be set up, a U.S. defense official told The War Zone.

SOCOM “dispersed to three different locations,” Col. Alexandra Weiskopf, the command spokesperson, told The War Zone. “With our Washington D.C. office, we will have comms up in four different locations and there will be no degradation to our continuity of operations."

...

“Space Launch Delta 45 is monitoring Hurricane Milton and will continue making preparations as weather dictates,” spokeswoman Maggie Nave told us. “Patrick Space Force Base and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station have entered [hurricane preparation] HURCON status, which will be adjusted based on the anticipated timing of storm impacts. At this time, tenant units have moved aircraft assets out of the local area.”

Naval Station Mayport has sent three Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyers underway, while those vessels unable to leave are being placed on heavy moorings, spokesman David Holmes told us. The station has shut down operations and only essential mission personnel are allowed in.

...

The preparations being made for Hurricane Milton are another stark reminder of how climate is affecting the military, especially in locations like Florida prone to these natural disasters

While there are no plans to shutter places like MacDill and Tyndall, the cost to keep them operational in the face of major hurricanes like Milton will only rise.

 

Alternative link Article link

Chemical spills, a ceiling collapse, indoor bears. Employees and park superfans blame the hospitality company Aramark.

Aramark’s contract in Yosemite, worth approximately $2 billion over 15 years...

... park insiders say the industry still holds considerable sway. Yosemite is among America’s most lucrative and popular parks, with almost 4 million visitors accounting for roughly $140 million in annual concessions revenue. The NPS has a $3.5 billion annual budget, a $21 billion maintenance backlog and little power to punish a disappointing contractor. “If you kick them out, then what do you do?” asks Jon Jarvis, who ran the park service during the Obama years. “We don’t have rangers to change bed linens.”

 

France has unveiled plans to develop a new uncrewed combat air vehicle (UCAV) that will complement the forthcoming Rafale F5 crewed fighter, as part of a new-look French Air and Space Force. The industrial side of the drone program will be headed up by Dassault Aviation, drawing upon its previous nEUROn UCAV demonstrator, which has already been used in trials with crewed combat aircraft.

 

A dog saved her owner – who hurt his leg at home in rural Washington state, fell and couldn’t get up for hours – by walking to a road, sitting in the middle of it until a local sheriff’s deputy stopped, and leading the officer to him, according to authorities.

Gita’s ability to be “a good girl and true hero” in her 84-year-old owner’s moment of need after his injury at their cabin on 25 September led to her “saving his life that day”, the Stevens county sheriff’s office said in a statement.

“The loyalty and heroism of our furry friends never cease to amaze us,” the agency added.

 

Senior Airman Devon Word, a conventional munitions crew chief from the U.S. Air Force’s 48th Munitions Squadron, solved a perennial ammunition handling issue faced by the 48th Fighter Wing at RAF Lakenheath, U.K., which often saw 20 mm rounds jamming while moving from the replenisher table to the ammunition loader. The frequent  jamming makes manual intervention necessary, with “15 minutes of troubleshooting per jam” required which “may also cause injury to the operator.”

In fiscal year 2023, according to the press release, there were 319 operations resulting in an average of 957 instances of jams using the replenisher table. These accounted for approximately 798 man-hours due to the need for at least four personnel during operations.

Word developed a specially designed 3D-printed insert that addressed the old design issue causing the stoppages – a gap between the rounds and the top of the replenisher table. The unit-level innovation could save the 48th FW and U.S. Air Force over 750 man-hours annually, the unit said.

...

 

...some predictions estimate that there may be hundreds of thousands or even millions of deaths from famine in Sudan in the coming year or two.

...

In my research so far into models predicting famine numbers, however, I have been surprised at the extent to which the models are not transparent. That is, when two models disagree, with one claiming very high death estimates and others predicting more limited famine (there is clearly a famine already underway in some parts of Sudan), it’s unclear what drives these differences. If the data and code were publicly available, we could compare the models, see where they differ, and then identify which of these differences are in turn responsible for the different predictions they make. So that’s what I’ve set out to do, with hopes that I will find some fellow travellers along the way.

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