EPTUS Politics Mega-thread - Page 5603
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Now that we have a new thread, in order to ensure that this thread continues to meet TL standards and follows the proper guidelines, we will be enforcing the rules in the OP more strictly. Be sure to give them a complete and thorough read before posting! NOTE: When providing a source, please provide a very brief summary on what it's about and what purpose it adds to the discussion. The supporting statement should clearly explain why the subject is relevant and needs to be discussed. Please follow this rule especially for tweets. Your supporting statement should always come BEFORE you provide the source. If you have any questions, comments, concern, or feedback regarding the USPMT, then please use this thread: http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/website-feedback/510156-us-politics-thread | ||
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LightSpectra
United States3265 Posts
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Jankisa
Croatia1757 Posts
In general, I do agree that there were more signs that Fetterman was "hiding his power level" before his election to the senate then there are for Platner, but I do maintain that given the pattern + the red flags there is a distinct possiblity that this guy who repeatedly lied about a very obvious thing might be doing it to. Again, not saying that I know, not saying that I think he will, as I mentioned, given the field I'd pick the guy, but not without a heavy heart. | ||
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WombaT
Northern Ireland27450 Posts
On March 27 2026 00:10 GreenHorizons wrote: Interesting divide among Democrats about how to handle the rapid expansion of environmentally spurious AI data centers. www.axios.com Move quicker to do what? I’m much less well-versed in this domain than some of you folks here, so I’m going to pre-empt likely correction here! Way I see it, a sizeable chunk of data centre expansion is precisely to serve the very problematic aspects of ‘AI’ that people want to potentially regulate, or propose such moratoriums on. These general use tools, created through heinous amounts of plagiarism, to be deployed mostly by Joe and Jane public to do whatever it is they need done. Write their homework for them, generate political disinformation, maybe make a deepfake porn video of their ex. As well as plenty of reasonable use cases as well of course, I’m being hyperbolic. What are we potentially falling behind China at here exactly? Is not a lot of the seemingly endless expansion of these tools and the need for more data centres, rather largely driven by its worst use cases, that may have deleterious impacts? Or the most trivial in certain ways? The justification to not basically well, slow the AI ‘revolution’ in any way because China, why? You can still build and do research on all the cutting edge use cases without massively expanding these platforms for gen pop or the commercial sector to effectively dick around with I would have assumed. It feels very Manhattan Project to me as a rationale. Well the theory’s out there and if we don’t do it first someone else will. I’m not a Luddite, or confusingly perhaps I am based on the Luddites’ rationales as opposed to how they’re colloquially invoked. There is clearly great potential in this suite of various technologies. What does concern me is less an inadequate application of ethics in the process, but an almost wholesale lack of consideration altogether. Now I’m also not saying that a moratorium of this kind is necessarily the right course of action, it’s more the China rationale invoked here. Or rather frequently in general | ||
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dyhb
United States769 Posts
On March 27 2026 01:10 LightSpectra wrote: His former political director said "Maybe he didn’t know it when he got it, but he got it years ago and he should have had it covered up because he knows damn well what it means." She resigned from his campaign once the controversial reddit posts came up. The ones about why Black people don't tip and why people concerned about being raped should "take some responsibility for themselves."So here's a controversial topic, Democratic primary in Maine for the U.S. Senate, the winner will run against Collins in November. The two leading candidates are current governor Janet Mills, moderate endorsed by Chuck Schumer, 79 years old, and Graham Platner, left-wing endorsed by Bernie Sanders, 42 years old. In normal circumstances I would say Platner is the obvious choice, BUT, he also had a Totenkopf tattoo (he claims he didn't know what it meant when he got it and said he would laser it off in October of last year). He's also an ex-mercenary for private military company Blackwater, even after their role in the Nisour Square massacre was made public knowledge. So there's a real worry that he's simply faking being left-wing and will go full John Fetterman/Kyrsten Sinema after he's elected. I don't live in Maine so this isn't my problem, but it's an interesting dilemma for progressives there. So the lesson here is don't hide your past from your campaign's political director. Disclose, and present a believable story to the public. Platner's correct move was to tell a story of development and maturity. | ||
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Jankisa
Croatia1757 Posts
Source: https://apnews.com/article/data-centers-ai-electricity-sanders-aoc-65651bd28c3d911d18eeb46cd54f4c75 Two high-profile progressive lawmakers introduced a bill Wednesday that would pause new data centers in the United States until national safeguards are in place to protect workers and consumers and ensure the technologies don’t harm the environment. The legislation by Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont is unlikely to advance in either the House or Senate, but it shows the deep concerns many progressives share about the growing impact of data centers and artificial intelligence. Communities across the country have seen a backlash against data centers over fears about rising electricity prices and concerns about pollution and water consumption. Opposition to rising power prices was also a key factor in Democratic wins last year in elections in states including Georgia, Virginia and New Jersey. So, yeah, it's about introducing the moratorium until real worries about impact of AI can be studied and regulated, namely environmental concerns (water and electricity usage) and worker displacement (AI replacing peoples jobs). These are very valid concerns and the bill, to me, makes absolute sense, because USA is hurdling towards a future it knows nothing about, but, you know, that's just how things are and have been for a long time. The Data Centers that have already been planned and approved would, form what I read comfortably cover all the AI needs for the foreseeable future, they are being built on the promise of future demand that is not actually there, at least not now, because they are banking on AI becoming AGI/ASI where you won't be able to avoid it if you want to have any chance to succeed in the world. | ||
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WombaT
Northern Ireland27450 Posts
On March 27 2026 02:11 EnDeR_ wrote: Millennial here (not by much tho) and I very much believed in my younger days that people's minds could be changed if convincing evidence could be provided. As a scientist, this felt like a self-evident truth. I sympathise with Baal's position in truth. I don't think he's being malicious, he just thinks people are better than they truly are and that's a nice sentiment. I mean it’s the intuitive position after all. And it still works, provided, to my understanding that an individual hasn’t formed some kind of reasonably strong emotional attachment to a belief, or wider belief system. It seems the current ecosystem, complex as it is does somewhat seem to rather bolt seemingly unrelated phenomena to particular belief systems. And in many cases that fusing is not reversible past a point. There should be no real reason that belief in the efficacy of certain vaccines etc should serve as a (reasonably) accurate gauge of someone’s wider political beliefs. But you’d have to be a lunatic to deny that was rather evident, specially in Covid times! There is also another option too, the brain effectively ends up deceiving itself. Cognitive dissonance in the real sense of the term. Someone does believe in x y or z, let’s say: 1. Vaccines are real, other COVID countermeasures are legit 2. I’m a decent person. 3. I wanna do my shit, despite recognising there’s potential harmful consequences to others. Well, the easiest way out of that bind is to drop belief 1). You resolve the conflict (and the cognitive dissonance) between beliefs 2 and 3 because it becomes moot if you no longer hold belief 1. I think part of why COVID was such a minefield in this domain was because of the clear clashes between personal autonomy and the public good. One has to draw their lines somewhere, but that will invite the judgement of others. It’d be interesting to see how we’d fare if there was some existential WW3 kinda deal now. You’d probably see folks noping out of service with the rationale it wasn’t really happening at all | ||
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EnDeR_
Spain2944 Posts
On March 27 2026 04:06 WombaT wrote: I mean it’s the intuitive position after all. And it still works, provided, to my understanding that an individual hasn’t formed some kind of reasonably strong emotional attachment to a belief, or wider belief system. It seems the current ecosystem, complex as it is does somewhat seem to rather bolt seemingly unrelated phenomena to particular belief systems. And in many cases that fusing is not reversible past a point. There should be no real reason that belief in the efficacy of certain vaccines etc should serve as a (reasonably) accurate gauge of someone’s wider political beliefs. But you’d have to be a lunatic to deny that was rather evident, specially in Covid times! There is also another option too, the brain effectively ends up deceiving itself. Cognitive dissonance in the real sense of the term. Someone does believe in x y or z, let’s say: 1. Vaccines are real, other COVID countermeasures are legit 2. I’m a decent person. 3. I wanna do my shit, despite recognising there’s potential harmful consequences to others. Well, the easiest way out of that bind is to drop belief 1). You resolve the conflict (and the cognitive dissonance) between beliefs 2 and 3 because it becomes moot if you no longer hold belief 1. I think part of why COVID was such a minefield in this domain was because of the clear clashes between personal autonomy and the public good. One has to draw their lines somewhere, but that will invite the judgement of others. It’d be interesting to see how we’d fare if there was some existential WW3 kinda deal now. You’d probably see folks noping out of service with the rationale it wasn’t really happening at all For me, part of the problem is social media's self-reinforcement loops and engagement-based algorithm which draws people in into these communities, making it more likely that outlandish ideas become part of their identity which is very hard to come back from. I mean, take this: some fuckwit figures out they can make a ton of cash pushing the concept of "wild births", the Free Birth Society (FBS), a business that promotes freebirth. Unlike home birth – birth at home with a midwife in attendance – freebirth means giving birth without any medical support. FBS promotes a version widely seen as extreme, even among freebirth advocates: it is anti-ultrasound, which it falsely claims harms babies, downplays serious medical conditions and promotes wild pregnancy, meaning pregnancy without any prenatal care. FBS was founded by ex-doula Emilee Saldaya, and most women find it through its podcast, which has been downloaded 5m times, its Instagram account, which has 132,000 followers, its YouTube, with nearly 25m views, or its bestselling The Complete Guide to Freebirth, a video course co-created by Saldaya with fellow ex-doula Yolande Norris-Clark, available for download from FBS’s slick website. Analysis of FBS’s financial records by Stacey Ferris, a forensic accountant and academic at Virginia Polytechnic Institute, suggests it has generated revenues exceeding $13m since 2018. ... For $299, mothers can join FBS’s paid-for, private online community, the Lighthouse. To prepare for freebirth, women purchase The Complete Guide to Freebirth, for $399. Reading all that material, women become brainwashed into thinking that freebirth is the safest way to deliver their babies. The consequences are predictable, when there is no medical support on hand and things go sideways, you end up with dead babies or disabled children for no effing reason other than to make some fuckwit a lot of money. But sure, free speech and all that. | ||
Falling
Canada11607 Posts
Trump explains why he cast a mail ballot in Florida's election: 'Because I'm president' Some are more equal than others. Screw that. That and the "Save" America Act is voter suppression through and through. Just take a page out of the Canadian three tier system for identifying voters if you are concerned about Voter ID. It works quite well. (As well as automatically register if you check a box when doing taxes.) | ||
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Gorsameth
Netherlands22630 Posts
On March 27 2026 04:38 Falling wrote: "It works" is the thing have issue with.I freaking hate how Trump keeps wanting to ban mail in ballots with no evidence of voter fraud and he, himself pretty much exclusively votes via mail in. (The best examples of voter fraud are Republicans getting caught trying to prove the system is broken.) Trump explains why he cast a mail ballot in Florida's election: 'Because I'm president' Some are more equal than others. Screw that. That and the "Save" America Act is voter suppression through and through. Just take a page out of the Canadian three tier system for identifying voters if you are concerned about Voter ID. It works quite well. (As well as automatically register if you check a box when doing taxes.) The whole point is they want a system that doesn't work. | ||
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maybenexttime
Poland5872 Posts
On March 27 2026 00:46 Manit0u wrote: By the gods! Trump's derangements never end... He just confirmed Iran is on its knees and begging him (DJT) to become their supreme leader but he refused. This isn't what he said. If you watch the video, it's clear he's pretending to be someone from the Iranian establishment being offered the job, not talking about himself being offered the job. | ||
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JimmyJRaynor
Canada17892 Posts
I guess that is the "gift" DJT was talking about. It is great to see the 2 sides talking. Hopefully, this whole thing can end soon with no more loss of life. | ||
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LightSpectra
United States3265 Posts
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KwarK
United States44352 Posts
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doubleupgradeobbies!
Australia1354 Posts
On March 27 2026 00:50 Manit0u wrote: That's just for the public. The REAL DEALS are all happening behind the scenes  Heh I'm starting to get Iraqi information minister vibes. At least Saddam got a minister to do it though. | ||
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hitthat
Poland2349 Posts
On March 27 2026 06:10 JimmyJRaynor wrote: Iran is releasing 8 oil tankers. Big win for Trump! I guess that is the "gift" DJT was talking about. It is great to see the 2 sides talking. Hopefully, this whole thing can end soon with no more loss of life. It wont, and this time US will not get away with this that easly. Those 10 ships are all iranian friendlies, and was not a gesture towards USA, but Trump as always tries gaslight everybody that he won, just like they tried to gaslight over their so-called "win" in Davos. | ||
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LightSpectra
United States3265 Posts
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Fleetfeet
Canada2836 Posts
On March 27 2026 04:33 EnDeR_ wrote: For me, part of the problem is social media's self-reinforcement loops and engagement-based algorithm which draws people in into these communities, making it more likely that outlandish ideas become part of their identity which is very hard to come back from. I mean, take this: some fuckwit figures out they can make a ton of cash pushing the concept of "wild births", Reading all that material, women become brainwashed into thinking that freebirth is the safest way to deliver their babies. The consequences are predictable, when there is no medical support on hand and things go sideways, you end up with dead babies or disabled children for no effing reason other than to make some fuckwit a lot of money. But sure, free speech and all that. This touches on a lot of my concerns regarding 'free speech' - Specifically, 'free speech' within the context of two important factors : 1) People correctly don't trust (the) government and/or authority. This opening of reasonable doubt can be, and is, exploited by conspiracy hawkers as an in to gain their trust. 2) This 'speech' can be, and is done for profit though abuse of social media algorithms. Either monetization directly on the platforms via ad revenue, or by a connected pipeline of products (I.e. 'supplement' products that claim to detox microplastics or boost your sperm count or whatever). The speech is not done for the idea it presents, but the profit it brings. Truth is unimportant, and truth is not popular because truth is boring. I have no issue with people defaulting to a mistrust of authority. In fact, I think that's probably good. I also have no issue with someone excercising their right to claim the earth is flat or that aliens invaded egypt 4,000 years ago, or that (insert government figure here) is actually a lizardperson. Where I take issue is the use of this 'free speech' to exploit stupid people for financial gain, without regard for the health and wellbeing of the stupid people, and without concern for the accuracy of what's being said. It's not important if anyone is actually a lizardperson, it's important that you get the eyes of people who believe lizardpeople are real, because odds are they'll take you at your word that your product works, because after all you agree with them that so-and-so is a lizard. Like dyhb mentioned, the clear answer to this is civil suits and other legal action, I just wonder if that's sufficient. Cases like InfoWars / Alex Jones stand as examples - This dude spent years building an empire on misinformation and profiting off of it. Sure, eventually he got taken down by one of his lies, but how many people did he hurt along the way? I don't think 'Silence Alex Jones' was ever the answer, but I do wish there was a way to force him to profit off the truth of his statements and not the conteoversy / conspiracy of them. | ||
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Hat Trick of Today
202 Posts
On March 27 2026 06:36 KwarK wrote: Can’t imagine how small a small win must be. Yeah it’s hilarious to have people call this a win when so much of the associated infrastructure related to fossil fuel refining in the region has been crippled. The US and Israel have still fucked everything, there’s no winning or deals to be made. It’s like calling a man giving you $10,000 worth of restitution for burning down 1/2 of your factory campus’ manufacturing hardware a win. Even ignoring the veracity of the 10 oil tanker claim + how little this fixes the world economy, a country like Australia has reported that they’re scrambling to deal with a little less than a hundred oil tankers. 10 oil tankers is a hilariously low number. | ||
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WombaT
Northern Ireland27450 Posts
On March 27 2026 07:40 LightSpectra wrote: The Petrodollar is dead and we're replacing it with the Pedodollar Minor in the wider scheme of things but my god can the man just fuck off? | ||
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Razyda
1059 Posts
On March 27 2026 03:46 Jankisa wrote: Well, instead of speculating, let's see what they actually propose and why: Source: https://apnews.com/article/data-centers-ai-electricity-sanders-aoc-65651bd28c3d911d18eeb46cd54f4c75 So, yeah, it's about introducing the moratorium until real worries about impact of AI can be studied and regulated, namely environmental concerns (water and electricity usage) and worker displacement (AI replacing peoples jobs). These are very valid concerns and the bill, to me, makes absolute sense, because USA is hurdling towards a future it knows nothing about, but, you know, that's just how things are and have been for a long time. The Data Centers that have already been planned and approved would, form what I read comfortably cover all the AI needs for the foreseeable future, they are being built on the promise of future demand that is not actually there, at least not now, because they are banking on AI becoming AGI/ASI where you won't be able to avoid it if you want to have any chance to succeed in the world. FFS "Two high-profile progressive lawmakers introduced a bill Wednesday that would pause new data centers in the United States until national safeguards are in place to protect workers and consumers and ensure the technologies don’t harm the environment." This is basically saying that government decides which AI companies get to build data centers. On March 26 2026 19:31 Simberto wrote: While this is what free speech currently means, i think it is somewhat important to think about what free speech should mean in a modern world. Which is why section 230 needs changing, no one should be able to moderate and being immune from responsibility at the same time, it should be one, or another. @baal I dont think you understand your situation. You arguing with people who will tell you that Trump ban is fine because it is private platform, then complain that Musk banned someone from his platform. You arguing with people who believe that speech which lead to harm should be banned but are first to call others nazis, racists, child rapists, fascists. You essentially arguing with people who somehow believe that if you tell somebody to " go f...k yourself" and then somebody rip of their d...k trying to show it up his a....s, the problem is your speech, but when they say "do x next" it is x who is the problem. | ||
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