Itty53

@Itty53@mstdn.social

Father/Husband/Programmer in CA with a need to collect my thoughts on stuff. Politics, psychology, sociology, history, law, society, music, film, games, humor.

Header is just the color black.

Avatar is a Photoshop of Barack Obama in a classic suit, framed from the chest up, speaking at a podium. His face is in what appears to be a slight scowl. The image is monochrome black and white, and his face has been altered to add Locs style sunglasses and a black baseball cap reading "Compton".

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

dgar, to random
@dgar@aus.social avatar
Itty53, (edited )

@dgar

That's actually a very cute way for two middle aged people to share a few minutes for no reason other than love. It's certainly more heartfelt, quality time spent together than each spending ten minutes picking some gift and quickly exchanging midway through the morning routines. And nothing makes relationships worth it more than doing silly, stupid things together.

molly0xfff, to random
@molly0xfff@hachyderm.io avatar

man i hate the mastodon/bluesky fighting

Itty53,

@molly0xfff

Fedi, 9 months ago:

"Adversarial interoperability will save us from enshittification! They'll try to stop us but fuck them!"

Fedi, the last two days:
"wait! no! not like that! And furthermore, how dare you??"

eniko, to random
@eniko@peoplemaking.games avatar

imagine finding out that the reason reddit destroyed entire communities that had been around for years was so that they could nonconsensually sell all the communication produced by those communities off to some sleazy anonymous for AI training purposes and going "this is fine" and continuing to use reddit

bro they're literally selling large chunks of your life off in order to manufacture disinformation machines and to do that they destroyed communities you were probably a nominal part of, how are you okay with this??

Itty53,

@eniko

I think it's pretty normal human behavior to verbalize one complaint while being upset by another thing entirely. We all do it. It's an effect of the subconscious.

Itty53,

@eniko

I think it's a difference of outlook and wants. To them they didn't have their community destroyed: they're not using these platforms for a sense of community.

In fact both Reddit and Twitter were marked by the very corporate-backed drive to foster that notion: it's not about community, but idle entertainment. It's selfish, and that's okay. We're selfish beings.

Folks going to bsky are seeking the entertainment they lost when those platforms went to shit. Not communities.

philip_cardella, to random
@philip_cardella@historians.social avatar

I'm telling y'all. You need to be terrified of

Talking to my buddy who is absolutely a voted for Obama twice and is so worried about 's age he'd vote for .

I'm trying to convince him Haley will gleefully implement (which he's never heard of--if I told you his job title you'd shit, he's swinging a big stick) but he's a prime example of why she's so dangerous.

Itty53,

@philip_cardella

Raw Story has been operating on fear mongering Trump's face for the better part of the last decade. Every single article they publish ends with his stupid fucking face. How have you not noticed this?

So no. I'm not entertaining another of their vapid listicles based on the opinions of a couple C-list pundits seeking a horserace.

I will entertain arguments from a real person though, if you're willing.

Itty53,

@philip_cardella

It is LITERALLY a listicle, its headline indicates that and then its structure fulfilled that promise. You're not being rational if you're gonna insist that isn't a listicle. It's exactly a listicle.

It's also a gish gallop, like you've used it here. "Address all these arguments or stop talking". No sorry, you're not addressing even one of mine.

Nikki Haley's only chance in hell is if Trump dies in the next 90 days.

Itty53,

@philip_cardella

Haley couldn't beat Biden without Trump's base. No numbers add up for that. And Trump isn't giving his base to anyone. Trump needs them to stay out of prison or exile, that's the honest truth he is fully aware of.

Even if every GOP politician - every single one - endorsed Haley, polls still tell us the GOP base would still split for Trump.

Bet. I'll bet a thousand USD right now: Trump is the candidate or splits the GOP, one or the other. No other outcome.

Itty53,

@philip_cardella

If Trump dies.

That's the catch. If he is breathing, he's the candidate. If he's breathing and he's not? Best possible outcome. Means a clear Biden victory and the end of the GOP. Literally.

Trump isn't gonna die. Remember he's still a former POTUS, still has the best medical care in human history behind him.

Itty53,

@philip_cardella

I'm not trying to argue with you, I'm trying to understand why I should be afraid of Haley outside the possibility that Trump literally dies in the next three months.

Because I don't see any reason for such fear.

I'm aware of what's at stake and I understand Haley isn't any better than Trump for anyone. I get all of that. I'm just saying there's no way in the world Haley wins against Biden unless Trump is dead, and I don't think his timely death is likely. It's not.

Itty53,

@philip_cardella

You keep saying I should be afraid of Haley. I'm not. Not even a little bit, and I don't think she stands a snowball's chance in hell. So what am I missing?

You have to be counting on Trump's death -and sooner than later, even- to be afraid of the potential of a legitimate 1v1 Biden v Haley. That's the only way that happens.

I don't listen much to media polls anymore because polling is itself the art of building support, not measuring it.

Itty53,

@philip_cardella

Okay that's wrong. Trump breathing means he has influence on the election, on the ballot or not. Again, he has said in so many words he'd rather burn down the GOP than give up the nomination, and he will.

Only him dead and gone changes that. In exile, in prison, he's still splitting the vote. Guaranteed. Even totally infirmed and bedridden, his circle would carry it on for their own skin. They want to stay out of prison too.

GottaLaff, to random
@GottaLaff@mastodon.social avatar

Mary Trump on :

https://marytrump.substack.com/p/jon-stewarts-danger-to-democracy

Itty53,

@openbuddha @GreenFire @GottaLaff @2rawtooreal

You could be 35 years old and if every word you say outside your bedroom was made public from multiple video angles, we could construe arguments that you're senile too. You'd gaff too. A lot. We all do.

Gaffing is a very natural thing for literally every human being with the capacity for speech. Why gaffs are looked at as political weakness is entirely about how they're framed in the media.

josephcox, to random

New from 404 Media: applying to a host of jobs—including FedEx, McDonald's, CVS—now requires a bizarre personality quiz with blue aliens run by a company called Paradox.ai. We tested it out by applying for job at Olive Garden.

https://www.404media.co/low-paying-jobs-require-bizarre-personality-evaluation-from-ai-company/

Itty53,

@cavyherd @josephcox

It's really hilarious to me that virtually all AI generated images look to be wrapped in dull-to-shiny cellophane. The effect of generalizing light and shadow against billions of product marketing images that all copied each other over time.

Itty53,

@josephcox

These are built around the notion of filtering out applicants that won't accept being treated poorly.

Old old story, new tech bro varnish.

danwentzel, to USpolitics
@danwentzel@urbanists.social avatar

So half of Republicans think that California isn't really American.

Who do they think pays the bills of red states?

Might I suggest that red state Republicans try asking themselves, "How did California become the world's 5th biggest economy anyway, and what progressive changes do we need to make to the states we govern to lift them up to California's level?"

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-02-13/golden-state-loses-luster-half-of-americans-say-california-in-decline

Itty53,

@danwentzel

On the one hand there are some political and regulatory factors. That's true.

On the other, California is maybe the most optimum state as far as resources, location, size, coastline, weather, etc. Still tons of room for development too.

What I'm getting at is you're not gonna get Kentucky to increase their sea-shipping industry, and Nevada isn't going to turn arable no matter how progressive you are. California is in as privileged a position as a US state gets really.

cadence022, to random

What are everyone's thoughts on people putting symbols in the middle of words for the sake of censorship? for us, it makes the post harder to read, and/or makes us have to spell out a word to figure out what it's supposed to be. we personally feel this is an accessibility issue and wish people would just write the words out. cw if you feel that's necessary, but the more starred out letters in a word, at least to us, the harder it is to read. what are everyone else's thoughts?

Itty53,

@cadence022

Personally I think if you're gonna harken to a word, it's the same as using it. If I say some placeholder that you and I both know what it means, what's the difference at all? It isn't any more or less offensive. Truly, it isn't. It's the same as saying it, whatever the word you're thinking.

Either say it or don't. If you feel the need to self-censor then rethink what you actually want to say, and if you actually want to say it.

SirTapTap, to random
@SirTapTap@mastodon.social avatar

So what's the trick to wearing a scarf without it falling off OR choking you, this seems harder than it should be

Itty53,

@SirTapTap

Big fan of the Parisian Knot, and also the overhand.

BlackAzizAnansi, to random
@BlackAzizAnansi@mas.to avatar

Bookmark this form when Melania leaves Donald.

Itty53,

@BlackAzizAnansi

Alien vs Predator: the divorce.

adrianhon, to random
@adrianhon@mastodon.social avatar

Awful, awful story. Even smart, informed people can fall for scams when they’re up against a veritable tiger team. https://www.thecut.com/article/amazon-scam-call-ftc-arrest-warrants.html

Itty53,

@adriaan @adrianhon

Lesson one of adulting in America: law enforcement of any kind will not call you in order to make contact. They only ever call if previously arranged because calling is not a secure method of making contact.

If you get a call, text, email from law enforcement, ignore it. If you're the DAs problem they'll use an official letter in the post with a public number available to check. If that fails then it becomes law enforcement's problem, and they will come to your door.

GottaLaff, to random
@GottaLaff@mastodon.social avatar

Congrats, @ciggysmokebringer!
( ciggysmokebringer @kolektiva.social)
You’re my first of the day! And thank you for playing

https://kolektiva.social/@ciggysmokebringer/111943949444170379

Itty53,

@GottaLaff @ciggysmokebringer

That whole instance is worth blocking.

Check your block lists, I bet you already have well over a dozen people from there blocked. It's a tankie shit hole and it breeds trolls. You won't miss a thing by blocking it wholesale.

Itty53, to random

Just saw someone suggest writing in a candidate if you're ethically opposed to both Trump and Biden.

She suggested Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and said she herself would be writing in Taylor Swift this year, and in the future looking at AOC.

She insisted she was not burning her vote. She is though.

And the funny thing? ALL FOUR of her hopefuls endorsed Biden for president in 2020, and three have endorsed him for 2024 - we're expecting Taylor to speak up soon.

Vote Biden.

Itty53, to random

There's a certain kind of person online that sees any kind of problem, barrier, whatever, as a game to win.

I need people to understand how childish this way of thought is. Not all "problems" are problems at all.

For instance: children on social media. I'm watching a thread of people discuss creating a masto instance built for kids. And despite being told how awful an idea that is by more than one person, they're still throwing ideas back and forth. Not a problem worth solving, yet they try.

Itty53,

And at a certain point that stops looking like a hard headed person trying to solve a problem, and starts looking like predation itself. Like I doubt any one of those people is a parent themself.

If you can't see how that's all creepy, you might just be a fuckin creep yourself.

Itty53, to random

Back when Altman was ousted from OpenAI, there was a very suspiciously timed story going round about an event where Altman was informed of "a major breakthrough" just before the shake up. It was very clear the intimation of this story was that the breakthrough was regarding AGI.

No one in the AI community questioned that line of reasoning, instead they reacted as religious believers do when they're told the second coming will be next month because Jesus appeared on toast.

1/2

Itty53,

Like religious believers, the AI community assumes it's on the way already. Therefore they won't ever question it, and when the big reveal never happens they just wait until the next suspiciously timed story to validate their preconceived ideas.

We know what that breakthrough was now.

Fucking generative video. That's it. That's all it was.

2/2

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