And for those that are able to keep to just one subscription, switching to another when they’ve finished watching whatever show it is that said service had, they aren’t safe either.

One of the next steps that these corporations are going to take is to add fees for dropping their services, with year long contracts.

They don’t want competition, so they will try to force you to stay.

Go for it. It was already an old, long dead meme when I posted it here.

This but corps

Agreed. Though it has crossed my mind that the in universe explanation for why the Federation is so enlightened and willing to care for all of its citizens because of the horrors Earth went through.

But yeah, definitely would like to avoid WW3/the Bell Riots.

Warhammer is for the tabletop. Anything more is a living nightmare.

Don’t worry! WW3 will be preceeded by the Bell Riots, a collection of revolts by people treated inhumanely and stuck in slums. It will be a fun little distraction before the fireworks. It’s even got it’s own count down now!

According to Star Trek lore, WW3 will begin in 3 years, and last for 27 years.

Buckle up.

Sure they could. But that’s not going to stop me from circumventing their attempts if it is reasonably possible.

Why would I do that when it can be automated with a script that removes HTML and scripts responsible for ads?

I updated my original comment to make it more clear.

if you were able to ascertain with 100% accuracy that an ad was not a security or privacy violation

Security isn’t the only part of this.

if viewing ads on your PC had as little potential for harm as viewing ads in the newspaper did, would you still block them?

I basically already do this with the radio. The moment an ad plays, the radio gets shut off. I turn it back on at the next 0 or 5 minute mark and it’s over.

Advertisers do not have a right to force me to listen. The same applies for internet ad blocking. One of these is just automated.

therefore it kinda is piracy.

It’s not an illegal form or copying though. It’s the equivalent or turning off the radio when an ad comes on, then turning it back on once it’s over.

All websites are unable to be trusted.

Because ad blocking is a security and privacy feature. We have the right to choose what HTML and scripts are loaded into our browser. Without that right, we have no web security or privacy.

We also have the right to not listen to ads, turning off the radio the moment they come on. Internet ad blocking is effectively the same thing, just automated. Piracy is completely different, because it is the unlawful copying of digital data.

The dictation software we have is pretty shitty though. It almost always needs proof-read, or re-dictated several times to get it right. At that point you may as well just send an audio clip.

Until the day that dictation software gets it 100% correct, it’s not going to be worth my time.

For now, the human on the other end will always have an easier time understand an audio clip than a machine, because human minds are more capable of using context and getting past regional accents.

Freedom is inherently dangerous

Only to a degree. Letting your child run free on a playground is significantly less dangerous than letting them run free in a hazardous waste landfill. We can absolutely design safe and free places. We just need to stop designing our cities for the sole use of hazardous waste (cars).

We need to allow more mixed zoning so that we don’t have to travel 20 minutes by bike to get to the store, alleviating the drive to ride as fast as possible.

Not only would that eliminate the need for speed, but it would also reduce the overall number of trips taken by bike. Less trips means less crashes. Same goes for cars.

Add it to the never ending list of benefits to mixed use zoning.

In addition to RiderExMachina’s point, an e-bike will get you to your destination quicker, and with less effort. With how hot things are getting, it’s much more preferable to not arrive sweaty as hell due to how much work it can take, plus it’s better to spend less time in the heat.

I don’t think safety courses and licensing are a huge barrier to entry though, unless we let them be.

Training and licenses generally aren’t free, and e-bikes are already pretty expensive. It would add quite enough of a barrier to entry to dissuade more people from switching to them, which is something the environment cannot afford. We honestly need to be doing everything in our power as quickly as possible.

And yes, training and a license would indeed make a difference with how riders conduct themselves. Including wearing a helmet or paying attention.

I’ve seen plenty of car drivers on the road who presumably have a license, yet they don’t wear seat-belts, don’t pay attention, turn in places they shouldn’t, speed, etc. The first step should be infrastructure changes to increase the number of protected/dedicated bike trails (which in turn allow accidents to happen safely), built in speed limiters, rules on helmets and speed, mixed use zoning to reduce trip count/speed/cars, etc. Such changes don’t have an impact on barrier to entry or and only a negligible effect on our freedom.

Traveling by bike is one of the few ways you can travel without having the government involved in some way, or at least minimally involved. I’d like it to stay that way.

And like I said earlier, most of these injuries are to the rider themselves, which means they were probably doing something stupid in the first place. People are going to be stupid even with a license and training, so we may as well design around it as a first step.

I have a cat. It likes to get into things I don’t want it to. I could theoretically teach it not to do so, but the far simpler option is to keep the layout of my house and my things such that it can’t get into things in the first place. If I keep the closet doors shut, it isn’t getting in. People are stupid, and similarly, we should design our infrastructure to account for that. It’s why speed bumps exist after all.

We are at a point in time in which we can’t afford to wait any longer to switch away from fossil fuels, and e-bikes are one of the ways to do so. The barriers to entry should be minimal.

The majority of e-bike injuries are to the rider themselves, and due to inattention/falling off. That’s not something that training or a license will really help with. Speeding and not wearing a helmet on the other hand, those are things easier to catch/deal with.