galfarragem

If this post was interesting to you check my architectural models blog[0]. It’s in zombie mode now but I posted regularly for a decade.

[0] https://archimodels.tumblr.com/

This. And also a lack of respect for people commenting about it.

I used to randomly evaluate and give honest feedback on invisible projects when I had the time. Most times I was completely ignored, even when I was the only person who really cared enough to answer. Eventually, I got bored.

https://www.slowernews.com/ - https://github.com/slowernews/slowernews

A personal blog disguised as a newspaper where I try to keep up/make sense of the world - 100% hand made and quite popular among HNers. Actually I never showed it anywhere else.

LLMs themselves are not a fad or overhyped. Even my mum (almost 70) is using an LLM nowadays, and she hates computers. Adapt or die and I don’t say this happily. I hate that I have to use an LLM to stay competitive, something I’m not used to in my life. I was always competitive bare-mind. Now I need to be armed with an LLM.

When I see these examples I miss Autolisp…

I have the feeling that most people haven’t fully realized it yet. All the languages or skills they half-learned will soon be worth nothing, and all the time they spent learning them will feel like a waste because it no longer leads to anything. Strange times.

Nowadays, almost anyone «armed» with an LLM can beat you if you’re going in with just your bare mind. That’s what I mean by losing my edge. And it’s not just at work, I mean in everyday life. It feels like someone stole my IQ, and I need to be equipped with an LLM all the time. It’s like we have to be cyborgs now just to survive, at least metaphorically.

I'd happily pay for the traditional physical IKEA yearly catalog. I suspect that if they sold it in-store for a few euros (€2?) just to cover printing costs, many people would buy it. It's more than a product list, it’s a cultural artifact, offering a window into the aesthetics, values, and lifestyle of its time. I still keep their old catalogs, and I’m not alone.

So what "axiom" do you propose instead?

I will be kind to people.

If you look at it as "producing goodwill" (an intangible asset) it still fits his axiom.

What counts as a disability depends on the rules society uses to decide who is "normal" and who is "disabled."

For example, decades ago, many Irish gipsies faked diabetes to receive benefits. Before accurate blood tests existed, they would eat raw sugar to test positive on urine tests. This tricked the system into labeling them as disabled, showing how the definition can be manipulated or flawed.

When there's gold but the easy gold is gone, some people rush to sell shovels - it’s easier than digging yourself. Soon, there are more shovels than places to dig, and some buyers don’t even know how to use one.

TIL: pentominoes - tetrodominoes - trominoes - DOMINOES!

Some countries build walls to keep people out. Some countries build walls to keep people in...

A nation has the sovereign right to implement tariffs. In response, other countries may exercise their right to apply retaliatory tariffs. Fairness and unfairness are subjective.

Counterargument (in portuguese)

https://x.com/mortony13/status/1960261642014339524?s=46&t=36...

IMO, the most dangerous (and unique) characteristic of socialism is its immortality and capacity for reinvention. It is indestructible as a vision.

War is complex.

One party starts with the "moral advantage" — but as soon as conflict escalates, sides look more alike than different. This is war after all. Media is entrenched, disregarding their own side's actions. We've seen it in Ukraine-Russia. And now in Israel-Palestine.

F*ck war.

This trend is certainly one aspect of the explanation for the decline in the number of long-term relationships.

I believe having a partner with directly opposing political views is unsustainable. Partners with adjacent political views may be manageable, or even preferable to a fully aligned one, but those with directly opposing views are a constant source of drama and tension in your life. Political views often reflect deeply held values and beliefs.

Australia had oil interests in the region.

Lol. Just listen to any ‘opinion maker’ on European media - they whine about it 24/7. They’re ‘not happy’ - to say the least - that the status quo has changed.

I will never support cancel culture. But let’s be honest, cancel culture wasn’t his invention…

Nowadays, I mostly consume news via HN - and much less than I used to. When I come across something relevant - which rarely happens - I post it to my aggregator[0] where I try to make sense of the news. It’s like a draft of contemporary History.

[0] https://www.slowernews.com

Many Americans exist that do not carry the opinion of their government, as do many Russians.

As do many Europeans...

Minorities have the right to make/propose all the rules they want. What I mean is that majorities can’t be forced to comply. That wouldn’t be a democracy. By the way, minorities and majorities are fractal.

Being able to cook is an underrated skill - I'm always pointing this out - but starting here, no matter how glamorous it seems, is like starting with Shakespeare in a first English class for foreigners.

Don't talk me about efficient governance of autocracy.

Autocracies are not efficient at all. There's corruption everywhere.

The larger the state, the more opportunities for corruption. Of course, dismantling the fat state will anger many - those who are fed by it. Unfortunately some "false positives" are part of the process. All the rest is poetry.

My take on "systems to organise your life". It may help somebody: https://github.com/slowernews/hamster-system

You romanticize the EU. There are insurmountable problems specially in the "old" EU members.