Comments for a sibilant intake of breath

Comment on Trump ending the postwar security order by .

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 02:26:46 +0000

Trump’s move to gut South Korea alliance is ‘inane, haphazard decision’, lawmakers say

US president’s abrupt order to scale back joint exercises with Seoul is meant to ‘flatter’ North Korea’s dictator, top Democrat says

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/17/trump-south-korea-alliance

Comment on Trump ending the postwar security order by .

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 01:43:04 +0000

Trump orders military to ‘substantially reduce’ joint exercises with South Korea

The president said South Korea declined to help denuclearize Iran.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/trump-orders-military-substantially-reduce-joint-exercises-south-korea-rcna592832

Comment on Another sting from our terrible leaders by .

Sun, 16 Aug 2026 15:33:53 +0000

Ontario free to axe Toronto bike lanes, region’s top court rules

Win is significant for region’s premier, Doug Ford, who blames protected zones for city’s traffic ills

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/aug/14/ontario-free-to-axe-toronto-bike-lanes-regions-top-court-rules

Comment on Ubiquitous surveillance by .

Sun, 16 Aug 2026 15:13:51 +0000

Researchers Use Ordinary WiFi Connections to Create Images of Nearby People and Their Surroundings

Researchers showed that unencrypted signals routinely exchanged between WiFi devices and routers can be used to create radio-based images of people and recognize them within seconds. In tests involving 197 participants, the system identified individuals with nearly 100% accuracy, even from different angles and regardless of how they walked. “By observing the propagation of radio waves, we can create an image of the surroundings and of persons who are present,” says Professor Thorsten Strufe from KASTEL, KIT’s Institute of Information Security and Dependability. “This works similar to a normal camera, the difference being that in our case, radio waves instead of light waves are used for the recognition,” explains the cybersecurity expert.

Because the technique analyzes radio waves moving through a space, a person does not need to have a phone, smartwatch, or other WiFi enabled device with them. “Thus, it does not matter whether you carry a WiFi device on you or not.” Even turning off your own device would not necessarily prevent the system from working. “It’s sufficient that other WiFi devices in your surroundings are active….”

Connected devices routinely send information back to the router to help optimize wireless communication. These signals, known as beamforming feedback information (BFI), are transmitted without encryption, meaning that anyone within range can potentially read them. By analyzing that information, the system can generate images of people from multiple viewpoints. Those images can then be used to determine a person’s identity. Once the machine learning model has already been trained to recognize individuals, the identification process takes only a few seconds.

https://mobile.slashdot.org/story/26/08/16/057254/researchers-use-ordinary-wifi-connections-to-create-images-of-nearby-people-and-their-surroundings

Comment on Controlling parents by .

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 22:27:04 +0000

Sometimes people use “respect” to mean “treating someone like a person” and sometimes they use “respect” to mean “treating someone like an authority” and sometimes people who are used to being treated like an authority say “if you won’t respect me I won’t respect you” and they mean “if you won’t treat me like an authority I won’t treat you like a person” and they think they’re being fair but they aren’t, and it’s not okay.

https://www.reddit.com/r/tumblr/comments/ny78tp/respect/

Comment on Carney caving on Keystone by .

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 12:56:01 +0000

Scientists Warn Carney’s Changes Will Bring ‘Wilful Extinction’

https://thetyee.ca/News/2026/08/12/Experts-Warn-Carney-Ports-Pipelines-Bring-Wilful-Extinction/

Comment on Water and nuclear power by .

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 12:55:11 +0000

Romania shuts its last nuclear reactor as drought-hit Danube river drops to record low

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/aug/14/romania-nuclear-plant-shut-down-cernavoda-danube-river-water-drought

Comment on AdBlock arms race? by .

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 12:54:23 +0000

Firefox is now the last major browser that still supports uBlock Origin

https://www.pcworld.com/article/3212428/firefox-is-now-the-last-major-browser-that-still-supports-ublock-origin.html

Comment on Another sting from our terrible leaders by .

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 12:53:50 +0000

Ontario appeal court says Ford can rip out Toronto bike lanes | CBC News

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/bike-lane-removal-appeal-court-decision-9.7307310

Comment on Trump ending the postwar security order by .

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 16:17:39 +0000

The notion that the United States ever enforced a truly liberal rules-based order worldwide was always overblown. But it is true that the U.S. military has been a global guarantor of shipping and the free flow of energy for decades. The fact that the United States, in its recent conflict with Iran, directly destabilized international energy markets undermines the country’s claim to be a fair arbiter of the global commons. Polls now suggest that only about a third of people around the world view the United States as contributing significantly to global peace and stability. Meanwhile, the administration burned diplomatic capital on this conflict, reducing its influence and capacity to shape outcomes elsewhere, such as Ukraine, where the administration’s peace efforts have been largely abandoned since the start of the Iran war.

All these costs are diffuse and deferred. But in 20 years, as a result of its choice to pursue these wars, the United States may well have a less effective military force, less global influence, and even a weaker economy. Indeed, the Iran war has shown that the Trump administration’s own original argument was correct: in a competitive world, the United States needs to prioritize the allocation of its scarce resources to meet the most pressing strategic challenges. That Trump, like his predecessors, proved unable to resist the use of force only strengthens the case for reform.

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/americas-fatal-attraction-war

Comment on Another sting from our terrible leaders by .

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 14:26:00 +0000

Brad Bradford pledges to rip up Bloor Street bike lanes, build up ravine trails if elected mayor

The councillor conceded that in 2023 he voted to build the lanes he’s now pledging to remove.

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/brad-bradford-pledges-to-rip-up-bloor-street-bike-lanes-build-up-ravine-trails-if-elected-mayor/article_2eff2f5f-8dbc-4502-8606-a80f8ec2e792.html

Comment on Uber Eats bike delivery — break-even time in downtown Toronto by .

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 16:58:15 +0000

Delivery drivers to be paid minimum $31.30 an hour across Australia in ‘world-leading’ decision

Fair Work Commission issues a new minimum standards order for gig workers to come into effect 17 August

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/aug/11/delivery-drivers-to-be-paid-minimum-3130-an-hour-across-australia-in-world-leading-decision