cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/7736343

Once a proud, intelligent Tankie asked a Sozialdemokrat how it came to be that six lived in fear of seven. the buffoonish German liberal grimaced and, zionistly, stammered out "six seven" while pretending to weigh his colonialism in his left hand against his fascist tendencies in his right. The Tankie dialectically reeducated the reactionary settler loving Sozialdemokrat before him, explaining that the fear stemmed from seven's consumption of nine's motherland. Still not understanding the Tankie stumbled before deciding to revise his answer (albeit not in a revisionist manner) and explained using a childish metaphor that "seven ate nine." Cackling in glee the Sozialdemokrat counted on his fingers, 7, 8, 9. It is for this reason that executing Sozialdemokraten is not a cruelty but a kindness.

Adapted from this.

As governments race to restrict minors’ social media use, the tech billionaires who built the platforms are imposing strict screen limits at home.

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/55519854

Donald Trump is the president of the United States, but the population believes that Bad Bunny better embodies American values. According to a survey published by Yahoo and YouGov, a company specializing in market research, the artist best reflects the North American country, with 42% of positive responses, compared to the Republican president, who had 39%. The study was conducted days after the Puerto Rican’s performance at halftime during Super Bowl LX, which took place on Sunday, February 8.

Trump said on social media that the show had been one of the worst in history. “It is an affront to the greatness of the United States and does not represent our values of success, creativity, and excellence. No one understands a word this guy says, and the dancing is disgusting, especially for young children.” But the numbers tell a different story.

The partisan difference is striking. About 78% of those who identify as Democrats view Bad Bunny favorably, and only 7% reject him. On the other hand, among those who identify as Republicans, only 12% approve of the Puerto Rican, compared to 70% who disapprove. Among independent voters, 46% voted for the artist, while 27% voted for the president.

Bad Bunny’s performance at one of the most watched events in the world has also generated increased interest in learning Spanish and traveling to the Caribbean island. Duolingo, one of the most popular language learning apps, shared a graph on its social media showing a 35% increase in Spanish learners minutes after the artist’s performance ended.

"It also takes a lot of energy to train a human."

Archived version: https://archive.is/newest/https://techcrunch.com/2026/02/21/sam-altman-would-like-remind-you-that-humans-use-a-lot-of-energy-too/

“But it also takes a lot of energy to train a human,” Altman said. “It takes like 20 years of life and all of the food you eat during that time before you get smart. And not only that, it took the very widespread evolution of the 100 billion people that have ever lived and learned not to get eaten by predators and learned how to figure out science and whatever, to produce you.”

So in his view, the fair comparison is, “If you ask ChatGPT a question, how much energy does it take once its model is trained to answer that question versus a human? And probably, AI has already caught up on an energy efficiency basis, measured that way.”

Planetesimals start out as collections of pebble-sized objects that are bound together by gravity into a rotating cloud. But sometimes the cloud may collapse inward, self-destructing and forming two separate planetesimals. The new study’s simulations show that after this gravitational collapse happens, the planetesimals’ orbits bring them closer to each other until they gently come into contact. They then stick together, solidifying the snowman shape.

No one's talking about it, so I'm going to, etc, whatever, OMG they were room mates

surely someone did make this comparison and I just missed it

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/43434668

kuh-yoon-t

"Canada is monitoring the situation carefully and is concerned about the increasing risk of a humanitarian crisis on the island," said Global Affairs Canada's Charlotte MacLeod in a written statement shared with CBC News.

But while U.S. military planners look at target lists, Iraq and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states see only risk.

“They may like to see the Iranian leadership weakened, but all of them are more concerned about a scenario of chaos and uncertainty and the possibility of more radical elements coming to power there,” Anna Jacobs Khalaf, a Gulf analyst and non-resident fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute, told Al Jazeera last month.

Since January, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Oman, alongside Turkey and Egypt, have been engaged in intense diplomacy to pull Washington and Tehran back from the brink. This is not because they harbor any sympathy for Tehran, but because they realize they would be on the front lines of the Iranian retaliation, and what happens after if the regime were to collapse.

...

Even if the Gulf states were to be spared Iranian strikes on their territory, there would be other devastating consequences. These states are trying to diversify their economies and attract foreign investment and talent; a threat of regional war would send capital and people fleeing.

A potential refugee crisis is another major fear. The Iranian port of Bandar Abbas is a short boat ride from Dubai. A conflict that devastates Iran's economy or triggers internal collapse could send thousands of displaced people across the water to the UAE.

Then there is a risk of an economic nightmare. As Iranian officials have explicitly warned, all options are on the table in the case of war, including blocking or mining the Strait of Hormuz. While a full closure is unlikely as it would severely harm Iran’s own oil exports to China, the IRGC Navy is now preparing a "smart" closure — selective interdiction that targets Western-linked tankers while allowing Chinese oil purchases to pass, Yemeni Houthi rebel style.

One-fifth of the world's oil passes through that strait. As happened with the Houthi blockade of the Red Sea in response to the Israeli attacks in Gaza, the threat of closure will send insurance premiums skyrocketing and raise global oil prices.

Celebrating the life and work of Michael Parenti, a towering figure in Marxist scholarship and activism.

We will discuss Parenti’s profound impact on the study of imperialism, war, propaganda, fascism, and the difficulties of socialist construction, as well as his unwavering commitment to the global class struggle.

Speakers

• Ali Kadri (Professor, Sun Yat-sen University)
• Ben Norton (Editor, Geopolitical Economy Report)
• Corinna Mullin (Associate Editor, Middle East Critique)
• Immanuel Ness (Professor, City University of New York)
• Gabriel Rockhill (Author, Who Paid the Pipers of Western Marxism?)
• Sara Flounders (Co-director, International Action Center)
• Shiran Illanperuma (Researcher, Tricontinental Institute)
• Barry Lituchy (Professor, City University of New York)
• Chair: Carlos Martinez (Co-editor, Friends of Socialist China)

Organisers

International Manifesto Group / Critical Theory Workshop

Co-sponsored by United National Anti-War Coalition, Iskra Books, Manifesto Press, Friends of Socialist China

idk what the republicans are so afraid of it's pretty sexy.

Archived copies of the article:

• ghostarchive.org
• web.archive.org

Smdh

Students and faculty at the public university say that an unofficial policy is in effect to automatically reject students from China and a number of other countries altogether.

The alleged shift in admissions practices at Purdue followed a letter sent last year to six universities by the US House’s select committee on the Chinese Communist party (CCP), demanding they turn over data about Chinese students, a population they say jeopardizes national security.

“Our nation’s universities, long regarded as the global standard for excellence and innovation, are increasingly used as conduits for foreign adversaries to illegally gain access to critical research and advanced technology,” the committee wrote, adding that the admission of large number of Chinese students into science, technology, engineering and mathematics programs came “potentially at the expense of qualified Americans”.

Would you pay for the expensive plan or cheap out?

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials this week reported that the death of a 55-year-old Cuban man at a detention facility in El Paso was the result of the staff’s “spontaneous use of force” to “prevent him from harming himself.” Officials quietly updated the cause of death after previously declaring last month that the man died of “medical distress.”