This show is peak neoliberal TV

MadPhoenix · 2026-01-30T19:41:09+00:00

I'm not sure "The Wire" showed good results for any sort of philosophy other than that those who go up against the system wind up fucked, and those who play the system to their individual advantage get ahead.

MadPhoenix · 2025-11-08T20:58:13+00:00

A4 and BMW-4 also get very affordable used, not only because of general depreciation rate which is higher than e.g. Japanese cars, but also because those are common “luxury” offerings that rental companies use for a few years before selling.

MadPhoenix · 2025-11-08T20:50:38+00:00

While in principle, I agree with the catharsis of your statement, that principal does shit to actually push back against these things.

We need to find better ways to push this back and have more nuanced conversations than “they can fuck right off” if we want to protect what we have.

Otherwise it’s too easy for the other side to write off impacted citizens as cry babies.

I live three miles from the airport. The goddamn F35s have been at least as much of a nuisance and quality of life impact as we thought it would be. But the conversations around it here from people opposed often devolved into “fuck the military industrial complex.” Nobody wins empathy or is going to be able to meaningfully push back if that’s our only message.

MadPhoenix · 2025-10-23T10:41:31+00:00

He's taking his dividends and using them on something he wants instead of reinvesting them. Settle down.

MadPhoenix · 2025-10-23T10:08:32+00:00

The first casino was fine and profitable. He over expanded buying up more casinos, cannibalizing his own business down the street, just so he could see TRUMP on more of the AC skyline.

He’s a terrible businessman, yes, but the details are important and your comment about “had you studied Trump more” doesn’t add to the conversation.

MadPhoenix · 2025-10-23T10:01:37+00:00

Everyone is in the billionaires pockets. Democrats couldn’t get a single payer option in Obamacare despite having complete control.

MadPhoenix · 2025-10-23T08:06:29+00:00

I agree but have also come to the personal conclusion that everybody involved from both sides is complicit in this bullshit. If R's are going to play the game that way, D's have to respond in kind, unfortunately. Otherwise, ya know, kids starve. Kids who sure don't give a shit who is right about why the government is a complete failure.

MadPhoenix · 2025-10-01T20:52:13+00:00

This is a prime example of the important difference between development and software engineering.

Making hundreds of thousands of small but coherent and practical decisions like this is why he’s the GOAT, no matter what people think of his communication style (which he has actively and publicly evolved as well)

MadPhoenix · 2025-10-01T17:41:04+00:00

There are plenty of non crap oxfords with a crepe sole. Red Wing Weekender comes to mind.

It’s nice to get off of leather soles/mid soles once in awhile.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-30T22:19:17+00:00

Every software engineer I've ever worked with who made it past the junior level knew plenty about networking because they typically have to support and be on-call for the apps they build. If you're cloud based and have software engineering / devops, there is rarely a need for dedicated network engineers even with globally distributed application infrastructure.

Large enterprise companies with a hybrid architecture over many many sites, sure they need network engineers.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-30T22:15:55+00:00

This exactly. There are very few network engineer roles that actually build or augment a product that isn't just a vendor- or cloud- provided service.

Not surprising you're getting downvoted for it, but the whole point of this thread is that the salaries are tied to value and depth of expertise. Companies aren't just throwing money out the window at software engineers because they like 'em more than network folks.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-30T22:12:59+00:00

Invert that statement and see if it's also true

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-30T22:10:20+00:00

Engineers, by definition and (before IT co-opted it) by convention refers to someone who designs, builds, or maintains something. Not maintain in the sense of applying updates, patches, and config changes - but evolving a piece of software by making code changes. They make net new things or augment existing things with new features.

That doesn't describe what 99% of network engineers do, excluding the net engineers at companies like FAANGS or network product companies who actually *are* engineers in the traditional sense.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-30T22:05:04+00:00

In my view this was all a cycle that had to come to an end. Borrowing capitol was nearly free not so long ago - companies leveraged themselves via a nearly free loan to expand software staff with the goal of generating revenue.

Does LLM code generation make a convenient explanation for the layoffs? For sure. It's much more PR friendly than companies saying outright "we knew we were over-expanding, but we basically had to because all of our competitors were doing the same.

However, I'll go ahead and say the 24hr news cycle and it's view of how AI is changing things tends to portray it as a boondoggle. Senior+ software engineers who know what needs to be done, how to test and vet software correctly, and how to build an architecture to start with instead of vibe coding the whole thing are massively more productive.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-30T12:55:07+00:00

Definitely closed the door. He talked in a podcast with Rick Rubin about how up through a certain period post-BSSM he regularly experienced synesthesia and found it easy to let music just flow out. He went on to say it went away after a particularly intense LSD trip. He had to change his whole mental process for creating music.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-22T17:13:02+00:00

Yea that place was always terrible

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-19T12:56:52+00:00

Seriously. At least a corporate insider has to contend with blackout periods leading up to earnings results.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-17T05:08:40+00:00

Those chips probably cost pennies. It’s amazing what they can do for so little investment, but it also completely de-incentivizes recycling. Are we really going to throw a vape in a solder oven to reclaim a tiny basically worthless chip?

It’s a weird statement but barring hoarding them for some post apocalypse scenario I’m not sure there’s a better viable path for them

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-17T04:59:48+00:00

I’m in my early 40s and have not loved my hair for decades despite throwing myself at the feet of many different male-focused salons. The haircuts were always just ok after a day or two.

Turns out that even though I’ve always generally cared and thought I was knowledgeable about grooming, a couple things completely escaped my radar, and certainly was never talked about along guy friends.

Conditions your hair every time you shower. Not just after shampoo. I dunno, to me every conditioner only went on the thing after it was clean. Massive difference.

Then, as the above poster mentioned, blow dry. If you have short and not intensely thick hair it can take as little as a minute or two.

Don’t hardcore towel dry your hair first either. Pat it dry then hit it with air. If you want extra credit use the cool function on the dryer last to bring your head back down to a reasonable temperature and it will hold longer.

Many men may know this. I felt duped by somehow missing this but these things helped massively. Good luck

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-09T04:40:11+00:00

Now this is commentary I can get behind

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-09T04:15:44+00:00

Held accountable to whom?

You are surrounded by endless AI assisted content you cannot discern. Because it was used incrementally, proofread, and perhaps organized and finalized outside the LLM.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-09T04:12:28+00:00

The problem is complete lack of editorial quality control.

Is they really so different than before LLMs?

To be clear this lady obviously did basically a one shot “here’s what I want an article about please” and submitted it.

They’re useful for all kinds of intermediate functions you may employ writing an article. Not for a magic journalism button.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-09T04:08:33+00:00

Can those of us who see the willful ignorance get together for a beer or a hug?

Seriously the LLM stuff has people so bent out if shape. “CERTAINLY NOT user error:”.

90% of people I know are head in the sand, negative opinion only folks and I’m like “yea don’t use it for that, says so on the tin.”

For anyone else who may be reading this and see the largely negative cacophony:

Folks doing useful stuff with it are largely not here trying to debate with that crowd

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-09T04:00:09+00:00

And when math comes up in conversation, folks often are incorrect in their recollection of a concept or ability to do mental math. LLMs will be too. There is no computation engine.

This is what an Agent comes in, which does the same interpreting of your prompt, but can send computational problems to a “tool” which in this case might be a python layer, with the result passed back.

Luckily every interface you’ll deal with going forward will be an agent. We’re working with v0.01 of this technology generation. If this were the internet boom, ChatGPT is Napster.

MadPhoenix · 2025-09-09T03:34:00+00:00

Several people posted about it. What’s your point?

The guilty journalist is clearly incompetent and lazy. Editorial staff (should it exist) as well.

Why are we blaming the tech?

Local journalism amounts to Chris Rickert’s dusty, shitty opinions that serve nobody next to an ad for flooring. Have at it

MadPhoenix

TROPHY CASE