Parade du Grotesque 💀

https://mastodon.sdf.org/@ParadeGrotesque

I wrestle penguins and spiky fishes for a living. Very cranky old *nix geek with a beard. You know the type. (now, get off my lawn!).

"I support transgender rights. Trans rights = human rights."

#nobridge
#nobot
#noai

Linux: Slackware
BSD: OpenBSD NetBSD
systemd: hell, no
Programming: Python & shell

Public Key

npub19yex9j484gfrspsfgs3gwcvzxmd63yfrr0k36233t2sh0fgchzrs57npv6

NIP-05 Address

paradegrotesque_at_mastodon.sdf.org@momostr.pink

Profile Code

nprofile1qqszjvnze2n65y3cqcy5gg58vxprdkagjy33hmga9gc44gth55vt3pcpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dsezvccd

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub19yex9j484gfrspsfgs3gwcvzxmd63yfrr0k36233t2sh0fgchzrs57npv6

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Last Notes

2026-09-06 21:04:31 UTC

If all of you all (you know who you are) currently exploring #NetBSD (for, uh, reasons*) would donate a little bit of money to the NetBSD Foundation, I am sure that sad little gauge under the logo would look a lot better.
https://www.netbsd.org/donations/#how-to-donate
Because right now, it stands at about 12K out of a goal of 50K and it makes me sad. 😔
Donate! 💶 💵 💷
(* good reasons, I might add)
:netbsd:

2026-08-17 21:44:14 UTC

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To be honest, I feel like mwl is being a tad negative here: OpenBSD and OpenSSH man pages are excellent documentation in and out of themselves. Our dear Mister Lucas here has a knack, however, for writing simple documentation that mix humour with serious technical knowledge.
For example, I was able to find a lot of answers in the man pages, asking myself questions but the technical explanation I find in his books made me go "Aha! That's why!"

2026-07-27 19:08:35 UTC

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- Get in the car, loser, we are going to the gelato place!
- But... What about the rat?
- What? Can't my furry little friend enjoy a bit of gelato as well?!

2026-07-25 21:44:18 UTC

Just saw the Odyssey, and I have ONE question: why is Agamemnon a pale copy of Darth Vader?
I mean, seriously, all that is missing is the sinister mega asthma of the original?

2026-07-22 17:05:52 UTC

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Thanks friend computer! I feel safer already knowing how to separate the truth from misinformation!
The only problem is, it's going to take a long long time to report all the stuff that was*not* sent by friend computer...

2026-07-20 08:57:44 UTC

"As the fight over AI data centers heats up, some polls have shown that AI is less popular with Americans than Immigration and Customs Enforcement."
Now THAT takes some hard work! Congratulations to all involved.
From:
Terrified Tech Execs Are Traveling With Armed Bodyguards as AI Backlash Grows
https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/terrified-tech-execs-traveling-armed-195630019.html

2026-07-02 19:34:52 UTC

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Wait, wasn't that yesterday's news?

2026-07-02 17:18:16 UTC

Yes.
This is what we all want.
(Source: https://lemmy.world/post/48905532 )
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/851/508/235/029/791/original/f65d4ab7b98981a5.jpg

2026-06-27 14:48:52 UTC

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Deleting cookies as soon as you close a tab or window should be considered as important as having an ad blocker these days.

2026-06-26 19:09:42 UTC

Today, in great dialogues at work:
- Them: We coded this HUMONGOUS APP in 6 months with 14 coders!
- Me: ...
- Them: It's amazing! We are launching an AI initiative ACROSS THE BOARD!! This is GAME CHANGING!
- Me: ...
- Bossman: Please be nice.
- Me: (turns toward client) Does HUMONGOUS APP wok for you?
- Client: Actually, no, we have no idea how it works or what it does, and it does not tick any of the boxes we gave your dev team.
- Me: ...
- Them: ...
- Me: My work here is done.

2026-06-24 11:45:24 UTC

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Safety should be OK.
Cooling is the issue here. 😉

2026-06-24 11:34:29 UTC

Current temperature here is 40C.
If anyone needs me, I am over there, melting next to the open refrigerator.

2026-06-12 15:08:58 UTC

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Trying to analyze an SPDX file related to a Linux or BSD distribution is actually quite hard, and time-consuming.
Ask me how I know...

2026-06-08 17:43:08 UTC

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Logique.
Maintenant, 24 secondes de paix, ça veut que les moustiques de par chez toi, c'est plus ce que c'était.

2026-06-04 16:27:39 UTC

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He is a churchgoing Republican, right?

2026-05-28 19:44:18 UTC

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Same here on SDF

2026-05-28 16:41:00 UTC

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Listen, I like a bit of science-fiction just as much as the next guy, but you have to remember that this is the kind of technology that gave you (and me) immortal hits such as a tomato and super glue pizza recipe, people with 16 fingers on each hand, proving there are no countries in Africa with 'K' in their names (and the list goes on).
I am way more afraid of mosquitoes and whoever is in the White House right now than I am of 'AI'.

2026-05-21 09:58:26 UTC

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Avec des frites comme accompagnement ?

2026-05-19 20:55:44 UTC

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Lessons learned: @npub1060…ydzs has a much MUCH better bandwidth than I have at home (not a real surprise here).
#OpenBSD 'sysupgrade' is better than 90% of all tools out there.
If you want better computing, support your favourite open source OS. I don't care if it's not OpenBSD, but you have to put some money on the table and give back to the absolutely crazy people out there who give you that great little thing.

2026-05-19 20:43:27 UTC

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Donation has been sent to the #OpenBSD Foundation.
Now, all that is left is a quick 'pkg_add -vv -u' on the last machine. :openbsd:

2026-05-19 20:23:22 UTC

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* OpenBSD.Amsterdam is done!
* VM 1 on laptop is updated
* VM 2 on house server is downloading...

2026-05-19 18:54:29 UTC

All right, you weirdoes, time to update ALL THE THINGS to the new version of #OpenBSD!
ALL THE THINGS! :openbsd:

2026-05-16 13:25:20 UTC

I was $TODAY years old when I learned the #OpenBSD 'ps' command has a '-f' option to do the same thing as Linux 'ps'.
I now only have to remember 'ps -faxu' on both.
:openbsd:

2026-05-14 18:52:02 UTC

I have come to hate the term 'AI'.
I hate it because AI does not exist.
Just because you have an automated parrot on your computer does not make that machine 'intelligent'.
Even if you have 10000 computers running the same software, those machines are not 'intelligent'.
What you have is a poor statistical model.
So, stop using 'AI'. This term is pure propaganda, designed to make you despair.
Use better terms: 'machine generated', 'statistical nonsense' for instance.
Boost if you agree.

2026-05-12 11:17:03 UTC

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Are both walls the same color though?

2026-05-10 21:45:01 UTC

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11.0 RC4... 🤓 :NetBSD:

2026-05-08 15:33:54 UTC

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How else can @npub1trl…cgye track evil traitors that are a danger to us all?
@npub1w84…nqy7

2026-05-08 14:58:55 UTC

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This is not a post about @npub1trl…cgye because, well... Friend Computer is your friend!
(Whispers in the audio sensor: "Yes, Friend Computer, these two are certainly traitors...")

2026-05-06 15:00:33 UTC

Well... Guilty as charged, I guess.
(Source: https://literature.cafe/post/31408282 )
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/528/205/130/885/782/original/3519e9997e1e1376.jpg

2026-04-27 19:00:01 UTC

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Give all the pets to that poor little doggo!
ALL THE PETS!

2026-04-25 11:08:47 UTC

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And... When the guy^W dev^W madman^W Absolute Programming God who is responsible for the Wii port of #NetBSD actually likes your post about running a blog on a Wii with NetBSD, you have reached a level of Meta-information I did not think was possible. 😂
Thanks for everything @npub19zq…7tm6 !!
(Now, where the heck did I put my Nintendo Wii...?)

2026-04-24 22:22:59 UTC

Gosh, it feels so good to be on a Linux machine again.
Anything, absolutely anything is better than the freaking Windows used by $MEGACORP
(yes, I know, it would be even better to have a BSD machine, but that's life)

2026-04-24 15:51:31 UTC

Something I discovered recently:
https://blog.infected.systems/posts/2025-04-21-this-blog-is-hosted-on-a-nintendo-wii/
This is a blog, hosted on a Nintendo Wii running #netbsd ... Pretty cool! :netbsd:
Hat tip to: https://caolan.uk/links/servers/
And: https://sunny.garden/@kaimac/116459990980227925

2026-04-18 17:51:32 UTC

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Oooooooh, the burn the burn! 🤓

2026-04-16 14:08:13 UTC

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So nvi right? 🤓

2026-04-16 12:26:02 UTC

Name a better combination than tmux and vim.
Go on, I'll wait.
(No, emacs does not count)

2026-03-29 17:28:47 UTC

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This is the kind of reactivity and efficiency I appreciate in government affairs!
Thank you, Friend Computer!

2026-03-23 22:23:43 UTC

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Of course

2026-03-19 16:22:34 UTC

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You can probably remove 'modern' from your sentence.

2026-03-18 14:29:47 UTC

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ONE SIN BEYOND!!!
SWING LOW SWEET BALLY-OH!
(And I'll stop right here)

2026-03-07 15:52:11 UTC

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[citation needed]

2026-03-07 14:28:49 UTC

Fediverse! I need your collective mind!
I am going to Munich 🇩🇪 for business -- what are some good things to visit, restaurants and bars, especially for someone who is trying to slowly transition to a vegetarian diet?
Do your magic, collective mind, make it so!
Also: expect pictures from Munchen. Lots and lots and lots of pictures from Munchen.

2026-02-25 22:48:27 UTC

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Step One.
@npub1060…ydzs
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/133/701/586/856/716/original/3d9d5390f327708d.png

2026-02-25 00:16:04 UTC

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That's a big one!

2026-02-24 23:33:49 UTC

Thinking of a master plan...
:openbsd:
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/128/216/539/909/782/original/814fac02db4ef274.jpg

2026-02-13 16:05:43 UTC

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True story: I once went to Dubai on business, and I was staying 10 minutes away from that mall, the one with the indoor ski slope.
To this day, seeing a whole, enormous ski slope indoors, in the middle of the desert, with actual snow and people in Bedouin garb skiing down, is the absolute most surreal experience of my life.
It convinced me we are doomed as a species. Whatever apocalypse may come we absolutely deserve it.

2026-02-13 13:58:52 UTC

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Switzerland is showing the way, while making some very reasonable points.
I suspect the rest of Europe will follow. The UK, I am not so sure.

2026-02-07 18:53:39 UTC

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Now, here is something new...
I will have to smash the keyboard for a little while to satisfy this requirement... :netbsd:
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/030/846/403/518/015/original/328134749c4d3be2.png

2026-02-07 18:44:46 UTC

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So:
- xbase
- xetc
- xfont
and now finally xserver ... 🤦‍♂️
Meanwhile qemu is still happily compiling...

2026-02-07 18:36:33 UTC

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#NetBSD 11, you are doing the packages in alphabetical order, right?
RIGHT? 😂 :netbsd:
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/030/783/608/688/660/original/8ab6de482fc41775.png

2026-02-07 18:08:19 UTC

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[3348/9317] Compiling C object libqemu-mipsn32el-linux-user.a.p/linux-user_signal.c.o
So, roughly 30% done. I think the #NetBSD VM will be done first!

2026-02-07 18:06:32 UTC

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The good side of this, is that I can keep an eye on both the #NetBSD 11 VM and the compilation of qemu on my #Slackware server! 😋

2026-02-07 18:01:01 UTC

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It works, but it is going to be painful: since the qemu network emulation provides the VM with an IPv6 address through DHCP, #NetBSD sysinst tries IPv6 first, times out, then tries IPv4... all of this to be redirected by the web server and go through IPv6 - timeout - IPv4 again.
In other words: it downloads, but really really slowly. ☹️
Any help getting out of that painful loop is greatly appreciated (I know how to do it on an installed machine, just not in sysinst) :netbsd:
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/030/636/451/790/593/original/82494fb73a4032f7.png

2026-02-07 17:50:29 UTC

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Moment of truth... 😨
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/030/608/251/132/610/original/c07e629ac5ead677.png

2026-02-07 17:46:56 UTC

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It seems #NetBSD 'sysinst' still has issues with the 'curses' qemu console, but it remains readable, so onward!
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/030/589/865/540/569/original/541bd4ba93e607bb.png

2026-02-07 17:35:46 UTC

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Well, well, well... What do we have here? :netbsd:
Hello #NetBSD 11!
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/030/552/693/666/659/original/cd8015d94465e545.png

2026-02-07 17:26:09 UTC

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[787/9317] Linking target target/hexagon/gen_semantics
Yeah, that one is going to take a while... ☹️
The joy of having not one but TWO computers is that I can still start a NetBSD 11 VM on my other computer! 🤓 :netbsd:

2026-02-07 17:03:48 UTC

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Oh wait... 🤦‍♂️
$ /usr/local/bin/qemu-img --version
qemu-img version 9.1.3
$ /usr/local/bin/qemu-system-x86_64 --version
QEMU emulator version 9.1.3
Shoot, I need to make an upgrade on this one before I can install the VM... ☹️

2026-02-07 16:50:34 UTC

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From:
https://nycdn.netbsd.org/pub/NetBSD-daily/netbsd-11/20260206082425Z/amd64/INSTALL.html#Features%20to%20be%20removed%20in%20a%20later%20release
The following features are to be removed from #NetBSD in the future:
- groff(1). Man pages are now handled with mandoc(1), and groff(1) can still be found in pkgsrc as textproc/groff.
- pf(4). This packet filter is obsolete and unmaintained in NetBSD. It will be eventually removed due to possible long-standing security issues and lack of multiprocessor support. New installations should use npf(7).
No 'npf mastery' book so I really need to read that man page...

2026-02-07 16:43:52 UTC

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$ /usr/local/bin/qemu-img create -f qcow2 /opt/qemu/netbsd11.img 20G
20GB should be enough for most installations I suppose... #netbsd :netbsd:

2026-02-07 16:41:08 UTC

~/files/download/ISO/NetBSD$ curl -O https://nycdn.netbsd.org/pub/NetBSD-daily/netbsd-11/20260206082425Z/amd64/installation/cdrom/boot.iso
Yeah, going to test #NetBSD 11-RC1 like a savage as usual... 🤓
:netbsd:

2026-02-06 23:11:39 UTC

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It's all fun and games until all electronics around you start to fry at the same time and satellites and airplanes start to fall from the sky.
When the Carrington event happened, the most advanced communication network was the telegraph.
If something of that magnitude was to happen today, the consequences would be much, much worse.
@npub1re9…5ul0

2026-02-05 23:37:25 UTC

Let us end the world together today, shall we?

2026-02-05 21:15:13 UTC

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WANG CHUNGING IS MY LIFE! IT'S NOT A PHASE, IT'S WHO I AM!
(pant pant)
AND I DON'T CARE ABOUT THE STUPID NEIGHBORS!
(ugly cry, door slams)

2026-02-05 21:11:42 UTC

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I will chung my wanging whenever I want!
YOU ARE NOT MY MOM!

2026-02-03 22:57:40 UTC

#OpenBSD 7.8 has a 13th patch for httpd:
013: SECURITY FIX: February 2, 2026
All architectures
Fix a use-after-free in httpd(8) when using chunked encoding.
https://www.openbsd.org/errata78.html

2026-01-31 15:05:36 UTC

"OpenAI uses as much electricity as New York City and San Diego combined, at the peak of the intense 2024 heat wave. Or as much as the total electricity demand of Switzerland and Portugal combined. That’s the electricity of roughly 20 million people."
The AI bubble and the US economy
https://thenextrecession.wordpress.com/2025/10/14/the-ai-bubble-and-the-us-economy/

2026-01-27 23:46:40 UTC

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They put AI in everything these days, so he cashed out early and decided to go and ruin some other thing, I suppose.

2026-01-27 23:32:33 UTC

Lennart Poettering (yes, THAT Lennart) has a new company: Amutable.
https://amutable.com/about
Mission statement:
"A foundation of integrity
Our mission is to deliver verifiable integrity to Linux workloads everywhere
We are building cryptographically verifiable integrity into Linux systems. Every system starts in a verified state and stays trusted over time.
Build integrity
Boot integrity
Runtime integrity
That's Amutable"
If it works as well as systemd ... (sigh)

2026-01-26 14:19:10 UTC

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Important information: that 'decent' little black dress was at least two sizes two small.
And the young lady in question was... amply endowed by nature. In all the right places.

2026-01-22 22:43:46 UTC

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We should probably define 'distance by meringue underwater' as a scientific measurement of 'amount of trust in a specific technology'.
For instance: "my meringue underwater for most LLMs is around 2 microns or less".

2026-01-22 17:40:10 UTC

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Yup, that's my understanding as well. I have been reading qemu man pages for $random_project and going "ooooh you can compress disk images, ooooh you can encrypt them... Oh, wait..."
@npub1fhf…2t42 @npub1y90…900y

2026-01-21 22:37:11 UTC

'The use of encryption in qcow and qcow2 images is considered to be flawed by modern cryptography standards, suffering from a number of design problems ..."
Hmmmphmmm ☹️

2026-01-18 01:55:30 UTC

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If you want something that preserves your privacy, move to another platform than Mastodon.
(No, not Bluesky either. ut you knew that already, right?) 😉

2026-01-18 01:34:10 UTC

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That is not going to happen.
Sorry.

2026-01-18 01:28:37 UTC

When you have real good followers.
(Stolen from https://lemmy.ca/post/58800626 )
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/115/913/463/451/065/317/original/765b69afcebfb376.png

2026-01-17 17:57:52 UTC

Got some CDs of dark and moody music delivered today.
So I am going to rip CDs to MP3s tonight like it's 1999 all over again.

2026-01-13 18:03:36 UTC

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Just wait until we REALLY start to tax them.
Like 90% tax over 500 million.

2026-01-08 20:23:45 UTC

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Yes. But.
Hear me out: it worked. The conflict lasted for YEARS, with minimal losses of life.
And Canada could provide cover for the whole thing by saying: "Oh, yeah, Denmark, man those guys are tough as nails".
That way, everyone is happy: Trump because he has stuff to post on Xitter, Greenland is left alone, and US generals get to talk down the situation after a while.
Win. Win. Win.

2026-01-08 20:11:32 UTC

Everybody is worried about Greenland.
The best way to avoid a lot of problems is for the US and Danish armed forces to declare some form of whiskey war.
US Special forces, seal team 6 or something, land in a remote part of Greenland, hoist a giant US flag, declare victory and go home after a few weeks.
3 days later, Danish special forces land in the same spot, take down the US flag and raise an enormous Danish flag, declare victory and go home after a few weeks.
1/2

2026-01-08 19:19:40 UTC

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"Commies" being a convenient term for "Any person I don't like, starting with people who are not lily white like me".
Also: "People who are smarter than I am, or who have actually done their homework instead of asking ChatGPT".

2026-01-07 23:00:12 UTC

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This picture is probably not Cilia Flores, as she was supposed to be dressed in a blue and red jump suit and have blonde hair.

2025-12-29 18:57:14 UTC

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She also believed in Jewish Space Lasers.

2025-12-10 22:18:08 UTC

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You can do both, but usually the Foundation is the one who is set up to collect and redistribute money efficiently to the project.
On the other hand the project had a "hardware wanted" page that was very funny in case you had since exotic hardware the devs wanted to write a driver for. But that was a long time ago.
All of this to say: go through the OpenBSD Foundation.

2025-12-05 21:21:41 UTC

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Oh, color me surprised... NOT.
This is something I have been predicting for a year, as soon as Trump was reelected.

2025-11-26 19:25:51 UTC

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Precisely: they outsource the moderation they should be doing to the rest of the Fediverse.
I mean, it is not rocket science: if a new user comes with a name like MAGAdolf88, BigTitties4You or Learn2TradeBitcoin you can probably figure out these guys are going to SPAM.
And yet, this is exactly the kind of users we see from mastodon.social every single day.

2025-11-26 17:30:14 UTC

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Not pictured: the extra work that mastodon.social dumps on all the other servers because they refuse to filter users for obvious signs of spam.

2025-11-21 06:31:24 UTC

Fair warning.
(From: https://lemmy.ml/post/39269468 )
https://mastodon.sdf.org/system/media_attachments/files/115/586/266/886/283/223/original/489cce7f40bf676b.png

2025-10-26 22:42:58 UTC

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I have said it before, but I will say it again: if people think moving from X(itter) to Bluesky is a good idea, they are just deluded and haven't done their homework.
Sad but true.
Bluesky is very quickly becoming a nazi bar. And I don't like nazis. Go figure.
Soon people will migrate from Bluesky to something else and, if that something is "corporate" the cycle will repeat.
Meanwhile, the Fediverse is here and working OK. A hint? Almost no-one federates with truth.social ...

2025-10-26 22:26:31 UTC

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Oh, you mean interacting with the kind of charming people that comprise the current US administration?
Thanks, I will pass.

2025-10-26 20:43:00 UTC

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OK, so red states will vote Republicans and blue states will vote Democrats and the current Republican majorities will continue as before?
In other words, what will be the point of midterms? Except, of course, to accelerate the slide towards dictatorship?
"See? The American people like Trump! They even gave him midterm majorities!"
(Genuine question here: as a European, I just don't understand people who don't seem alarmed by this).

2025-10-26 20:33:26 UTC

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Hence the question I ask every time: what makes you think there will be midterms?
A permanent state of emergency, and a semi-permanent state of government shutdown would be a good excuse for not having elections, for example.

2025-10-26 18:52:55 UTC

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But remember: it's only a True Guillotine (tm) if it comes from the Guillotin region of France. Everything else is just a sparkling Decapitator and a pale imitation of the real thing!

2025-10-20 08:24:12 UTC

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Monday morning and AWS is down (at least part of it), right?

2025-10-09 17:17:10 UTC

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WhatsApp is encrypted end-to-end.
Mainly because they took Signal code and reused it.
Yet everyone uses WhatsApp, even though the secret ingredient they added to the Signal 'sauce' is maintaining the social graph of their users for their corporate masters (Meta).
The very meta data that Signal very carefully does not collect and therefore cannot communicate to abusive gov.

2025-10-09 15:24:18 UTC

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Good for you.
Now, please use alt text.
(You knew this was coming, right?)

2025-10-02 13:18:00 UTC

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"Democracy is the worst form of government ever, except for all others".
Since classical Athens, we know that democracy is susceptible to corruption & capture by the wealthiest. This is where the role of institutions and the rule of law is crucial, including institutional history.
If enough people fight to prevent capture + corruption, especially through legal means, the political system will survive. What happened in the USA is that too many people decided "f* it, I want my $".

2025-09-24 11:25:40 UTC

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I'll never tire of posting this:
One
Raging
Asshat
Called
Larry
Ellison

2025-09-17 18:35:51 UTC

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I am tired of waiting!
I demand to speak to the manager!!

2025-08-08 15:11:00 UTC

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Zadar was beautiful, but Trogir is even more beautiful...