May 2022 Current Events Thread: Statistically, Rhode Island doesn't exist

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Internet VFW > May 2022 Current Events Thread: Statistically, Rhode Island doesn't exist

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Discussion Quorum: Dec 5, 2002; Armchair Philistine

lmao, lol

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/why-the-fed-wants-corporate-america-to-have-a-hiring-freeze-morning-brief-100055174.html

For my entire career up to this point, employers have been able to say "if you're not happy I have 10 other people lined up to take your job" and a lot of them really don't know how to handle not having that to wield as a bludgeon. Just nothing in their toolkit at all.

boop the snoot posted:

I don’t know if he’s religious but he probably wouldn’t get within ten steps of that car without being holy.

He's part of some super-fundy Mormon offshoot IIRC and very angry about LGBTQ people existing. He also runs "training scenarios" for the gram that look suspiciously like him rehearsing mass shootings and assassinations. I am sure these two things are unrelated.

e: since it's not obvious from the OP, that is the owner of T-Rex Arms

Discussion Quorum fucked around with this message at 13:32 on May 12, 2022

# ? May 12, 2022 13:29

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# ? Jun 7, 2024 00:53

Nick Soapdish: Apr 27, 2008

boop the snoot posted:

I don’t know if he’s religious but he probably wouldn’t get within ten steps of that car without being holy.

# ? May 12, 2022 13:36

shame on an IGA: Apr 8, 2005

new space goatse just dropped

# ? May 12, 2022 14:15

A.o.D.: Jan 15, 2006

shame on an IGA posted:

new space goatse just dropped

Is that Sagittarius A*?

# ? May 12, 2022 14:20

Mr. Nice!: Oct 13, 2005; bone shaking.
soul baking.

A.o.D. posted:

Is that Sagittarius A*?

It is indeed. Apparently the gas orbits it in minutes which has made imaging difficult before.

# ? May 12, 2022 14:47

Nystral: Feb 6, 2002; Every man likes a pretty girl with him at a skeleton dance.

engadget posted:

ICE 'now operates as a domestic surveillance agency,' think tank says

Although it's supposed to be restricted by surveillance rules at local, state and federal levels, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has built up a mass surveillance system that includes details on almost all US residents, according to a report from a major think tank. Researchers from Georgetown Law's Center on Privacy and Technology said ICE "now operates as a domestic surveillance agency" and that it was able to bypass regulations in part by purchasing databases from private companies.

"Since its founding in 2003, ICE has not only been building its own capacity to use surveillance to carry out deportations but has also played a key role in the federal government�s larger push to amass as much information as possible about all of our lives," the report's authors state. "By reaching into the digital records of state and local governments and buying databases with billions of data points from private companies, ICE has created a surveillance infrastructure that enables it to pull detailed dossiers on nearly anyone, seemingly at any time."

The researchers spent two years looking into ICE to put together the extensive report, which is called "American Dragnet: Data-Driven Deportation in the 21st Century." They obtained information by filing hundreds of freedom of information requests and scouring more than 100,000 contracts and procurement records.

The agency is said to be using data from the Department of Motor Vehicles and utility companies, along with the likes of call records, child welfare records, phone location data, healthcare records and social media posts. ICE is now said to hold driver�s license data for 74 percent of adults and can track the movement of cars in cities that are home to 70 percent of the adult population in the US.

The study shows that ICE, which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, has already used facial recognition technology to search through driver�s license photos of a third of adults in the US. In 2020, the agency signed a deal with Clearview AI to use that company's controversial technology. In addition, the report states that when 74 percent of adults hook up gas, electricity, phone or internet utilities in a new residence, ICE was able to automatically find out their updated address.

The authors wrote that ICE is able to carry out these actions in secret and without warrants. Along with the data it acquired from other government departments, utilities, private companies and third-party data brokers, "the power of algorithmic tools for sorting, matching, searching and analysis has dramatically expanded the scope and regularity of ICE surveillance," the report states.

Spending transactions reviewed by the researchers showed that, between 2008 and last year, ICE spent around $2.8 billion on "new surveillance, data collection and data-sharing initiatives." It spent approximately $569 million on data analysis, including $186.6 million in contracts with Palantir Technologies to help it make sense of its vast troves of data. Records showed that ICE also spent more than $1.3 billion on geolocation tech during that timeframe and $389 million on telecom interception, which includes tech that helps the agency track someone's phone calls, emails, social media activity and real-time internet use.

In addition, the findings suggest the agency started engaging in certain surveillance activities much earlier than previously believed. The researchers found a contract from 2008 that granted ICE access to the Rhode Island motor vehicle department�s facial recognition database. Prior to that, it was understood that ICE started conducting facial recognition searches on state and local data sets in 2013.

The authors claim that ICE has been able to sidestep congressional oversight and bypass attempts at state level to curtain its surveillance capabilities. They included a list of recommendations that may help rein in the agency's surveillance dragnet, such as Congress reforming immigration laws to "undercut ICE surveillance authority" and blocking ICE's use of DMV data. The recommended measures also include protecting people who trust federal, state and local authorities with their data and blocking the use of utility records for immigration enforcement.

Link

Primary Source

# ? May 12, 2022 15:13

Marshal Prolapse: Jun 23, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

Soldier Is Killed by Brown Bear on Alaska Military Base
A group of soldiers planning an exercise wandered across a bear den on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage when a sow attacked, state wildlife troopers said.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/11/us/alaska-bear-attack-soldier-death.html?smid=url-share

quote:

A U.S. Army soldier who stumbled across a brown bear den and was surprised by a �flash of brown mass� was killed in a bear attack on Tuesday while scouting a wilderness area on an Alaska military base, a state wildlife official said.

Three soldiers had come across the den while mapping out a training site for a land navigation course on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, said Capt. Derek DeGraaf, commander of the Northern Detachment of the Alaska Wildlife Troopers, an agency that enforces wildlife laws. The soldiers� arrival prompted the mother bear, or sow, to crawl outside, he said. She ran away after knocking down one soldier and attacking a second, who later died.

�From the soldier�s perspective, there was a flash of brown mass,� he said. �They were attacked and didn�t even see it coming.�

The soldier who had been knocked down was treated for minor injuries at a nearby hospital and released, Captain DeGraaf said. The joint Army and Air Force base declined to release the name of the deceased soldier on Wednesday, pending family notification, and provided no further details about other soldiers involved in the episode. Captain DeGraaf said the two soldiers were both men around 30 years old.

The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division is investigating, as it does with all unexpected soldier deaths on army posts, said Patrick Barnes, a spokesman for the agency. The area is closed to the public for recreation, according to a statement from the base.

The state wildlife troopers learned about the bear attack at around 1:50 p.m. on Tuesday and responded to the scene with members of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division, Captain DeGraaf said. The Security Forces Squadron of the 673rd Air Base Wing initially responded, the base said.

Bear attacks are rare in Anchorage, and even in the wooded area the soldiers were scouting, bear dens are uncommon, Captain DeGraaf noted. These naturally camouflaged underground dugouts are often in remote wilderness � not unlike the training area � but usually at higher elevations on mountains and hillsides, he said. People often don�t recognize bear dens until later in the year, he said, when more bears have crawled out of hibernation and more tracks are visible on the ground.

Ten people died after bear attacks in Alaska between 2000 and 2017, according to a study from the Alaska Section of Epidemiology, and 68 people were hospitalized for injuries from such attacks. In comparison, 467 people were hospitalized from dog bites in that time period.

The vast majority of the hospitalized victims in the study were white men � mostly people in outdoor jobs and recreation � attacked by brown bears. One of the victims was in the military. These attacks were most common in the summer months in the state�s southern coastal region along the Gulf of Alaska. Bears often attacked, the study found, after they were startled or perceived a threat, and many were sows trying to protect their cubs.

Though infrequent, bear attacks appear to be on the rise globally, the study said, because of habitat overlap from human population growth and outdoor recreation.

Wildlife troopers in the Anchorage area have received more bear sighting calls in the last week and a half as the creatures emerge from their winter hibernation, Captain DeGraaf said. More bears are wandering into town, he added � like the black bear he saw near the fence at a softball game this week �slumbering like it had just woke up.� People in the area usually encounter �dumpster-diving bears� that rummage through trash.

The soldiers were about a mile off Pole Line Road in a shady wooded area where little pockets of snow still cling to the ground after the area�s snowy year, according to Captain DeGraaf. A helicopter was dispatched to find the bear, but the crew struggled to search through the dense canopy, he added. He said troopers remained on the scene until late Tuesday evening to see if the sow would return, but she didn�t, leaving her cubs alone in their den.

# ? May 12, 2022 15:26

boop the snoot: Jun 3, 2016

I imagine they got too close and didn�t even know it until the bear had its mind made up.

That sucks.

# ? May 12, 2022 15:30

CommieGIR: Aug 22, 2006; The blue glow is a feature, not a bug; Pillbug

C.M. Kruger posted:

https://twitter.com/BadWeaponTakes/status/1515361631953473538

To pretend that an empty seat is the same as having a person in it, in crowded traffic, who will mostly likely totally notice a rage induced Right Winger coming to shoot them in the head.

# ? May 12, 2022 15:39

Crab Dad: Dec 28, 2002; behold i have tempered and refined thee, but not as silver; as CRAB

Russia wishes it was as effective as mother bear.

# ? May 12, 2022 15:47

Marshal Prolapse: Jun 23, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

boop the snoot posted:

I imagine they got too close and didn�t even know it until the bear had its mind made up.

That sucks.

Yeah, at first when I saw the headline, I figured it was idiot thread material, but this seems more like rotten luck, then anything with negligence or incompetence.

# ? May 12, 2022 15:58

bird food bathtub: Aug 9, 2003; College Slice

Nystral posted:

Link

Primary Source

Good thing we kept ICE around. Wouldn't want to abolish it or anything. It will really save a lot of time trying to stand up domestic brown shirts for whatever flavor of right wing fascist comes in to power next.

# ? May 12, 2022 15:59

Nystral: Feb 6, 2002; Every man likes a pretty girl with him at a skeleton dance.

bird food bathtub posted:

Good thing we kept ICE around. Wouldn't want to abolish it or anything. It will really save a lot of time trying to stand up domestic brown shirts for whatever flavor of right wing fascist comes in to power next.

between this, the SCOTUS ruling, and the fact that my wife is a citizen of Canada has me leaning towards just up and moving in 2025 or so. I try hard to avoid the doomscrolling but it's getting harder even with the "good option" in office.

I know WHY the Biden admin hasn't been able to do anything of real substance and WHY he has so far avoided Exec orders. I just don't care anymore. gently caress this Dumb Earth.

# ? May 12, 2022 16:07

ASAPI: Apr 20, 2007; I invented the line.

Marshal Prolapse posted:

Soldier Is Killed by Brown Bear on Alaska Military Base
A group of soldiers planning an exercise wandered across a bear den on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage when a sow attacked, state wildlife troopers said.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/11/us/alaska-bear-attack-soldier-death.html?smid=url-share

drat. Here I was thinking it was bad that I had to hide on top of a HMMWV on Fort Hood due to unruly cattle.

# ? May 12, 2022 16:10

Defenestrategy: Oct 24, 2010

Nystral posted:

I know WHY the Biden admin hasn't been able to do anything of real substance and WHY he has so far avoided Exec orders. I just don't care anymore. gently caress this Dumb Earth.

Why? because its confusing me. Some sort of vain hope that if he doesn't do them he's not gonna lose at least one house of congress in midterms regardless of the various states putting in "Republicans Win" in their election laws?

# ? May 12, 2022 16:19

maffew buildings: Apr 29, 2009; too dumb to be probated; not too dumb to be autobanned

I thought Biden was pitched as the option for getting things done due to his time in Congress and knowing everyone etc or am I fever dreaming that

# ? May 12, 2022 16:20

CainFortea: Oct 15, 2004

Defenestrategy posted:

Why? because its confusing me. Some sort of vain hope that if he doesn't do them he's not gonna lose at least one house of congress in midterms regardless of the various states putting in "Republicans Win" in their election laws?

No, they can do stuff.

They don't want to because the worse things are the more donations they get historically.

# ? May 12, 2022 16:25

Butter Activities: May 4, 2018

Some gun form mod who was a Navy cop or something dumb but reasonably experienced that goes by "navyman8903" and had some degree of real firearm training did a takedown video that you can't find anymore probably because of litigation threats or bad-faith DMCA claims of Trex arms.

He pointed out all the amateur-hour poo poo they do in their videos and range theatrics and their specific claims about "training SOF" and why they're bullshit.

Also this is their dad:

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/lovejoyfeminism/2015/04/the-cold-unforgiving-world-of-geoffrey-botkin.html

# ? May 12, 2022 16:38

piL: Sep 20, 2007; (__|\\\\); Taco Defender

Defenestrategy posted:

Why? because its confusing me. Some sort of vain hope that if he doesn't do them he's not gonna lose at least one house of congress in midterms regardless of the various states putting in "Republicans Win" in their election laws?

Mostly Article I Section 1 of the US Constitution.

# ? May 12, 2022 16:47

golden bubble: Jun 3, 2011; yospos

https://twitter.com/CNN/status/1524350811345756162

# ? May 12, 2022 16:49

Proud Christian Mom: Dec 20, 2006; READING COMPREHENSION IS HARD

maffew buildings posted:

I thought Biden was pitched as the option for getting things done due to his time in Congress and knowing everyone etc or am I fever dreaming that

no, Biden's decades of experience in bipartisanly building the America that is crushing everyone today was touted as an excellent qualification.

# ? May 12, 2022 17:07

maffew buildings: Apr 29, 2009; too dumb to be probated; not too dumb to be autobanned

look I didn't major in lanyards and think political science isn't science I can't be expected to know this stuff

edit - I was thinking of the reasons I was told I needed to not vote to primary Diane Feinstein

maffew buildings fucked around with this message at 17:42 on May 12, 2022

# ? May 12, 2022 17:19

Nystral: Feb 6, 2002; Every man likes a pretty girl with him at a skeleton dance.

Defenestrategy posted:

Why? because its confusing me. Some sort of vain hope that if he doesn't do them he's not gonna lose at least one house of congress in midterms regardless of the various states putting in "Republicans Win" in their election laws?

Because Congress is the most powerful body of government by design. And it has clawed back some / most of the power it abdicated to the Executive via the AUMF and Patriot acts following 9/11, coupled with Biden not wanting to push boundaries for optics. The 50/50 Senate has effectively rendered Biden's ability to push through any signature wins impossible.

Like I said I understand WHY, I just don't care anymore

EDIT: I used to be of the mindset that Politics is a profession just like Doctors and having amateurs in power is not a good idea. Now? gently caress it primary everyone, purity test everyone, kick everyone out implement mandatory retirement age of 75 or something. Congress should reflect the country not just the olds.

Nystral fucked around with this message at 18:07 on May 12, 2022

# ? May 12, 2022 18:05

Johnny Five-Jaces: Jan 21, 2009

maffew buildings posted:

I thought Biden was pitched as the option for getting things done due to his time in Congress and knowing everyone etc or am I fever dreaming that

not only during his run as president, but it was listed as a big plus for him as vp on the obama ticket, which you'll remember did NOT have major legislation curtailed or scrapped because of uncooperative members of congress that couldn't be wrangled

# ? May 12, 2022 18:15

SquirrelyPSU: May 27, 2003

maffew buildings posted:

I thought Biden was pitched as the option for getting things done due to his time in Congress and knowing everyone etc or am I fever dreaming that

The dude is "not Trump." Not exactly rocket science. You can go back through and read the October 2019 CE thread if you want.

# ? May 12, 2022 19:28

ZombieApostate: Mar 13, 2011; Sorry, I didn't read your post.

I'm too busy replying to what I wish you said

SquirrelyPSU posted:

The dude is "not Trump." Not exactly rocket science. You can go back through and read the October 2019 CE thread if you want.

I think the point being made is that the choice was not "trump" vs "not trump" in the primary.

# ? May 12, 2022 22:04

Stultus Maximus: Dec 21, 2009; USPOL May

SquirrelyPSU posted:

The dude is "not Trump." Not exactly rocket science. You can go back through and read the October 2019 CE thread if you want.

More specifically, �not Trump who can get blue collar whites onboard�

# ? May 12, 2022 22:09

CainFortea: Oct 15, 2004

SquirrelyPSU posted:

The dude is "not Trump." Not exactly rocket science. You can go back through and read the October 2019 CE thread if you want.

I'm not sure why you forgot, but no there were lots of people saying that Biden is a great choice because he's been in congress for a long time and he put the work in and knows how to work the system.

# ? May 12, 2022 22:42

Wrong Theory: Aug 27, 2005; Satellite from days of old, lead me to your access code

CainFortea posted:

I'm not sure why you forgot, but no there were lots of people saying that Biden is a great choice because he's been in congress for a long time and he put the work in and knows how to work the system.

I remember this mostly in regards to Biden vs Bernie. Bernie might have the better agenda but he can't accomplish it while Biden has decades of making deals and can get things done (lol).

# ? May 12, 2022 22:50

ThisIsJohnWayne: Feb 23, 2007; Ooo! Look at me! NO DON'T LOOK AT ME!

Wrong Theory posted:

I remember this mostly in regards to Biden vs Bernie. Bernie might have the better agenda but he can't accomplish it while Biden has decades of making deals and can get things done (lol).

"And thus was abortion abolished in the White Lands."

JRR Tolkien, The ~~Fall of Numenor~~Rebranding of America First!

# ? May 12, 2022 23:07

Nystral: Feb 6, 2002; Every man likes a pretty girl with him at a skeleton dance.

Wrong Theory posted:

I remember this mostly in regards to Biden vs Bernie. Bernie might have the better agenda but he can't accomplish it while Biden has decades of making deals and can get things done (lol).

The biggest difference that I can tell between a hypothetical Bernie admin and the actual Biden admin is that Bernie knew going in that Congress was against his agenda and had developed plans to shame Dem leadership to eliminate the filibuster based on what I remember from his interview with the Pod Save America crew. He had no illusions that all the congressional gently caress nuts would do everything in their power to obstruct his agenda, so came at it from a more realistic adversarial vantage point. I genuinely think Biden was shocked at how partisan the Senate had become over the 12 years since he left office.

# ? May 12, 2022 23:38

SquirrelyPSU: May 27, 2003

CainFortea posted:

I'm not sure why you forgot, but no there were lots of people saying that Biden is a great choice because he's been in congress for a long time and he put the work in and knows how to work the system.

"Lots of people" is not this thread.

# ? May 12, 2022 23:48

CainFortea: Oct 15, 2004

SquirrelyPSU posted:

"Lots of people" is not this thread.

So?

# ? May 12, 2022 23:50

SquirrelyPSU: May 27, 2003

I'm sorry, did I miss the part where this turned to CSPAM overnight?

e: And for the record, I voted for Sanders in the primary. Please and politely gently caress off.

SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 00:16 on May 13, 2022

# ? May 12, 2022 23:56

Acebuckeye13: Nov 2, 2010; Against All Tyrants; Ultra Carp

I think I said "well this is the best-case scenario for Biden" but I still voted for Bernie in the primaries. Not that I honestly think Sanders would have had much more luck trying to pass legislation through this Congress.

# ? May 13, 2022 00:20

Grip it and rip it: Apr 28, 2020

Nobody loving wanted biden or thought he'd be great as far as I saw.

# ? May 13, 2022 00:30

Vincent Van Goatse: Nov 8, 2006; Enjoy every sandwich.; Smellrose

I was... OK with Biden being the nominee, though like everyone else I voted for Bernie in the primary.

# ? May 13, 2022 00:36

pantslesswithwolves: Oct 28, 2008

The consensus at the time was Biden was a tourniquet on the femoral artery bleed that was the Trump presidency, but the Democratic leadership is now saying �the bleeding has stopped! We don�t need to repair the artery. It�s fine! The leg looks better in its new purple color! Vote please?� while the increasingly deranged Republicans are staring at the leg and drooling as they say �hey, you gonna eat that?�

# ? May 13, 2022 00:43

SquirrelyPSU: May 27, 2003

pantslesswithwolves posted:

The consensus at the time was Biden was a tourniquet on the femoral artery bleed that was the Trump presidency, but the Democratic leadership is now saying �the bleeding has stopped! We don�t need to repair the artery. It�s fine! The leg looks better in its new purple color! Vote please?� while the increasingly deranged Republicans are staring at the leg and drooling as they say �hey, you gonna eat that?�

Trump was a legitimate threat to this country and probably on a path towards MAD with China or whoever the hell. I'll gladly take whatever milquetoast D they throw out there to serve as a stop gap. Its not ideal, but I'll take "not ideal" over nukes flying.

e: The thing that bothers me is that there isn't a next man/woman up? I've got my wagon hitched to Fetterman, but he'd be well into his 60s before given the chance. I'm really hoping Charles Booker wins this year.

SquirrelyPSU fucked around with this message at 01:06 on May 13, 2022

# ? May 13, 2022 00:49

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# ? Jun 7, 2024 00:53

Kazinsal: Dec 13, 2011

SquirrelyPSU posted:

Trump was a legitimate threat to this country and probably on a path towards MAD with China or whoever the hell. I'll gladly take whatever milquetoast D they throw out there to serve as a stop gap. Its not ideal, but I'll take "not ideal" over nukes flying.

He also would have given direct aid to Putin's genocidal campaign in Ukraine and we'd probably be watching concentration camps being built in Kyiv in real time right about now.

Nystral posted:

between this, the SCOTUS ruling, and the fact that my wife is a citizen of Canada has me leaning towards just up and moving in 2025 or so. I try hard to avoid the doomscrolling but it's getting harder even with the "good option" in office.

I know WHY the Biden admin hasn't been able to do anything of real substance and WHY he has so far avoided Exec orders. I just don't care anymore. gently caress this Dumb Earth.

Start your application now, friend. Even with a Canadian spouse to sponsor you, the paperwork to get permanent residency here sucks and has a pretty long processing time (currently estimated 12-18 months last time I checked).

# ? May 13, 2022 01:07

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Internet VFW > May 2022 Current Events Thread: Statistically, Rhode Island doesn't exist

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