@robertstainsby@aus.social
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

robertstainsby

@robertstainsby@aus.social

On the unceded land of the Kaurna people, aka Adelaide in South Australia. Developer of apps for iPad and iPhone. Activist in No Nuclear Subs SA and socialist group Solidarity. Proud to be gay. They/them or he/him. Free Palestine ๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‰.

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timrichards, (edited ) to random
@timrichards@aus.social avatar

When someone asks a question which is answered within the non-paywalled article you just shared, how should you respond?

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@timrichards any of the above is reasonable

bynkii, to random
@bynkii@mastodon.social avatar

Reasons to make it permanent: spending most of your day in darkness is unhealthy.

DST isnโ€™t the problem, the 2x a year change is.

Also, could anyone raging against DST for once do it from a fact-based perspective. It wasnโ€™t about farmers or any of that shit.

It was about giving the nascent middle class more daylight to do stuff outside. Ideally, shopping, but that was not the only reason.

It was literally created to allow people more post-work daylight for activities.
https://mas.to/@VeryBadLlama/112074553960393134

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@bynkii might be different at locations other than my own, but having daylight when you go to work, as well as after, is why the 2x a year change is necessary. Getting ready for and commuting to work in the dark is just as miserable.

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@bynkii no, best to have at least a bit of daylight for both. Which going off daylight saving makes possible, at least here, and for typical white-collar workers.

timrichards, to coffee
@timrichards@aus.social avatar

Fun read:

Who invented the flat white? Italian sugar farmers from regional Queensland likely played a big role https://theconversation.com/who-invented-the-flat-white-italian-sugar-farmers-from-regional-queensland-likely-played-a-big-role-224747

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@timrichards but what is a flat white? Probably naively, I always understood it as the espresso equivalent of the old skip โ€œwhite coffeeโ€: a near-full cup of coffee with a bit of cold milk added. Cafes donโ€™t make it like that so I guess Iโ€™ve been wrong all these years.

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@timrichards or down, depending on your tastes ๐Ÿ™‚

smitjo, to auspol
@smitjo@mastodon.au avatar

Anthony Albanese demands accountability from Israel over death of aid worker in Gaza
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/anthony-albanese-demands-accountability-from-israel-over-death-of-aid-worker-in-gaza/0ms3lvr2g

PM says he's calling in the Israeli Ambassador to demand a full explanation. Don't call them in Albo, kick them out. There's no way Australia should continue as a friend and ally of Israel. They are a rogue state that has a long history of disdain for the rule of law and human rights.

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@mativity @DropBear @smitjo @palestine letโ€™s get it the right way round. Australia (its ruling class) supports Israel as part of the US-led imperialist order, which Australia sees as an essential guarantor of its own privileged place in the world. No need to feed right-wing conspiracy theories about Jews pulling the strings.

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@mativity @DropBear @smitjo @palestine Which nicely illustrates my point that itโ€™s the government, not the Zionist lobby, that calls the shots.

The particular conspiracy theory that โ€œJews run the worldโ€ has been a centrepiece of fascist thought for more than a century. Anti-racists should nip it in the bud whenever it surfaces, just as we need to oppose Zionism.

By the way, the Jewish Council of Australia is an anti-Zionist group. You are maybe thinking of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry?

https://www.jewishcouncil.com.au/

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@DropBear @mativity @smitjo @palestine agreed itโ€™s a key tactic of Zionists to claim, wrongly, they speak for all Jews. This is a trap they set so they can scream โ€œantisemitismโ€ whenever they are called out. And you are right about the AJA. My point is that we are less likely to fall into the Zionistsโ€™ trap if we clearly understand that Western capitalism backs Israel out of its own self-interest, not because it has been manipulated by Zionism.

robertstainsby, to random
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

I see snake oil is doing the rounds on social mediaโ€”quite apt for April 1. In this series of blog posts, Marxist economist Michael Roberts points out MMT falls back on Keynesian ideas that โ€œabysmally failed in the 1970sโ€, because โ€œinflation and employment are not under the control of the state in a capitalist economy, but depend on the profitability of capital and the investment decisions of capitalists.โ€

There is no side-stepping the need for a revolutionary movement of workers to take over industry from the capitalists and run it for human need. We can't save capitalism from itself by being cleverer in how we run it.

https://thenextrecession.wordpress.com/2019/02/05/mmt-3-a-backstop-to-capitalism/

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

Another good read exposing the shortcomings of https://jacobin.com/2019/02/modern-monetary-theory-isnt-helping

inthehands, to random
@inthehands@hachyderm.io avatar

That kitchen lady SOTU GOP response redubbed in a dalek voice.

Somebody please do this.

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@simon_brooke @inthehands wow, Iโ€™m not sure who this โ€œeveryoneโ€ who agrees the Pertwee years were the โ€œnadirโ€ of Doctor Who are. Iโ€™m critical of the Doctorโ€™s habitual resort to alien genocide throughout the history of the show. Itโ€™s their ability to couple this with a self-perception as a person of peace and reason, more than anything else, that marks it as quintessentially British. But for many of us the Pertwee and early Tom Baker years represent the show at its absolute peak. Sarah Jane Smith, just for starters!

luciedigitalni, to random
@luciedigitalni@aus.social avatar

Seriously, Google?

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@luciedigitalni @colhill also whatโ€™s out there (i.e. what media think people want). Not that that makes it OK

timrichards, to Trains
@timrichards@aus.social avatar

New at my Patreon... Yesterday I headed from Melbourne to Sydney for a conference - and took the train rather than flying. Here's what it was like:

A day on the rails: Melbourne to Sydney https://www.patreon.com/posts/98810294

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@timrichards @sister_ratched letโ€™s not forget the fourth, narrower gauge that survives on tourist railways such as Melbourneโ€™s Puffing Billy

MikeElgan, to random
@MikeElgan@mastodon.social avatar

Following Google Maps directions in rural Tasmania and encountered this sign.

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@MikeElgan a recent trip to Tassie confirmed we really need an โ€œavoid unsealed roadsโ€ option in Australia

danielpunkass, to random
@danielpunkass@mastodon.social avatar

Iโ€™m watching โ€œFor All Mankindโ€ in bed, looking up, head on pillow, Mt. Hood and starry night sky in the background. Dialed in just so I can see my nightstand when I turn for a drink of water. This โ€ฆ is something.

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@danielpunkass so does the environment align with the headset, or the real world, when you lie down?

timrichards, to random
@timrichards@aus.social avatar

I find it a bit frustrating when they recommend streaming shows which haven't yet started and therefore can't be bookmarked on a watch list. The "Up Next" list on the Apple TV is perfect for that.

What to watch on streaming services in January https://www.smh.com.au/culture/tv-and-radio/the-best-new-shows-to-stream-in-january-20231227-p5ett6.html

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@timrichards can usually still bookmark on Just Watch though

the_rail_life, to random
@the_rail_life@aus.social avatar

Most regional stations in NSW have these information screens and emergency help points.

A couple of interesting anomalies with this list. One is that the destination is listed as "Southern Cross" (Melbourne's main long distance station) but the final station is listed as "Spencer Street" (the former name of Southern Cross station). Another is that Seymour is listed as "Seymour Platform".

White box mounted on a wall with a display showing the 12:10 Southern Cross departing in 8 minutes and scrolling through station names. There are two buttons, a green button marked Information, and a red button marked emergency.

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@timrichards @the_rail_life Red Premium on The Overland is a treat, especially with the included meals

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@timrichards @the_rail_life @NarrelleMHarris Also worth mentioning the Spirit of Queensland RailBeds, which are fun and quite out there

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@timrichards thanks for the reminder, been meaning to check that out

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@timrichards Hubby and I are just home from attempted Kurandaโ€“Adelaide rail trip, with Rockhampton-Brisbane-Charleville as an appetizer. Foiled by our Brisbane-Sydney XPT being cancelled. QR wins as best Oz long distance transport (vs cruise) passenger rail provider.

gruber, to random
@gruber@mastodon.social avatar

I spent about 30 minutes using/touring Vision Pro yesterday. Ask me anything.

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@gruber might not affect you if you donโ€™t wear glasses, but do real world limits on how well you can see apply to virtual objects? For example, I need different prescriptions to view a computer screen from navigating the wider world, and vision is blurred if I try to use one prescription when the other is needed. Do you virtual objects get blurry if you bring them to close or too far?

parisba, to random

I do not like the nerd helmet

robertstainsby,
@robertstainsby@aus.social avatar

@parisba fair enough. I think it has a place as a v1.0 product. But we need to make sure it doesnโ€™t become acceptable to wear routinely in public spaces.

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