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#1
Off the Record / Re: TV/Movies Megathread
Last post by The Brain - Today at 02:19:35 AM
The Voyeurs. Young Republican woman starts spying on her neighbors. Not good.
#2
Off the Record / Re: Gen X suck
Last post by Richard Hakluyt - Today at 01:00:07 AM
Yes, as the boomers die the economic inequality will continue to get even worse. Some of the younger people I know have already been left large sums, others will recieve large sums and many will get nothing. The ones with the inheritances are even more privileged than the boomers, they get to work or not work, to set up well-funded in business or to pursue vocational goals. I wonder at times whether this is a contributory factor to th rise of non-participation in the workforce which has the government so worried?

In any event, I agree with Jacob, this is a class struggle, there are arseholes in each generation and the generational struggle ideas being promoted by all forms of media are a distraction.
#3
Off the Record / Re: What does a TRUMP presiden...
Last post by HisMajestyBOB - November 09, 2025, 11:20:57 PM
Quote from: Zoupa on November 09, 2025, 09:29:36 PMlike what's the point of the shutdown if you eventually vote to reopen and have nothing to show for the 40 days of crap.

Not nothing! They got a promise from the Senate Republicans that a vote on healthcare will be held later. :)
#4
Off the Record / Re: What does a TRUMP presiden...
Last post by Tamas - November 09, 2025, 11:11:31 PM
Quote from: Sophie Scholl on November 09, 2025, 09:21:26 PMThey did it. They fucking caved. :bleeding:

The quote is from a Republican but it does explain it:
From the precarious situation we're in with air travel to the fact that our staff have been working without pay for a full 40 days now, all of us, Republicans and Democrats who support this bill know that the time to act is now."

They were at the cusp of being inconvenienced by a lack of air travel and their staff were grumpy.
#5
Off the Record / Re: What does a TRUMP presiden...
Last post by The Minsky Moment - November 09, 2025, 10:51:47 PM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on November 09, 2025, 07:55:06 PMMy recollection  of freeriding and Stackleberg leaders is much simpler than all these objections indicate. It's basically freeriding occurs, Stackleberg leader makes up the difference to achieve optimality. Please educate me on my error.

My understanding comes from the economics of competition. If you assume two firms in an oligopoly market, if both set production simultaneously (Cornot), the optimal strategy ends with both producing the same.  If one acts first (Stackleberg) but knows the other will respond, the leader can secure a higher quantity.  The follower will accept less because the price impact of producing more will result in net less profit.  It's an interesting result in the economics of information because it arguably shows that having more information gives a worse result.

The scenario assumes fixed and unchanging supply and demand conditions over time and assumes a strict sequence in selection that can't be changed once made.  So it doesn't apply to a dynamic diplomatic situation.
#6
Off the Record / Re: The AI dooooooom thread
Last post by Sheilbh - November 09, 2025, 10:37:30 PM
Yeah also the decade of cheap money helped.

And looking back I think the policy mix in response to the crash was a catastrophic mistake that accelerated a lot of existing trends including in relation to the tech companies. But I think prioritising stabilising the financial system (not consumer/retail debtors), no real criminal liability at all following the crash because arguably no-one did anything wrong and public squalor as states shirked low cost debt (which instead plowed into anything else that might show a return at some point) was basically a toxic combo. I mean, I backed a lot of it particularly stabilising the system - but then everyone backed it but the nutters.
#7
Off the Record / Re: The Off Topic Topic
Last post by grumbler - November 09, 2025, 10:19:50 PM
A major kerfuffle is shaping up in the Big Ten. The Big Ten wants to create a new corporation called "Big Ten Enterprises" that will own all the media rights for all of the schools for 20 years, starting next year.  The impetus is that the UC Retirement Fund will pay $2 billion up front for a 10% share of the media revenue. The other 90% will be split between the schools and the Big Ten office itself.

Sixteen of the Eighteen schools want to sign off on that deal, because they need cash now due to having overspent on new stadiums, plus the desire to create a buffer fund to handle the upcoming direct cash payments to athletes.

Michigan and USC refuse to go along, both because they think the deal a bad one, and because they refuse to make a 20-year commitment to an organization that could become obsolete due to the changing nature of college football.

The upshot is that, if UM and USC don't sign on, they will regain their own media rights in 2030, at which point they may well be booted from the conference. For USC, this wouldn't be that much of a culture shock, since they only joined last year.  Michigan, though, is a founding member (1896) of the conference - one of only six that have been members from the start.

Money ruins everything.
#8
Off the Record / Re: The AI dooooooom thread
Last post by Jacob - November 09, 2025, 10:05:07 PM
The competitive advantage of Silicon Valley tech seems largely to be that they've done an end run around regulations and gotten away with it because they built an app for it. That and exploiting monopoly or duopoly positions to increase their share of takes.
#9
Off the Record / Re: Gen X suck
Last post by Jacob - November 09, 2025, 09:50:43 PM
Quote from: Iormlund on November 09, 2025, 05:59:29 PM
Quote from: Jacob on November 09, 2025, 04:19:24 PMGenerational warfare is just a distraction from the real issue, which is that the oligarchs have been waging class warfare and are winning.

At least in Spain generational wealth disparity is very much an issue. The two main contributing factors being pensions and real estate.

Yeah, but then those people are going to die and their heirs - of a different generation - will then be wealthy.

Alternately, the wealth won't be inherited and instead be hovered up by oligarch controlled interests - going back to my original point.
#10
Off the Record / Re: What does a TRUMP presiden...
Last post by Zoupa - November 09, 2025, 09:29:36 PM
like what's the point of the shutdown if you eventually vote to reopen and have nothing to show for the 40 days of crap.