Archive for the ‘tech’ Category

I Must Admit I Feel Honored

Posted: December 11, 2022 by datechguy in media, tech, Uncategorized
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As the Twitter files were being released and we got details on how “shadow-banning” , which both the media and the official folks at Twitter INSISTED was not happening, worked I got a tweet from one of the first people who followed me when I started to write back in 2008:

You have to remember something I’m a very small fish in the pond, Despite early stories on Epstein that predated most of the national media’s coverage and in person coverage of congressional, senatorial and even presidential campaigns, including questioning Donald Trump twice at press conferences I never managed to even 3500 followers on twitter.

Yet like Youtube which banned me last month and denied my appeal based on unequal treatment Twitter apparently found me dangerous to their narratives to keep my tweets from getting out to followers

I must admit I’m flattered and honored.

Closing thought, It was in the last few years that I decided I wasn’t going to be bigger than I was and decided to not push harder in terms of trying to make this my primary living. I wonder how many hits on the web site and how many tip jar hits I missed thanks to the efforts of the not so good folk at twitter that made that decision necessary?

Five Assorted Thoughts Under the Fedora: Post Christian Old Twitter, Peer Pressure at FW Parker, Griner’s perspective, Sinema’s feint, Oil bills and Ben Franklin

Posted: December 9, 2022 by datechguy in culture, education, politics, tech, Uncomfortable Truths, under the fedora
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The 2nd batch of Twitter files dropped showing that the folks at Twitter pre-musk were lying though their teeth concerning shadow-banning and manipulating trends.

To conservatives this is no surprise, to the left now that denial is no longer an option have started calling it “Old News” but I suspect the endgame it what I predicted a while back deciding to say it’s justified and celebrate it.

This is what happens when you throw out the whole “Thou shalt not bear false witness” business.

Yesterday I speculated concerning the reaction of parents at the Francis W. Parker school over the Project Veritas revelations:

Now in fairness this is Chicago land of the left so it is possible that the school administration and the parents while wanting to avoid the drugs, guns and the lack of an actual education in the public schools, might pine for the indoctrination to the liberal/gay agenda that they kids are missing so it is very possible that they might be all on board with this kind of thing.

It hits me now that the school has publicly defended the Dean in question that even parents who are not onboard on this stuff might find themselves not only keeping silent but leaving their children in the school due to peer pressure, after all as part of the liberal Chicago elites who can afford to spend $40K annually for a private school they are part of an elite club and might get a lot of pushback socially for doing so.

Parents of courage and integrity will willing to pay the price for the sake of their kids, but for those who know this is wrong and stay silent, I say to them I have more respect for those who actually support this monstrosity than for you, at least they are acting according to their warped beliefs that it is right.

Social status or your kids welfare, choose one.

Of course if the funding dries up from Alumni all this will be moot as they’ll drop these folks like a hot iron.

Yesterday with the help of the Saudis and others the Biden Admin managed to get Brittany Griner back from Russia in exchange for a rather dangerous Russian operative.

To say the optics of the trade and the White House spin are bad is an understatement but I won’t begrudge the release of any American being held in a Russian prison for a trivial crime.

What I’m more interested in seeing is how Grimes who has not had a lot of kind words to say about her home country reacts the next time the Anthem is played at a WNBA game she is in.

There is nothing like being in a Russian jail cell to give a person perspective on the relative merits of one’s country vs another. One hopes Griner has gained said perspective through her ordeal but we will see.

There is a lot of fuss being made about Senator Kristin Sinema leaving the Democrat party. There should not be.

As long as Sinema is caucusing with the Democrats it will make no difference in control of the senate nor is it likely to make a difference in how she votes on issues.

The only reason for this change is to eliminate the need for her to run in a Democrat Primary.

What’s really going to be fun is to see her try to pull off a Murkowski but I suspect Charlie Schumer is going to be a lot less forgiving of this renegade incumbent than Mitch McConnell was of his.

After all for the left politics is their religion and they have no mercy for apostates.

Finally my first oil delivery and bill of the season came in. It’s double what it was back in the days of Trump.

A lot of people who happily voted for Biden in the Northeast are going to get an education on the principle that you get the government you deserve over the next few months.

And just wait till they get their local property tax bills because every single city and town is paying more for their oil and gas too and that’s going to be passed on in terms of limited services and higher tax bills.

Of course that’s not much comfort to me as I’m in the same boat despite warning them about it.

As Ben Franklin said: “Experience keeps a dear School, but Fools will learn in no other, and scarce in that” I don’t expect them to learn from this, because that would involve admitting they were wrong. They’d rather pay and buy blankets than face that horror.

Five #Twitterfiles thoughts Under the Fedora Paid For, Friday Dump Differences, Traffic lost to Advertisers, Now it makes sense and Consequences

Posted: December 3, 2022 by datechguy in business, election 2020, internet/free speech, News/opinion, tech, Uncategorized
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One might be amazed how many reporters on the left spent yesterday on twitter attacking Musk and Matt Taibbi for releasing these documents, at least one would if you didn’t realize that these folks paychecks depend on them objecting.

This goes to show the difference between social media and standard media. For standard media a Friday night dump would be all about burring a story. However for a story that will spread via social media a Friday night weekend dump means more regular people will be free to read and spread it around, which is the whole point.

All that Musk has done has been about raising the profile of twitter. This document dump will do the same. That’s good news for all those advertisers who didn’t heed the left’s call to leave the platform but bad news to all who played along and lost their exposure to all those eyeballs.

This combined with the under oath testimony of an FBI agent being deposed is Missouri on their attempts to use big tech to swing the last election goes a long way in explaining why they went all in on stealing that election. If they fail and Trump wins then it’s bound to have been leaked to someone in the admin which might have resulted in a special prosecutor and/or investigation that would have been damning.

It’s very much worth noting that there were Democrat members of congress worried about this but their primary worry was what it would mean to section 230 defanging the friendly tech folks elsewhere at Facebook and Google and Youtube. In other words they were worried about not the acts but the Consequences they might lead to. A real test of the new GOP congress will be how deep they investigate this. If I’m McCarthy worried about getting the speakers chair I’d put out a statement at once saying I would name a committee at once and promise to load it with fire-eaters on the right.

Then let the consequences flow.

Five Assorted Thoughts Under the Fedora: Russia Unmasked, A Tough Call for Ukraine, Woke Winners, The coming tech pivot, and My Paypal Plans

Posted: October 12, 2022 by datechguy in culture, DaTechGuy's Quick Thoughts, education, politics, tech, under the fedora, war
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One of the things that has really been revealed by the war in Ukraine is just how weak and unready the Russian Army is. Moreover a lot of Russians were in favor of the war in Ukraine when it looked like it would be a cakewalk to retake the territory that until the breakup of the Soviet Union was part of Russia proper since the days of Napoleon, but once it became clear that it would involve actually fighting, actual causalities and a mobilization the whole pride thing went out the window.

It’s amazing how much harder war is when people are willing to shoot back rather than roll over. I would not be surprised if this lesions the fear of China’s untested military as well.

It’s a tough call for Ukraine when it comes to how the war ends.

They have a good point that they don’t want to reward Russia with any gains but the longer the war goes on the more likely Putin decides to play the tactical nuke game. Ukraine can likely get the best deal it could get right now but in the words of Lincoln if they consider this war for a purpose they see no reason to end it before that purpose is achieved.

Since it’s their blood that being spilled it’s their call, as long as I don’t have to keep paying for it.

This story via Gateway Pundit made me smile:

I predict that in the woke sweepstakes Muslims trump gays, drag queens and transsexuals’ for two reasons:

  1. The Muslim population of the US continues to grow
  2. There have been unfortunate and unhealthy consequences for those who defy those communities

One of the reasons why Sicilian American’s like myself don’t mind people associating us with the mob is it make people less likely to try to mess with us (also we don’t give a damn what others think). With the reputation of Islam backed up by 30 years of shall we call them “incidents” I suspect school committees are going to think twice before they mess with them.

Sometime in the next month we are likely going to see a pivot in tech companies.

Once they decide they can not stop the GOP from winning the House and perhaps the Senate they are going to be a lot more hesitant to oppress members of the GOP when there is a prospect of lawmakers striking back.

Now of course as long as they control the White House and the Justice Department they have a modicum of protection and I’m sure they’ll go all in no matter who the GOP nominee is but most companies don’t want grief and don’t want scrutiny and when it becomes clear who is going to win I suspect these firms will decide to be on the winning side.

Finally a lot of people I know have dropped Paypal like a hot potato. Being a person who is a tad more deliberate I’ve decided to wait till after the first of the year.

This will give me time to decide what I’m replacing it with, to contact donors to see if they wish to switch to whatever service I go over to and to evaluate my opitions.

Also in terms of taxes and their preparation it will be easier to have the account active through at least January.

This does involve some risk but if I’m right about the tech pivot that should give me enough leeway to move deliberately without a lot of worry. If I’m wrong, then it’s on me.

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