2022-11-05
Readings
Progress in mapping the local parts of the galaxy means milestones can look like this - we found a newnearest black hole to us: https://phys.org/news/2022-11-astronomers-closest-black-hole-earth.html
Dropbox tech blog on some database engineering topics: https://dropbox.tech/infrastructure/panda-metadata-stack-petabyte-scale-transactional-key-value-store
Cool talk on a clever old camera:
There are a bunch of weird but sort-of functional perspectives in this exploration of Alan Moore’s ideas about magic; I think the perspectives are overstated and weird but maybe worth understanding:
Coverage of NYC’s Fire Department and how it’s run:
Writings
How I intend to vote in the upcoming New York elections: https://docs.google.com/document/d/13GwIyXsahxd2j53ziwIWatOhNtMAzmHfmzbDPFNmLsk/
Thoughts
Why I disagree with this - Perspectives on social issues often come down to the axioms we start with; sometimes they’re very shallow wrappers around out differing values, other times they have some depth of their own. These are likewise issues where science can’t help but shine a light around the edges because the core questions are philosophy. My stance on suicide is that choices on whether to go on with life are not to be interfered with for people in a reasonable mental state, and that a choice to die cannot be considered evidence of being in an unreasonable mental state. It is not life itself that we respect regardless of the living; it is the sacredness of that choice whether to live or not. We’re right to treat death as a special topic (like sex), where we consider economic coercision uniquely harmful, but otherwise it is simply a choice; from this (my) perspective, the article’s language is alien, its conclusions reprehensible. And of course from its own axioms it is reasonable and mine are likewise busted.
Recently having seen John Oliver’s reporting on bail reform, I’m frustrated (as I sometimes am with him). There’s a the wide gap between “there is a social problem” and “you shouldn’t criticise our solution”, and he makes a good case for the first without exploring that gap at all; there is a problem with current bail reform efforts (and general crime leniency plans) too, and people feel the effects of it. A failure to recognise this will cause Dems to be hammered on crime in the coming election, which I don’t want to see (I also don’t want to see the results of the new policies, which we have good reason to believe will be terrible). Oliver is uniquely situated to speak sense to Dems. All the more frustrating that he doesn’t.
Recent court cases are renewing debate on affirmative action; as a policy, it’s something I’ve generally supported with an asterisk, best stated as follows:
that it is an exception
justified by circumstances
to broad principles that we cherish
that society should seek to be procedurally blind to these kinds of differences, not treating them as advantages or disadvantages, and limiting scope of balancing to the very narrow one (meaning we reject policies of positive discrimination to match negative ones)
and that the exception must have a limited timespan, one tied to historical distance from actual slavery in the US
I think we’re nearing the end of the acceptability of the policy; I welcome the challenges although I don’t think we need to be in a huge rush to rip it out. I think it would be deeply wrong (in the moral sense) to leave affirmative action in place beyond my lifespan
Current Events
The Russian invasion and occupation of Ukraine continues, with Russia possibly pulling back in Kherson; Russia’s attacks on power plants have damaged Ukraine’s power grid, and Russia has a new lie to justify its atrocities in the area - that it believes Ukraine is developing dirty nuclear weapons
With the most recent Israeli elections, Netanyahu is unfortunately back as PM, leading a far-right coalition
Protests in Iran continue, as efforts to stop them have led to more well-publicised abuses. Some Iranians in the west have called for an externally-backed transition government; in my view this is very premature as it seems unlikely the Iranian government will fall, and even if it may it would be better to be pretty hands-off in Iranian politics (any actions could easily be counterproductive)
North Korea’s missile launch has raised tensions in Japan and South Korea, with various responses being debated
Midterm elections in the US are coming up, with a lot at stake; I worry about the oversize voice of the far right in the Republican Party, with a lot of weird policy shifts and political stunts being likely should they regain power right now.
A ceasefire has been called in the Tigray-tied civil war in Ethiopia
Denmark held a general election, leaving a center-left coalition in power
Reviewlets
The Woman Who Died a Lot (Thursday Next novel) - I’m surprised this didn’t leave much more of a mark on me the first time I read it; the increased focus on the Next family gets some fresh ideas as it explores bodies and aging and identity while playing with some new fictional ideas. It’s good. Really good. And it leaves me sad that Jasper Fforde has left the series stale for a little bit so this is the last for now; I hope if he picks it back up again later he still can write this kind of thing (given that The Constant Rabbit was a dud for me).
Clovenhoof (novel) - This really wants to be “Good Omens” but does a miss on both the worldbuilding and the humour. Not a bad premise, but a flop of a book
Fangs of Freelance (Fred novel) - This is more of a collection of short stories, but I’m still into it; it’s good that so far the novels are pretty different from each other with layered foreground and background concerns to navigate. Good stuff.
Amusements
The amusement with this breakdown of a really bad lock is only part of the humour; I am enjoying watching the Apple-fanatic websites (and the company itself) respond to the takedown as a really bad product is tied to Apple:
The Oogie Boogie Song from Nightmare before Christmas, in Latin:
Recent Music
Erwartungen - Melotron - Another older piece of good goth-industrial club music
Good Things Break - Peter Heppner - The solo career of half of the band Wolfsheim is interesting to watch; this is a melanchology and very pointed song, setting up a style of thought well before putting weight on it in its harder application. Beautiful
Hope - Apocalyptica - I first heard this song in the movie Vidocq; it’s a rare genre that should be less rare. Be sure to get the version with the vocals.