so i assume you don't want one of those. i like the idea of a nuc, but in practice i like a laptop or a desktop (or a raspberry pi / arduino) more. ~a
paul: "people now are avoiding having children for fear of a doomed Earth and Greta Thunberg" how many people? ~a
paul: "So you're saying that climate scientists haven't been warning about 'serious' climate change all this time and it's only been a warning that we need to stay below 10 billion+ people?" no, that is not what i'm saying. i'm saying that just because you are still alive, and i am still alive, doesn't mean climate scientists were incorrect. ~a
https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/11/politics/us-iran-school-strike-civilians Sounds like it was likely a US strike which hit the Iranian school. -Paul
But I'm into other suggestions too. -Paul
My thought was maybe I could have an always on server which every hour or so runs some scripts to check on the status of the salons and/or my investments or whatever else and then host a website that I can visit to get a quick view on how things are going. -Paul
Question on a different topic: Does anybody here have any experience with mini-PCs (NUCs)? We bought one for a purpose but we no longer need it so I was considering playing around with it but am not sure what to use it for. -Paul
a: But people now are avoiding having children for fear of a doomed Earth and Greta Thunberg was talking about her future being taken away and AOC saying the world is going to end in 12 years... -Paul
a: So you're saying that climate scientists haven't been warning about "serious" climate change all this time and it's only been a warning that we need to stay below 10 billion+ people? I get that there are different levels of "serious"... -Paul
paul: "5 years away from all being underwater". I'm not sure I saw these same warnings as you. five years? i don't think most climate experts would have been that reckless. global mean sea levels have risen measurable amounts, but not yet enough to be a huge problem except near the coasts. otoh talk to any venician about climate change. ~a
a: I honestly don’t know at this time. I’m aware of some broad strokes, but this is one that will have to be read at the line-by-line level to figure out. — Xpovos
a: "i assume you had noticed hoi companies are pulling out of entire states" Yes. But the warnings I've been hearing for decades is that we're all going to be frying and drowning... not that it's going to be harder to get insurance for our houses. -Paul
a: "there are several levels of "seriousness"" Agreed, but I feel like for the past 30 years we've been warned that we're 5 years away from all being underwater so I'm not sure what level of seriousness is above that. -Paul
a: "birth rates are going up in that graph" Births are going up but fertility rate is going down. Those high births are on the back of an increasing population, but if fertility rates continues to be at below replacement levels (and continue to fall) it doesn't matter. -Paul
paul: i assume you had noticed hoi companies are pulling out of entire states. ~a
paul: before, in the 10s, when we were young adults, i think we passed the "we won't be able to turn back" and "animals around the world are affected" lines. now i think we've finally gotten to the "all human lives will be affected" and "parts of the world will be inhabitable" lines. ~a
paul: "Hasn't everything climate scientists have been telling us for decades is that we are already experiencing serious climate change?" yes, there are several levels of "seriousness". ~a
paul: i don't yet know what happened. if i had to guess, it could be a fair combination of both a and b (an intentional/deliberate attack that didn't mean to take out children). i'm hoping we find out eventually. ~a
paul: "there's a clear trend line, no?" no? birth rates are going up in that graph. ~a
a: "i said 100 children died in operation epic fury" Yeah, I know, which is why I asked what you think happened? The narrative is pretty different if it was (A) a deliberate US/Israel attack (B) an accidental mistake by the US/Israel or (C) the result of an Iranian attack. -Paul
a: "can we agree that overpopulation (10b+) will kick off some serious climate change?" Probably not? I think it depends on what you mean by "serious climate change". Hasn't everything climate scientists have been telling us for decades is that we are already experiencing serious climate change? -Paul
a: "birth rates and fertility rates are rarely a straight line in one direction" Sure, but there's a clear trend line, no? I'm not saying it can't temporarily go up (maybe even for decades), but your own chart shows an unmistakable trend of decreasing over 100+ years. -Paul
paul/mig: and on that note, "wars can be fought 'forever'" ~a
paul/mig: "Do you think the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school was hit by US/ Israeli bombs?" oh i don't know. i said 100 children died in operation epic fury. i think we're pretty sure that happened. in my link and this wikipedia article it's pretty clear that investigations are ongoing. those two things (100 children died and investigations are ongoing) are pretty much all i know for sure so far. ~a
paul: i don't follow your point. but birth rates and fertility rates are rarely a straight line in one direction. even just check out us birth rates vs fertility rates in the united states over time. other countries have even crazier lines. can we agree that overpopulation (10b+) will kick off some serious climate change? ~a
do we have any verification of what happened? After the Al-Ahli Hospital incident, forgive me if I don’t take the Iranian state media’s word at face value here. - mig
a: Do you think the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school was hit by US/ Israeli bombs? -Paul
a: Japan and South Korea are seeing their populations actually decrease and fertility is still dramatically below replacement levels. -Paul
a: "i also feel that there is a serious concern of overpopulation [...] and almost zero concern of underpopulation" I agree, and I also think those fears are very off-target. Fertility has been dropping for a long time and I don't think there's good reason to expect a reversal. -Paul
100 children died in operation epic fury ~a
how so? ~a
the lede feels very buried here. - mig
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi-obtained-kash-patel-susie-wiles-phone-records-during-biden-administration-2026-02-25/ “ In 2023, the FBI recorded a phone call between Wiles and her attorney, according to two FBI officials. Wiles' attorney was aware that the call was being recorded, and consented to it, but Susie Wiles was not.” - mig
xpovos: save america act (2026)? thoughts on what this will change about voting this november if it passes? it passed the house and is "expected to be challenged in the senate, where it would require 60 votes to pass unless rules against the chamber's filibuster rules are changed". ~a
paul: it does assume that. i, of course, assume the population will *both* go up and down. and i also feel that there is a serious concern of overpopulation (over, say, 9b) and almost zero concern of underpopulation (under, say, 1b). (i'm ignoring, for the purposes of debate: underpopulation caused by acts of god, or climate change, or similar) ~a
a: "why do you assume when population goes down, that fertility will stay the same?" Huh? You're saying that fertility will go up when population goes down? That's possible, and I hope it's the case, but that assumes the point I am trying to make (population will be going down). -Paul
paul: it doesn't take a time traveler to see finite and dwindling resources being consumed by an increasing number of people as potentially hazardous and very hard to fix. and that underpopulation potentially a concern, but usually only in pockets of the world, and with much much shorter term fixes especially with air travel being a thing. ~a
paul: "if fertility keeps going down then we're looking at zero eventually" why? why do you assume when population goes down, that fertility will stay the same? we def won't see zero unless there is global climate change caused by . . . overpopulation? or global nuclear war caused by conflict (conflict maybe caused by climate change or . . . overpopulation). like, why aren't these obvious and more serious concerns? ~a
a: So I agree it's an explanation and not an excuse. I think if this was a justified war it would be understandable that things like that happen (still obviously utterly tragic), but given the circumstances around this war it's even worse. -Paul
a: Yeah. It's a war (despite what the administration might try to say) and unfortunately innocents die during wars. There's collateral damage. But this obviously wouldn't be happening if we didn't completely blunder into this war of choice. -Paul
paul: that's exactly right it's an explanation, but it is not an excuse. "our government sucks, and it seems to be mostly one guys fault, but also somehow the fault of the people who enable him" is another wording of that explanation. ~a
a: Is "old data" a good excuse? Not really, but part of saying it's the "most reasonable explanation" is that I can't think of a better one. Sounds like you can't either? -Paul
a: "the school isn't old?" I assume you mean it isn't new? Wasn't the school built right next to some missile launcher or something, though? I agree using 10+ year old data isn't ideal but I've seen far worse with the government (have you seen the treasury site?) -Paul
paul: i'll also throw this one on top: what has trump said about this before and since? that people die in war? ~a
paul: (3 continued) the dia (who is responsible for old and bad intelligence) and the state department have also seen huge cuts in early 2025. "what do you think?" i don't know. but the main story doesn't make any sense. do i think trump intentionally killed 100-200 girls? no. no i do not. but he sure as hell is directly responsible (see #1, #2, and #3 here). ~a
paul: 3. *why* do they have old data? you cant argue for firing all "mid-level bureaucrats" and putting in your people (proj 2025) then complain that the mid-level bureaucrats didnt do their jobs. i mean you can, but you should not. "cia plans to cut more than 1000 staff positions through attrition over the next few years as the trump administration shrinks the federal government, according to officials briefed on the plans." (early 2025) ~a
paul: 2. was there anything nearby? was there a medical clinic + pharmacy nearby? even if you weren't killing 100-200 girls, you were still going to take out anybody using the medical clinic or pharmacy, right? i know the death toll includes non-girls. i haven't confirmed that people died in the clinic or pharmacy: but the main point is that before the strike you should have known / knew the nearby medical clinic + pharmacy exist. ~a
paul: "That seems like the most reasonable explanation." does it? would it matter to you if 'old intelligence' didn't even track? like, it is a reasonable explanation, of course, until you start asking follow ups. 1. the school isn't old? 2016 is when they walled off that area and started using it as a school. so "old", means, what? 10+ year old data? that seems to be a weird amount of time to indiscriminately bombing an area. ~a
a: "i believe the more recent attacks he made in iran are to change the story away from the hundreds of children he killed." I'm not sure which attacks in particular you are referring to but it seems weird to distract from an attack on Iran with.... another attack on Iran. -Paul
a: "does he still think the attack was made by iran." I have no idea what he thinks. "do you think the attack on the school was because of old intelligence?" That seems like the most reasonable explanation. What do you think? -Paul
paul: what's more I'm sure you can guess that trump claimed the attack was made by iran. does he still think the attack was made by iran. do you think the attack on the school was because of old intelligence? i feel like if so, there's some interesting follow up questions there. i believe the more recent attacks he made in iran are to change the story away from the hundreds of children he killed. ~a
a: I'm positive there wouldn't have been an admission of guilt had it not made news. -Paul
a: I wouldn't say I was surprised it was a US strike (seemed like there were really only two possibilities after all... maybe three if you count an Israeli strike as different). I did think there was a chance it was an accident from the other side. -Paul
a: My nuc cost something closer to $100. We didn't talk about it much during SC2, actually. I also like the idea of a nuc but am struggling with what it can do that my raspberry pi (I've got two) or desktop/laptop/Chromebook can't. -Paul
paul: "Sounds like it was likely a US strike which hit the Iranian school" this does not surprise me. (i feel the dow should probably have admitted fault sooner. it now reads to me like they only admitted fault after it was obvious they were guilty. or worse: considered a cover up) ~a
paul: sorry i missed sc2 this week, i think you probably discussed this a bunch based on discord. i don't have much insight, sadly. i mostly use a standard desktop (high end 10 years ago) and a standard laptop (high end 2 years ago). at work we use a nuc-sized device that costs 50k+ so i assume you don't want one of those. i like the idea of a nuc, but in practice i like a laptop or a desktop (or a raspberry pi / arduino) more. ~a
paul: "people now are avoiding having children for fear of a doomed Earth and Greta Thunberg" how many people? ~a
paul: "So you're saying that climate scientists haven't been warning about 'serious' climate change all this time and it's only been a warning that we need to stay below 10 billion+ people?" no, that is not what i'm saying. i'm saying that just because you are still alive, and i am still alive, doesn't mean climate scientists were incorrect. ~a
https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/11/politics/us-iran-school-strike-civilians Sounds like it was likely a US strike which hit the Iranian school. -Paul
But I'm into other suggestions too. -Paul
My thought was maybe I could have an always on server which every hour or so runs some scripts to check on the status of the salons and/or my investments or whatever else and then host a website that I can visit to get a quick view on how things are going. -Paul
Question on a different topic: Does anybody here have any experience with mini-PCs (NUCs)? We bought one for a purpose but we no longer need it so I was considering playing around with it but am not sure what to use it for. -Paul
a: But people now are avoiding having children for fear of a doomed Earth and Greta Thunberg was talking about her future being taken away and AOC saying the world is going to end in 12 years... -Paul
a: So you're saying that climate scientists haven't been warning about "serious" climate change all this time and it's only been a warning that we need to stay below 10 billion+ people? I get that there are different levels of "serious"... -Paul
paul: "5 years away from all being underwater". I'm not sure I saw these same warnings as you. five years? i don't think most climate experts would have been that reckless. global mean sea levels have risen measurable amounts, but not yet enough to be a huge problem except near the coasts. otoh talk to any venician about climate change. ~a
a: I honestly don’t know at this time. I’m aware of some broad strokes, but this is one that will have to be read at the line-by-line level to figure out. — Xpovos
a: "i assume you had noticed hoi companies are pulling out of entire states" Yes. But the warnings I've been hearing for decades is that we're all going to be frying and drowning... not that it's going to be harder to get insurance for our houses. -Paul
a: "there are several levels of "seriousness"" Agreed, but I feel like for the past 30 years we've been warned that we're 5 years away from all being underwater so I'm not sure what level of seriousness is above that. -Paul
a: "birth rates are going up in that graph" Births are going up but fertility rate is going down. Those high births are on the back of an increasing population, but if fertility rates continues to be at below replacement levels (and continue to fall) it doesn't matter. -Paul
paul: i assume you had noticed hoi companies are pulling out of entire states. ~a
paul: before, in the 10s, when we were young adults, i think we passed the "we won't be able to turn back" and "animals around the world are affected" lines. now i think we've finally gotten to the "all human lives will be affected" and "parts of the world will be inhabitable" lines. ~a
paul: "Hasn't everything climate scientists have been telling us for decades is that we are already experiencing serious climate change?" yes, there are several levels of "seriousness". ~a
paul: i don't yet know what happened. if i had to guess, it could be a fair combination of both a and b (an intentional/deliberate attack that didn't mean to take out children). i'm hoping we find out eventually. ~a
paul: "there's a clear trend line, no?" no? birth rates are going up in that graph. ~a
a: "i said 100 children died in operation epic fury" Yeah, I know, which is why I asked what you think happened? The narrative is pretty different if it was (A) a deliberate US/Israel attack (B) an accidental mistake by the US/Israel or (C) the result of an Iranian attack. -Paul
a: "can we agree that overpopulation (10b+) will kick off some serious climate change?" Probably not? I think it depends on what you mean by "serious climate change". Hasn't everything climate scientists have been telling us for decades is that we are already experiencing serious climate change? -Paul
a: "birth rates and fertility rates are rarely a straight line in one direction" Sure, but there's a clear trend line, no? I'm not saying it can't temporarily go up (maybe even for decades), but your own chart shows an unmistakable trend of decreasing over 100+ years. -Paul
paul/mig: and on that note, "wars can be fought 'forever'" ~a
paul/mig: "Do you think the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school was hit by US/ Israeli bombs?" oh i don't know. i said 100 children died in operation epic fury. i think we're pretty sure that happened. in my link and this wikipedia article it's pretty clear that investigations are ongoing. those two things (100 children died and investigations are ongoing) are pretty much all i know for sure so far. ~a
paul: i don't follow your point. but birth rates and fertility rates are rarely a straight line in one direction. even just check out us birth rates vs fertility rates in the united states over time. other countries have even crazier lines. can we agree that overpopulation (10b+) will kick off some serious climate change? ~a
do we have any verification of what happened? After the Al-Ahli Hospital incident, forgive me if I don’t take the Iranian state media’s word at face value here. - mig
a: Do you think the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school was hit by US/ Israeli bombs? -Paul
a: Japan and South Korea are seeing their populations actually decrease and fertility is still dramatically below replacement levels. -Paul
a: "i also feel that there is a serious concern of overpopulation [...] and almost zero concern of underpopulation" I agree, and I also think those fears are very off-target. Fertility has been dropping for a long time and I don't think there's good reason to expect a reversal. -Paul
100 children died in operation epic fury ~a
how so? ~a
the lede feels very buried here. - mig
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi-obtained-kash-patel-susie-wiles-phone-records-during-biden-administration-2026-02-25/ “ In 2023, the FBI recorded a phone call between Wiles and her attorney, according to two FBI officials. Wiles' attorney was aware that the call was being recorded, and consented to it, but Susie Wiles was not.” - mig
xpovos: save america act (2026)? thoughts on what this will change about voting this november if it passes? it passed the house and is "expected to be challenged in the senate, where it would require 60 votes to pass unless rules against the chamber's filibuster rules are changed". ~a
paul: it does assume that. i, of course, assume the population will *both* go up and down. and i also feel that there is a serious concern of overpopulation (over, say, 9b) and almost zero concern of underpopulation (under, say, 1b). (i'm ignoring, for the purposes of debate: underpopulation caused by acts of god, or climate change, or similar) ~a
a: "why do you assume when population goes down, that fertility will stay the same?" Huh? You're saying that fertility will go up when population goes down? That's possible, and I hope it's the case, but that assumes the point I am trying to make (population will be going down). -Paul
paul: it doesn't take a time traveler to see finite and dwindling resources being consumed by an increasing number of people as potentially hazardous and very hard to fix. and that underpopulation potentially a concern, but usually only in pockets of the world, and with much much shorter term fixes especially with air travel being a thing. ~a
paul: "if fertility keeps going down then we're looking at zero eventually" why? why do you assume when population goes down, that fertility will stay the same? we def won't see zero unless there is global climate change caused by . . . overpopulation? or global nuclear war caused by conflict (conflict maybe caused by climate change or . . . overpopulation). like, why aren't these obvious and more serious concerns? ~a
so i assume you don't want one of those. i like the idea of a nuc, but in practice i like a laptop or a desktop (or a raspberry pi / arduino) more. ~a
paul: "people now are avoiding having children for fear of a doomed Earth and Greta Thunberg" how many people? ~a
paul: "So you're saying that climate scientists haven't been warning about 'serious' climate change all this time and it's only been a warning that we need to stay below 10 billion+ people?" no, that is not what i'm saying. i'm saying that just because you are still alive, and i am still alive, doesn't mean climate scientists were incorrect. ~a
https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/11/politics/us-iran-school-strike-civilians Sounds like it was likely a US strike which hit the Iranian school. -Paul
But I'm into other suggestions too. -Paul
My thought was maybe I could have an always on server which every hour or so runs some scripts to check on the status of the salons and/or my investments or whatever else and then host a website that I can visit to get a quick view on how things are going. -Paul
Question on a different topic: Does anybody here have any experience with mini-PCs (NUCs)? We bought one for a purpose but we no longer need it so I was considering playing around with it but am not sure what to use it for. -Paul
a: But people now are avoiding having children for fear of a doomed Earth and Greta Thunberg was talking about her future being taken away and AOC saying the world is going to end in 12 years... -Paul
a: So you're saying that climate scientists haven't been warning about "serious" climate change all this time and it's only been a warning that we need to stay below 10 billion+ people? I get that there are different levels of "serious"... -Paul
paul: "5 years away from all being underwater". I'm not sure I saw these same warnings as you. five years? i don't think most climate experts would have been that reckless. global mean sea levels have risen measurable amounts, but not yet enough to be a huge problem except near the coasts. otoh talk to any venician about climate change. ~a
a: I honestly don’t know at this time. I’m aware of some broad strokes, but this is one that will have to be read at the line-by-line level to figure out. — Xpovos
a: "i assume you had noticed hoi companies are pulling out of entire states" Yes. But the warnings I've been hearing for decades is that we're all going to be frying and drowning... not that it's going to be harder to get insurance for our houses. -Paul
a: "there are several levels of "seriousness"" Agreed, but I feel like for the past 30 years we've been warned that we're 5 years away from all being underwater so I'm not sure what level of seriousness is above that. -Paul
a: "birth rates are going up in that graph" Births are going up but fertility rate is going down. Those high births are on the back of an increasing population, but if fertility rates continues to be at below replacement levels (and continue to fall) it doesn't matter. -Paul
paul: i assume you had noticed hoi companies are pulling out of entire states. ~a
paul: before, in the 10s, when we were young adults, i think we passed the "we won't be able to turn back" and "animals around the world are affected" lines. now i think we've finally gotten to the "all human lives will be affected" and "parts of the world will be inhabitable" lines. ~a
paul: "Hasn't everything climate scientists have been telling us for decades is that we are already experiencing serious climate change?" yes, there are several levels of "seriousness". ~a
paul: i don't yet know what happened. if i had to guess, it could be a fair combination of both a and b (an intentional/deliberate attack that didn't mean to take out children). i'm hoping we find out eventually. ~a
paul: "there's a clear trend line, no?" no? birth rates are going up in that graph. ~a
a: "i said 100 children died in operation epic fury" Yeah, I know, which is why I asked what you think happened? The narrative is pretty different if it was (A) a deliberate US/Israel attack (B) an accidental mistake by the US/Israel or (C) the result of an Iranian attack. -Paul
a: "can we agree that overpopulation (10b+) will kick off some serious climate change?" Probably not? I think it depends on what you mean by "serious climate change". Hasn't everything climate scientists have been telling us for decades is that we are already experiencing serious climate change? -Paul
a: "birth rates and fertility rates are rarely a straight line in one direction" Sure, but there's a clear trend line, no? I'm not saying it can't temporarily go up (maybe even for decades), but your own chart shows an unmistakable trend of decreasing over 100+ years. -Paul
paul/mig: and on that note, "wars can be fought 'forever'" ~a
paul/mig: "Do you think the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school was hit by US/ Israeli bombs?" oh i don't know. i said 100 children died in operation epic fury. i think we're pretty sure that happened. in my link and this wikipedia article it's pretty clear that investigations are ongoing. those two things (100 children died and investigations are ongoing) are pretty much all i know for sure so far. ~a
paul: i don't follow your point. but birth rates and fertility rates are rarely a straight line in one direction. even just check out us birth rates vs fertility rates in the united states over time. other countries have even crazier lines. can we agree that overpopulation (10b+) will kick off some serious climate change? ~a
do we have any verification of what happened? After the Al-Ahli Hospital incident, forgive me if I don’t take the Iranian state media’s word at face value here. - mig
a: Do you think the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school was hit by US/ Israeli bombs? -Paul
a: Japan and South Korea are seeing their populations actually decrease and fertility is still dramatically below replacement levels. -Paul
a: "i also feel that there is a serious concern of overpopulation [...] and almost zero concern of underpopulation" I agree, and I also think those fears are very off-target. Fertility has been dropping for a long time and I don't think there's good reason to expect a reversal. -Paul
100 children died in operation epic fury ~a
how so? ~a
the lede feels very buried here. - mig
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi-obtained-kash-patel-susie-wiles-phone-records-during-biden-administration-2026-02-25/ “ In 2023, the FBI recorded a phone call between Wiles and her attorney, according to two FBI officials. Wiles' attorney was aware that the call was being recorded, and consented to it, but Susie Wiles was not.” - mig
xpovos: save america act (2026)? thoughts on what this will change about voting this november if it passes? it passed the house and is "expected to be challenged in the senate, where it would require 60 votes to pass unless rules against the chamber's filibuster rules are changed". ~a
paul: it does assume that. i, of course, assume the population will *both* go up and down. and i also feel that there is a serious concern of overpopulation (over, say, 9b) and almost zero concern of underpopulation (under, say, 1b). (i'm ignoring, for the purposes of debate: underpopulation caused by acts of god, or climate change, or similar) ~a
a: "why do you assume when population goes down, that fertility will stay the same?" Huh? You're saying that fertility will go up when population goes down? That's possible, and I hope it's the case, but that assumes the point I am trying to make (population will be going down). -Paul
paul: it doesn't take a time traveler to see finite and dwindling resources being consumed by an increasing number of people as potentially hazardous and very hard to fix. and that underpopulation potentially a concern, but usually only in pockets of the world, and with much much shorter term fixes especially with air travel being a thing. ~a
paul: "if fertility keeps going down then we're looking at zero eventually" why? why do you assume when population goes down, that fertility will stay the same? we def won't see zero unless there is global climate change caused by . . . overpopulation? or global nuclear war caused by conflict (conflict maybe caused by climate change or . . . overpopulation). like, why aren't these obvious and more serious concerns? ~a
