Oh god, please no. I need some mind's-eyebleach.
> Nov 15 (Reuters) - A federal judge in Texas on Friday permanently blocked a Biden administration rule that would have made about 4 million more salaried U.S. workers eligible for overtime pay. > > U.S. District Judge Sean Jordan in Sherman, Texas, said the U.S. Department of Labor rule that took effect in July improperly bases eligibility for overtime pay on workers' wages rather than their job duties. > > The state of Texas and business groups representing a range of industries had filed lawsuits challenging the rule, which had been consolidated.
Oof. I'm in DHS. I'm assuming that in the event of any shenanigans, that'd be a "safer" place to be (though some components like FEMA and TSA maybe less so). But HUD? Definitely top of their list.
Here's hoping for the best. Because that's all we can do right now.
I started a job with the federal government two months ago. I'd been applying for like 18yrs; finally got one! Now a part of me wonders if I'll even have a job next year. Potential for Schedule F designation, layoffs of the federal bureaucracy, whatever other shit a hostile administration throws at us.
How do one sign up to get one or a few of these twink concubines? Asking for a friend.
I don't even know what that liberal nation would be anymore. Sure, for example, Europe is still largely pretty good, but even some of those countries are facing the rise of the right. And they have same objectives as the right here in the US has. Just because it's not as bad as the US right now, doesn't mean it can't be in the future, or even near future. Look at what's going on in Germany or France with the right or even far-right parties making large gains in recent elections and polls.
Feel like it's fucked in much of the world right now.
FYI, you're on Beehaw. Be(e) nice. I know times are crazy right now, I get it. But we still expect people to follow our rules here.
FYI, you're on Beehaw. Please be(e) nice. I know it's crazy times right now, I get it, but we do want folks to still abide by our rules and such here. Thanks.
This is normal shit in Missouri. The state voted for medicinal and eventually recreational marijuana. But then they sent people to state legislature and offices who vehemently opposed it. Can't remember which type it was, but IIRC, the courts had to step in to force the state to license dispensaries and grow ops and such.
They voted lobbying and redistricting reform. But then they sent pols who absolutely didn't want it. This time, the pols got their way and lobbying and redistricting reform went away before it ever got put into practice.
Every so often, the GOP-controlled legislature sends RTW legislation to the people. The people reject it time and time again, but they don't reject the people in the legislature who keep bringing it up time and time again.
So I was super confident that Amendment 3 in MO would pass, based on past results. But I was also super confident Trump, Hawley (fuck Josh Hawley), and a multitude of other GOPers would be voted in. Based on past results.
Because Missouri makes no fucking sense.
I guess I kinda answered this one in my other comment.
Idk, what do you think about all this? What do you think about Mastodon so far?
I think Mastodon is better since it's not algorithmic. I could create a bubble of negativity (or positivity) if I wanted to on Mastodon, but I'd have to go out there and search for it and then build it, right? It's different from maybe, on Twitter, tweeting something negative, then the algorithm serving me up similar negative content, which I consume, which gives me more, so and so forth.
In addition, I definitely don't spend as much time on Mastodon as I do on, say, Instagram or YouTube, which is serving me content algorithmically. That's probably a positive, too.
Though given that IG and YT are more unidirectional -- content creator serves content to viewer with little in the opposite direction, other than comments -- whereas Twitter and Mastodon are more multidirectional, with conversation happening between people in the threads, that it's more of a "true" communications platform, the lack of the algorithm on Mastodon does make it more difficult to have those spontaneous interactions. Whether that's a good thing or not probably depends on the person. Some people just want to consume content, while others want to participate in the content. I guess that's kinda tangential to your question!
Over on another reddit/beehaw-like site, there's a "Backlog Burner" event. Basically playing games in one's games backlog during the month on November. And boy do I have a backlog.
I started with This War of Mine. I didn't play very long, nearly 1.5hrs. It wasn't bad. I think I just got bored. I might go back to it at some point? We'll see. It's just slow to start and not a lot of direction. I'm kinda the type that at least in the beginning of a game, I'm gonna need a little direction and a push.
For the second game I've played so far, I tried Signalis. Now THAT is an awesome game. So far anyway; only about 3hrs in. I will say, I don't normally like playing horror/suspense games like this. I'm too much of a wuss. But Signalis has kept me hooked. I'll only play for like 20-30min at a time, before my nerves start getting to me (lol), but I do keep going back.
Otherwise, just playing FFXIV as usual. And also finishing up Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice. Finally on the last case, "Turnabout Time Traveler."
No worries, I enjoy conversations like this. Though would you mind explaining what you mean by "page-less format of format of Mastodon?"
Not sure. And not sure I ever thought about it that way. I get the point of decentralization. Ideally, it allows us to avoid what's happened to Twitter and reddit and other platforms. Plus there're are safety considerations (like Beehaw defederating from some less-moderated instances, even if they are larger). Basically, enshittification, in various ways.
But that's not why I'm on the Fediverse. In fact, I'm still using proprietary platforms like reddit and Instagram. I may have come over here in the last year, after reddit's APIgate, but I didn't stay because of the FOSS/decentralized principles. It's mainly because these communities and the people are cool. I don't mind spending my times in these different communities, because they're offering something different from each other.
I guess to me, these are all just tools. Tools to connect people with each other. And so long as I find a tool useful and isn't too awful -- looking at you, Twitter...deleted my 14yo account last year) -- I'll keep using it.
I don't know if that's answers your question, lol.
I have a separate account from Beehaw, which I use on a different Mastodon instance. I created it about a year ago. I also recently created a Bluesky account (I know, I know, proprietary social media...)
So for Mastodon, I've noticed it's harder to find the content I'm interested in. My instance is small, but active, so I find that I mostly interact with the folks there. Which is fine, it's our own little community of mostly political memes and life and work and such. That said, our instance is well-federated, so I do get some interaction with others outside of it.
But on Bluesky, maybe because it's algorithmic, right away I'm seeing content that I'm interested in. Gaming, anime, arts, news, tech. And in some ways, it feels more like Twitter back in 2009, when I initially created my (now-deleted) account there.
Some folks from my last job were in town on Wednesday, so they invited me out to dinner. I say "last job," but I'm now a contractor/consultant for them; no longer a FTE. So I guess they're still my coworkers. It was nice to see them in person. My boss was there, so of course he asked how my new job was going. From my previous post, I'm not sure I'm enjoying it. But I couldn't tell him that.
But I started with, "It's interesting..." And his eyes widened and he got a gleam in his eyes, lol. He thinks that anyone who leaves the company is crazy. And there's some truth to that as I've worked for the company twice. The first time I left...I don't want to say it was a mistake, but it wasn't everything I hoped for. I eventually came back a year and half later. Which he loves rubbing in my face and anyone who contemplates leaving. So I fudged it a bit. And he deflated, lol.
Either way, I'm glad I got to see them, and just spend a fun evening catching up over drinks and dinner. Gordon Ramsey's Hell's Kitchen is excellent.
This weekend, just watching F1 and League of Legends Worlds. Let's go Red Bull and T1!
Mitigations
Just use another torrent client. Deluge and Transmission etc do not have this vulnerability.
Was wondering what the takeaway is here. I updated to 5.0.1. Does that fix all these? If not, guess I'll try a different torrent client.
My work is now tracking mouse and keyboard inputs for productivity.
Oof, wtf? I love when these managers turn to IT to "solve" productivity "issues." As if mouse/keyboard tracking can't be faked/fudged. Like does mouse/keyboard movement really prove productivity? I can sit on Tildes or reddit all day and that would see my keyboard/mouse look busy.
Or even if someone is working in like Excel or Word, doesn't mean the work is productive, if it's not being done well or right at all. But again, it'd "look" productive via tracking.
Technology does not fix management issues.
> Four months after Jackson County voters rejected a Royals stadium proposal in Kansas City’s Crossroads District, and two months after Kansas legislation paved the potential for an alternative path, the vision of downtown baseball endures.
> [...]
> Those conversations have more recently concentrated on studying the viability of a site not prominent in their last exploration: Washington Square Park, which sits just north of Crown Center and east of Union Station. More on that in a bit.
On Friday morning, the National Weather Service reported that the temperature in Kansas City, Missouri, dropped to 54 degrees.
Posting the whole article, since it's so short.
>KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - It’s not quite pumpkin spice season, but it sure felt like it on Friday. > On Friday morning, the National Weather Service reported that the temperature in Kansas City, Missouri, dropped to 54 degrees. That broke the record low of 55 degrees for an Aug. 9, set in set in 1927. > As of Friday afternoon at 2 p.m., Kansas City had reached a high of just 71 degrees. The record coldest high temperature for Aug. 9. is 73 degrees. That was accomplished in 1991, the NWS reported. > “We may wind up setting a record low and record low high temperature for the date,” the National Weather Service stated. > First Warn 5 chief meteorologist Luke Dorris said Friday’s weather is typical for Oct. 7!
As expected long before competition began, Stephen Curry, LeBron James and Team USA defeated Victor Wembanyama and host France, 98-87, on Saturday in Paris, making it five straight Olympic gold medals for the United States in men's basketball.
> The indelible moment came from Steph Curry, who made four uber clutch 3-pointers in a two-minute second stretch of the fourth quarter to turn away a French uprising. Curry assured his first gold with a ridiculous fall away bomb, silencing the home fans with his "put them to sleep" trademark move.
That was an incredible ending. Final score was 98-87, USA.
CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten breaks down the numbers around JD Vance since his announcement as Donald Trump’s vice presidential pick.
> CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten breaks down the numbers around JD Vance since his announcement as Donald Trump's vice presidential pick.
Donald Trump has selected Sen. JD Vance of Ohio as his VP. Vance swept to national prominence with his bestselling memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy.”
> MILWAUKEE (AP) — Former President Donald Trump chose Sen. JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate on Monday, picking a onetime critic who became a loyal ally and is now the first millennial to join a major-party ticket at a time of deep concern about the advanced age of America’s political leaders.
Non-paywalled archive.is link.
> Some Kansas lawmakers want to use STAR bonds to finance new stadiums for the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals. After Jackson County voters rejected a county sales tax for the teams in April, a Kansas proposal would authorize STAR bonds with 30-year terms to pay up to 100% of the cost of building a new stadium across the state line.
> Fully financing a Chiefs stadium could mean issuing $2-3 billion in STAR bonds, and potentially $1.5 billion to $2 billion for the Royals. Never before have STAR bonds of that size been issued. As of 2020, $1.1 billion total in STAR bonds had been issued in total, according to a state audit. The Chiefs-Royals proposal could triple that.
> It is far from certain whether such a massive project could pay for itself solely with sales tax revenue.
> The Missouri Supreme Court on Tuesday tossed the results of a 2022 vote in which Missourians overwhelmingly approved a measure forcing Kansas City to pay more for its police. > The extraordinary decision found that Missouri voters were misled by statewide officials when they approved the measure, called Amendment 4. It calls for a new election to be held in November. > Judge Paul C. Wilson wrote in the opinion that the financial estimates on the ballot question that voters saw in 2022 failed to “concisely and accurately advise voters” of its impact on Kansas City.
These are their exit interviews.
Some softball questions aimed at outgoing House members. Still kinda interesting. Especially when it comes to the Congressional salary question.
If you're not careful, you might think a poll just told you who is going to win
Basic article from Reuters on polling and what things in results mean or don't mean. Not at all in-depth but it is interactive. Always fun to play with sliders and buttons.
> Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is threatening legal action against Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas after the mayor made comments suggesting the city would benefit from immigrants seeking asylum in cities such as New York coming to work in Kansas City.
A Biden ballot brouhaha as Democrats try to certify the president ahead of convention, but GOP Ohio officials say that's not allowed.
> Ohio officials rejected a plan from Democrats to get President Joe Biden on the November ballot after the party scheduled its convention past a state election deadline.
> Secretary of State Frank LaRose warned Ohio Democrats earlier this month that Biden is at risk of not making the Nov. 5 ballot. State law requires officials to certify the ballot 90 days before an election − which is Aug. 7 this year − but the president won't officially be nominated until the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 19.
> Lawmakers could pass an exemption to the 90-day deadline by May 9, as they did in 2020 when both parties scheduled their conventions too late. But the chances of that are slim: Top Democrats said they're deferring to the Biden campaign and Democratic National Committee, and Republican leaders are unlikely to lend a helping hand.
The Senate has already passed similar legislation, which is awaiting House debate.
> Missouri House Republicans passed a resolution Wednesday that seeks to make it harder to amend the state constitution.
> Lawmakers voted 106-49 to pass the resolution, almost strictly on party lines, with Majority Floor Leader Jon Patterson, R-Lee’s Summit, being the only Republican to vote no.
> The resolution now goes to the Senate, which has already approved its version.
> [...]
> The resolution, if passed by both chambers, would ask voters whether it should be harder to amend Missouri’s constitution through the initiative petition process.
Even though this will likely pass both chambers, it still has to go to a plebiscite.
Hopefully Missourians are smart enough to vote down this attack on our rights. Luckily, voters have been pretty good about things like this (except for the rollback of the lobbying reform "Clean Missouri" act). Still, people need to be aware of this.
The 3/8th-cent sales tax extension would have helped build a new Kansas City Royals stadium downtown as well as fund renovations at Arrowhead Stadium for the Chiefs. Tuesday's vote followed months of intense campaigning from both teams, and a concerted opposition from community and activist groups.
> Jackson County voters handed the Kansas City Royals and Chiefs a major setback on Tuesday, rejecting a stadium sales tax extension that would fund a new downtown baseball stadium and renovations at Arrowhead Stadium.
> Question 1 would have repealed Jackson County’s existing 3/8th-cent sales tax and replaced it with a tax at the same level that extends until 2064. The results mean that sales tax will end in 2031, when the Royals and Chiefs’ leases expire, and can only be used on the existing Truman Sports Complex properties.
> “No” prevailed with 58% of the vote, compared to 42% “yes” votes.
Should be noted that the split was the same in both Kansas City (within Jackson County) and Jackson County (outside of Kansas City). KCEB administers elections in Kansas City (within Jackson Co), while the Jackson County Election Board handles the rest of the county. Turnout was exceptionally high in both jurisdictions; 24% by KCEB [PDF], and 34% for JCEB.
In a redo of their first failed attempt, Republicans pushed through the charges over solid Democratic opposition, making the homeland security secretary the first sitting cabinet member to be impeached.
Gifted link should be non-paywalled (Archive.is link if desired).
> The United States House of Representatives voted narrowly on Tuesday to impeach Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the homeland security secretary, in a precedent-shattering vote that charged him with willfully refusing to enforce border laws and breaching the public trust.
> In a 214-to-213 vote, Republicans barreled past the solid opposition of Democrats and reservations in their own ranks to make Mr. Mayorkas the first sitting cabinet secretary in U.S. history to be impeached.
The La. Republican says the bill needs border security measures -- after he and other Republicans rejected border security measures last week.
Gifted link should be non-paywalled (Archive.is link if desired).
> House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) preemptively rejected the Senate’s $95 billion national security package to aid Israel, Ukraine and other U.S. allies, saying in a statement that the package’s failure to address U.S. border security makes it a nonstarter in the House.
Taiwan’s vice president, whose party has emphasized the island’s sovereignty, defeated an opposition party that favors reviving engagement with China.
cross-posted from: https://beehaw.org/post/11011730
> [Submitted link is an NYT gifted link,](In a Setback for Beijing, Taiwan Elects Lai Ching-te as President) so should be a free to all to read. > >Taiwan’s vice president, Lai Ching-te, who has faced sustained hostility from China, won the island democracy’s presidential election on Saturday, a result that could prompt Beijing to step up pressure on Taiwan, deepening tensions with Washington. > > > For many of the millions of Taiwanese citizens who lined up at ballot booths on Saturday, the vote centered on the question of who should lead Taiwan in an increasingly tense standoff with its much larger, autocratic and heavily armed neighbor, China. >
Taiwan’s vice president, whose party has emphasized the island’s sovereignty, defeated an opposition party that favors reviving engagement with China.
[Submitted link is an NYT gifted link,](In a Setback for Beijing, Taiwan Elects Lai Ching-te as President) so should be a free to all to read. >Taiwan’s vice president, Lai Ching-te, who has faced sustained hostility from China, won the island democracy’s presidential election on Saturday, a result that could prompt Beijing to step up pressure on Taiwan, deepening tensions with Washington.
> For many of the millions of Taiwanese citizens who lined up at ballot booths on Saturday, the vote centered on the question of who should lead Taiwan in an increasingly tense standoff with its much larger, autocratic and heavily armed neighbor, China.
The farm barons of Tulare Lake Basin want to continue pumping groundwater at volumes collapsing the San Joaquin Valley. That puts the region at greater risk of damaging floods — and in greater need of taxpayer bailouts.
cross-posted from: https://beehaw.org/post/10682799
> > Corcoran had been sinking, steadily, for years because of persistent overpumping of groundwater by major landowners in the Tulare Lake Basin that has sent the valley floor into a slow-motion collapse. And the levee raises made in 2017 — a multimillion-dollar effort funded by local property tax hikes and the prison system — were no longer up to the job. Ultimately, the state agreed to pour $17 million into another round of levee engineering in an effort to save the town. > > > Farmers, meanwhile, were frantic as the basin’s phantom lake reemerged for the first time in 25 years and floodwaters surged onto croplands that had not flooded in modern times. The same overpumping that was sinking Corcoran had caused geologic transformations across the basin. What was once high ground suddenly wasn’t; infrastructure critical to drainage had in some cases shifted; water flowed in unexpected ways.
The farm barons of Tulare Lake Basin want to continue pumping groundwater at volumes collapsing the San Joaquin Valley. That puts the region at greater risk of damaging floods — and in greater need of taxpayer bailouts.
> Corcoran had been sinking, steadily, for years because of persistent overpumping of groundwater by major landowners in the Tulare Lake Basin that has sent the valley floor into a slow-motion collapse. And the levee raises made in 2017 — a multimillion-dollar effort funded by local property tax hikes and the prison system — were no longer up to the job. Ultimately, the state agreed to pour $17 million into another round of levee engineering in an effort to save the town.
> Farmers, meanwhile, were frantic as the basin’s phantom lake reemerged for the first time in 25 years and floodwaters surged onto croplands that had not flooded in modern times. The same overpumping that was sinking Corcoran had caused geologic transformations across the basin. What was once high ground suddenly wasn’t; infrastructure critical to drainage had in some cases shifted; water flowed in unexpected ways.
JCPhoenix @beehaw.org Internet Addict. Reddit refugee. Motorsports Enthusiast. Gamer. Traveler. Napper.
He/Him.
Also @JCPhoenix@lemmy.world. @jcphoenix@mastodo.neoliber.al