It’s tricky. Part of the problem, I think, is if you do have corruption and carelessness in something like the FDA, there’s no amount of careful reporting that can fix it - it becomes propaganda.

It’s necessary to address the problems, though I still agree with being careful about what information is broadcast and how - but it’s necessary to keep information open and challenge things otherwise you end up worse down the line. A measles epidemic is bad. But imagine if you suppressed thalidomide results and other failures, allowing things to get worse and worse in the name of not damaging people’s trust, then eventually (after years of covered-up harm) it all comes out and people abandon scientific medicine altogether!

You don’t have to imagine… I’m sure a large component of both vaccine skepticism and Trump’s presidency have come because of suppressed and partially-suppressed wrongdoing by all the people we think the country should trust. Eventually people break and look for something else.

So, I agree with you, but in my opinion we do need to work more, not less, at transparency and truth even when it’s problematic.

Pay per loaf of bread at the baker

… Microtransactions for hungry people

Cool! Thanks for sharing.

Nix-related job - do tell!

Weird Al: Kernel Drivers

A parody kernel of Linux USB Support

Ubuntu 20.04, and doesn’t work on other Ubuntu versions? Sounds like it’s compiled against old libraries.

If you want to try something more advanced, you might be able to get it to work in Nix or Flatpak. Both are ways to use the exact software libraries with an application. Both would be quite steep leaning to do! Even docker might solve the problem; still not an easy solution though, and might be harder to get hardware features working.

I got the impression Mint isn’t best for KDE. For the reasons you mentioned, I guess, because it’s not been set up with all those options right for KDE.

I’m also on Mint, and happy to stick with it for some time, but sometimes I’ve wondered about going back to OpenSUSE, or even trying KDE’s own distro. But by then I start thinking about Nix and Guix also, as well as old faithful Arch. Then it’s too much choice and I remember how nicely Mint works for me and the family!

No, you can often see what’s going on and adjust your speed a little to let merging work well, without causing risk to other traffic.

Well, I can at least.

You can also move in one lane if it’s empty to let merging cars enter the outside lane easily.

700 professionals in India probably make more coherent software than AI.

England too, and I think many cultures world over, actually.

But in the UK we had a scandal some years ago because retailers sold ‘beef’ that was actually part horse. So it was misleading customers into eating a meat they’d find objectionable.

jagged_circle likes his meat live

Food regulations are (mostly) about restricting food producers in ways that I already want/approve. Food safety, so I know there isn’t mercury in my baby’s formula.

It’s necessary especially because companies want their profits, more than they want to produce good food.

“Government dictating what I can eat” is restricting me about my own body, in ways perhaps I disagree with.

You make a fair point. Perhaps it’s just the cultures I’ve lived in, though, but my impression is that the vast majority of people value some amount of what might be considered small talk. So for those of us who don’t take to it naturally (and I am also one who’s had to learn small talk… I’m okay at it in many situations now but not all) it’s probably worth having a feel for it for the sake of friendly relationships with many people around us.

Ah, sorry to hear that. It’s a tough barrier to break, when a partnership is like that. I wish you the best in the future.

Hi honey, how’s the weath–

“Go Away! I’m Not In A Kissing Mood!”

YOU WILL BE CUTE OR YOU WILL BE DUMPED

Am I indeed? But at least, if I can observe a difference between hands off the steering wheel and hands on, with the car swerving accordingly, then something seems to be going on. Perhaps the adult is moving the toddlers hands too; or perhaps the toddler truly has agency.

IIRC vi has been installed, or perhaps tinyvim, then I always go and install vim-gtk

Understandable. And relatable.