@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

williampietri

@williampietri@sfba.social

Bay area writer, software developer, runner, and nerd wrangler. Very interested in online community and reducing the harm of tech. Creator of https://sfba.social/@sfships. Formerly on Twitter at https://twitter.com/williampietri

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divya, to random
@divya@sfba.social avatar

IMHO we should stop using Latin names for birds, plants and use the names used for them where they were found to exist first. What has latin got to do with anything?

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@divya I have no attachment to Latin specifically, but I think it's probably good the expert namespace is easily distinguished from the common namespace. It's very helpful for experts to have a 1:1 map between creature and name. But common names have a lot of regional differences and won't be much influenced by scientific preferences. Unless we go with something like the Académie Française, but that strikes me as a lot of work to little benefit.

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@divya I'm all for investigating anything that comes out of a bunch of white dudes. But a lot of conservation systems are rooted in naming and counting particular species. Standard nomenclature is of more use to the people trying to protect species than those who just want to, e.g., strip mine their habitats, without regard to what's there.

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@divya I'm with you on not liking binary gender. But I'm not seeing how we'd do a lot of the science that goes into ecological protection and restoration without being able to distinguish species.

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@divya Sure and I agreed with interrogating it. And still do.

divya, to random
@divya@sfba.social avatar

How is it legal for petition gatherers to get paid per signature??? this is nuts

"Dana said the petitioner told her that he receives $12 for every signature he collects for California Forever. Another petition circulator collecting signatures in Solano County, who preferred not to give a name, told the Vallejo Sun that California Forever pays $6 per signature and an additional $3 bonus for a total of $9 per signature if the initiative qualifies for the ballot. The other petitions the circulator was offering to voters paid $3 per signature."

https://www.vallejosun.com/solano-residents-say-california-forever-petitioners-spread-misinformation-about-voting-process/

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@christa @divya Yeah, I always ask if they're volunteers or paid, and refuse if they're paid. But I'd happily throw in for a paid signature campaign that bans paid signature campaigns.

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

Good on Tiktok for cracking down on this. It struck me that in the extensive quoting from paid influencers, nobody was like, "If they're banning people, maybe I should reflect on the impact I'm having". (gift link) https://wapo.st/4dGfT8Z

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

I was going to find a bit to quote, but it's all so perfect that you should just read it. https://lithub.com/rebecca-solnit-how-to-comment-on-social-media/

RickiTarr, (edited ) to random
@RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

What advice would you give to someone just starting out in a relationship?

Mine might sound kind of dark in relation to the question, but here goes:

People change, and they should, it's part of being a person. Some people are lucky, and they change in the same direction, but some don't, and that's okay too. There's no shame in leaving a relationship or changing the nature of a relationship that no longer serves you. We are all taught that every relationship, whether romantic or friendship, is supposed to last forever, but nothing is forever, and forcing something that no longer works, just ends in anger and bitterness. Knowing when to let go is as important as knowing when to hold on through a rough patch, and how to know either of those things is the most cliché advice of all, COMMUNICATE.

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@RickiTarr I would give them a copy of "Why Does He Do That? Inside the Minds of Angry and Controlling Men". It corrects so many myths about abuse, explaining clearly what abusers get out of it, and has a lot of clear bullet-point lists describing types of abuser.

So many people get trapped in these patterns. I've seen people lose years to it. A little awareness goes a long way.

purplepadma, to random
@purplepadma@beige.party avatar

Me: I’m feeling so much better, I don’t need the CMHT anymore!
Social worker: That’s great but are you sure?
Tom: Um, you have literally only been feeling better for 3 days, maybe just one more visit?
Me: Oh yeah 😬

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@purplepadma I'm totally prone to this too! I'll go for a run, my mood will skyrocket, and I can't even imagine feeling low again.

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

A study comes along to confirm something obvious to everybody except tech execs: if you make working conditions worse, some will leave. And who's most able to leave? Your best employees. (gift link) https://wapo.st/4btMo8Z

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@joelle Maybe? Even if trimming expenses is the goal, it's generally better to push out the lower performers via layoffs or targeted jackassery. But reasoning from executive competence is not a strong bet these days, so who knows.

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

So I'm moving permanently across the country. I could happily keep my 415 phone number, or I could switch and get a local one. For people who have tried either path in the last few years, any thoughts?

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

Jack Dorsey is a world-class fool. Is this the sort of brain rot you get from being a billionaire surrounded by yes men? Or was he always somebody who seemed, as my grandfather would put it, like he was kicked in the head by a butterfly? https://www.piratewires.com/p/interview-with-jack-dorsey-mike-solana

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

And here's a nice piece from @davidgerard taking a more detailed look at Dorsey's nonsense. An especially good bit: "There is not a single mention in that Dorsey interview of what the real-world market of people who want to socially interact might want from a site that exists for social interaction. There are only Dorsey’s hypothetical ideas for a perfectly spherical social network in a vacuum."

https://davidgerard.co.uk/blockchain/2024/05/10/jack-dorsey-bluesky-decentralised-social-networks-and-the-very-common-crowd/

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

I am soon moving to Chicago, which is generally great, but it looks like my only ISP option is Comcast, which is not. Do people have tips on what plan to choose and tricks to wrangle what seems like an adversarial relationship? I'll be working from home doing programmer things.

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@divya Thanks! And yes, going back to space hunt reminded me anew how much I love that place. Have you spent much time there?

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@divya Well please get it touch if you ever make it back. I'm very excited to explore, and I'd love the company.

raganwald, to random
@raganwald@social.bau-ha.us avatar

Some people are discussing software engineering in the library. The more experienced of the two is explaining that "The goal of Agile is to develop something very, very fast, and thus Agile produces more bugs than Waterfall."

If it was just this person, I'd say nothing. But I know that the belief they just espoused is not an outlier.

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@raganwald I can't believe that after 25 years of effort there's still so much ignorance. Or maybe I can.

mekkaokereke, to random
@mekkaokereke@hachyderm.io avatar

This paper is trash. We do this every few years.

The conclusion is correct (graduate degree holding white men believe the most 'taboo' conspiracy theories), but the reasons it suggests why, are sociology-babble garbage. The real reason is:

  • Racism is a lie. To believe in racism, you must believe a set of easily debunkable lies.
  • Richer, whiter, maler, more educated populations are not less racist, despite attempts to twist stats to say this. They're more racist.

https://www.salon.com/2024/05/05/believes-the-most-taboo-conspiracy-theories-it-might-not-be-you-think/

1/N

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@mekkaokereke One thing that strikes me here is how little white people ever hear that testimony directly. Twitter was the first time I heard the frank, unmediated thoughts from a wide variety of black people. Over time it really changed my perception of many things about American society. But I had to seek it out.

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

It means so much to me that @MLNow wrote up a little something about my neighbor. When I went to his funeral I thought I might be the only person there besides the nun who arranged it. I was so heartened to see a couple dozen people whose lives he had touched: https://missionlocal.org/2024/05/longtime-mission-resident-gerald-gleeson-is-dead-but-not-forgotten/

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

I'm at the Austin airport and the CO2 level is higher than I'd like even at home, let alone when breathing other people's exhalations. (As comparison SFO is usually 500-700.)

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

Private equity is a plague upon humanity. People who are only in it for the money make things worse for everybody else. https://www.statnews.com/2024/05/01/wheelchair-repair-delay-numotion-national-seating-mobility/

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

I'm at SFO terminal 3 and this is slightly too on the nose.

williampietri, to random
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

I'm at SFO and a sniffer dog was roaming the gate area checking things out. I asked one of the handlers what the dog was trained to look for and he said, "explosives". He went on to explain that this being California, they didn't care, that one person in three here would trigger the dog. "Drugs aren't going to bring down an airplane, so we don't care about them." It was nice to have a sensible conversation, and the dog was adorable.

interfluidity, to random
@interfluidity@zirk.us avatar

a reality that socialist or progressive protestors must take into account is that disorder on the streets always works to the political advantage of fascists, who credibly promise order at all costs even while they cynically ensure protest becomes disorderly.

it’s not fair, but it is reality. in the ecstasy of genuine righteousness one may not give a fuck, but then a morning after comes.

williampietri,
@williampietri@sfba.social avatar

@interfluidity How does MLK fit into this analysis? A lot of what they did was quite orderly by my standards, but was still treated as "disorder on the streets". But MLK persisted in creating what he called "positive tension" because he knew that the only acceptably orderly objection to the status quo was one small enough to be ignored. And I'd have a hard time saying that MLK's work always worked to the political advantage of the fascists.

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