SnoringEarthworm

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Even if I had asserted that billionaires cap the lives of the working class to the poverty line (which I didn't), the poverty line is an outdated, unserious measure of how Americans are doing.

More about the FPL

My assertion is that billionaires are a cap on the lives of the working class, not that the cap is set at the federal poverty line.

I can't see your links (imgur says their servers are overloaded), but I'll use US figures for the sake of argument.

The [federal poverty line is] derived from the official poverty thresholds, which were originally developed in the 1960s based on the cost of a minimum food diet multiplied by three — reflecting the "fact" [quotations mine] that food makes up about one-third of a typical family’s budget. (What is the federal poverty level?)

Look up "average American monthly expenses", and you'll see that food consistently accounts for less than 15%. The FPL is outdated and has been for decades.

There's controversy about the right way to measure poverty, but no one serious on either side of the argument points at "the percentage of the population living in poverty" and calls it a day.

The majority of Americans support progressive policies. But whether or not a policy is passed depends on whether or not it has the support of the billionaire class.

More on the popularity of progressive policies and the impact of wealth on policy change

Over half of Americans say they lack the cash to cover a $1,000 unexpected emergency expense. Increased earnings — not lower spending — is main driver for boosting emergency funds. The most common cause of emergency expenses in the United States is a medical emergency. Regardless of whether or not they meet a 1960's definition of poverty, Americans are not, by and large, financially well.

The majority of Americans support progressive programs that address the causes of this precarity: paid maternity leave, childcare support, boosting the minimum wage, free college, and Medicare for All.

But what we want doesn't get passed.

When the preferences of economic elites and the stands of organized interest groups are controlled for, the preferences of the average American appear to have only a minuscule, near-zero, statistically non-significant impact upon public policy. ... When a majority of citizens disagrees with economic elites and/or with organized interests, they generally lose. Moreover, because of the strong status quo bias built into the U.S. political system, even when fairly large majorities of Americans favor policy change, they generally do not get it.

Working class Americans (and not just those at or below the federal poverty line) support policy changes that would materially improve their lives. When those policies conflict with the interests of billionaires, the billionaires stop them from passing.

In other words, they put a cap on it.

earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

Came to the comments looking for the Addams. Was not disappointed.

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earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

If you VPN into the UK or Australia, you'll run into the same restrictions.

As more countries pass this kind of legislation, VPNs become less and less of a solution, and they were only ever a solution for people who can afford them.

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earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

Edit: That argument is just "trickle down economics" with extra steps.

I disagree.

Billionaires have outsize influence. They buy politicians to set public policies that affect the working class and divert billions of our dollars into their pockets.

If you put all of their money in a pit and set it on fire, it would have a greater impact than just taxing them 2% and spending all of it on public programs, because they would no longer be able to do harm on a billionaire scale.

The people could heal.

We'd still have other beasts to deal with, but the existence of billionaires is a cap on the lives of the working class.

earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

rinn_xc | Instagram | Catbox

earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

Source: u/BA10chan_SURV at the other forum

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earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

TL;Dr: Browser extensions are malware sleeper agents.

The systemic problem isn't just one malicious actor. It's that the security model incentivizes this behavior:
Build something legitimate
Pass review and gain trust signals (installs, reviews, verified badges)
Collect large user base
Weaponize via update
Profit before detection
ShadyPanda proved this works. And now every sophisticated threat actor knows the playbook.

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earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

"tax the rich" is a scam?

The wealth tax typically proposed by these campaigns (like 2 or 3%) would raise money but it would not stop billionaires from getting richer. (That's why even billionaires advocate for it.)

The finish line should not be "raise money to fund public programs."

The finish line should be "billionaires don't exist."

earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

HawkkunXD | XCancel

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earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

The app is mainly designed to help users block and track lost or stolen smartphones across all telecom networks, using a central registry. It also lets them identify, and disconnect, fraudulent mobile connections.
With more than 5 million downloads since its launch, the app has helped block more than 3.7 million stolen or lost mobile phones, while more than 30 million fraudulent connections have also been terminated.
The government says it helps prevent cyber threats and assists tracking and blocking of lost or stolen phones, helping police to trace devices, while keeping counterfeits out of the black market.

There has to be a way to do all of this without installing something on your phone that you didn't ask for.

earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

Something weird about corporations spending billions on "the Comic Sans of technology"

earthworm @sh.itjust.works 3w ago

If you downloaded a malware-infected version, it shouldn't be able to access your accounts.

It remains unknown what the malware that found its way into the official SmartTube APK files can actually do. Thankfully, SmartTube is programmed to only request minimal account permissions and does not ask for any login information directly. Even if you granted the app access to your Google Drive for backup purposes, your Google account and general Google Drive files remain out of the app’s scope of permissions. Permissions regarding control of your YouTube account seem like the only thing that could have easily been exposed to the malware, as far as account access is concerned.

To be safe, factory reset anything you installed it on and double check for Google/YouTube account activity and permissions.

That said, since very little is know about the malware, you should assume the worst. If you use SmartTube and are concerned about your exposure to this malware, you should factory reset any device that had the app installed, especially if you installed or updated the app in November. It would also be a good idea to audit your Google account permissions and your YouTube account activity for anything unusual. Once your devices and account are in order, if you wish to reinstall SmartTube, be sure to only install the latest version through the codes/links above.