#Tech For Non profits

[fexleservices]

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[jerseygirl5000]

So jealous of people who also foolishly majored in the liberal arts but then transitioned into tech. theyre always like yeah i just taught myself to code. HUH???? i thought we majored in fuck ass majors like poli sci bc we couldnt do shit like that…..i thought you were one of us….

[random2908]

So the funniest thing happened today. We interviewed a woman for an entry-level scientist position, and I was one of the interviewers who was assigned to get half an hour with her.

Aside from the fact that she had a PhD in, generally speaking, the correct subfield, she was entirely unqualified for the job. But, having that PhD counts for a lot, and we all thought she seemed like a really tenacious person who could learn the ropes of what we were doing.

You know what she was extremely qualified for, though? An entry-level scientist position at my previous company. Like, they would kill to get someone with her exact background--someone who'd done a PhD under her PhD advisor and a postdoc under her postdoc advisor (completely unrelated work, both relevant to my previous company's work in entirely different ways).

But she wasn't applying there, she told me, because she'd looked at their linkdin page and they didn't have any women on the tech staff.

[jasper-colin-us]

Large non-profits are turning to cloud, AI & automation. Uncover their tech priorities—and how B2B providers can drive impact with purpose.

[sentivium]

Los Angeles residents turn to Watch Duty app for rapid wildfire updates | Many online have posted about the app, which is run by a nonprofit group, calling it an essential resource amid rapidly changing weather conditions.

[ketchuppee]

During the 2008 recession, my aunt lost her job. Her, her partner, and my three cousins moved across the country to stay with us while they got back on their feet. My house turned from a family of four to a family of nine overnight, complete with three dogs and five cats between us.

It took a few years for them to get a place of their own, but after a few rentals and apartments, they now own a split level ranch in a town nearby. I’ve lost track of how many coworkers and friends have stayed with them when they were in a tight spot. A mother and son getting out of an abusive relationship, a divorcee trying to stay local for his kids while they work out a custody agreement, you name it. My aunt and uncle knew first hand what that kindness meant, and always find space for someone who needed it, the way my parents had for them.

That same aunt and uncle visited me in [redacted] city last year. They are prolific drinkers, so we spent most of the day bar hopping. As we wandered the city, any time we passed a homeless person, my uncle would pull out a fresh cigarette and ask them if they had a light. Regardless of if they had a lighter on hand or not, he offered them a few bucks in exchange, which he explained to me after was because he felt it would be easier for them to accept in exchange for a service, no matter how small.

I work for a company that produces a lot of fabric waste. Every few weeks, I bring two big black trash bags full of discarded material over to a woman who works down the hall. She distributes them to local churches, quilting clubs, and teachers who can use them for crafts. She’s currently in the process of working with our building to set up a recycling program for the smaller pieces of fabric that are harder to find use for.

One of my best friends gives monthly donations to four or five local organizations. She’s fortunate enough to have a tech job that gives her a good salary, and she knows that a recurring donation is more valuable to a non-profit because they can rely on that money month after month, and can plan ways to stretch that dollar for maximum impact. One of those organizations is a native plant trust, and once she’s out of her apartment complex and in a home with a yard, she has plans to convert it into a haven of local flora.

My partner works for a company that is working to help regulate crypto and hold the current bad actors in the space accountable for their actions. We unfortunately live in a time where technology develops far too fast for bureaucracy to keep up with, but just because people use a technology for ill gain doesn’t mean the technology itself is bad. The blockchain is something that she finds fascinating and powerful, and she is using her degree and her expertise to turn it into a tool for good.

I knew someone who always had a bag of treats in their purse, on the odd chance they came across a stray cat or dog, they had something to offer them.

I follow artists who post about every local election they know of, because they know their platform gives them more reach than the average person, and that they can leverage that platform to encourage people to vote in elections that get less attention, but in many ways have more impact on the direction our country is going to go.

All of this to say, there’s more than one way to do good in the world. Social media leads us to believe that the loudest, the most vocal, the most prolific poster is the most virtuous, but they are only a piece of the puzzle. (And if virtue for virtues sake is your end goal, you’ve already lost, but that’s a different post). Community is built of people leveraging their privileges to help those without them. We need people doing all of those things and more, because no individual can or should do all of it. You would be stretched too thin, your efforts valiant, but less effective in your ambition.

None of this is to encourage inaction. Identify your unique strengths, skills, and privileges, and put them to use. Determine what causes are important to you, and commit to doing what you can to help them. Collective action is how change is made, but don’t forget that we need diversity in actions taken.

[jupiterswasphouse]

Not certain if this has already been posted about here, but iNaturalist recently uploaded a blog post stating that they had received a grant from Google to incorporate new forms of generative AI into their 'computer vision' model.

I'm sure I don't need to tell most of you why this is a horrible idea, that does away with much of the trust gained by the thus far great service that is iNaturalist. But, to elaborate on my point, to collaborate with Google on tools such as these is a slap in the face to much of the userbase, including a multitude of biological experts and conservationists across the globe.

They claim that they will work hard to make sure that the identification information provided by the AI tools is of the highest quality, which I do not entirely doubt from this team. I would hope that there is a thorough vetting process in place for this information (Though, if you need people to vet the information, what's the point of the generative AI over a simple wiki of identification criteria). Nonetheless, if you've seen Google's (or any other tech company's) work in this field in the past, which you likely have, you will know that these tools are not ready to explain the nuances of species identification, as they continue to provide heavy amounts of complete misinformation on a daily basis. Users may be able to provide feedback, but should a casual user look to the AI for an explanation, many would not realize if what they are being told is wrong.

Furthermore, while the data is not entirely my concern, as the service has been using our data for years to train its 'computer vision' model into what it is today, and they claim to have ways to credit people in place, it does make it quite concerning that Google is involved in this deal. I can't say for certain that they will do anything more with the data given, but Google has proven time and again to be highly untrustworthy as a company.

Though, that is something I'm less concerned by than I am by the fact that a non-profit so dedicated to the biodiversity of the earth and the naturalists on it would even dare lock in a deal of this nature. Not only making a deal to create yet another shoehorned misinformation machine, that which has been proven to use more unclean energy and water (among other things) than it's worth for each unsatisfactory and untrustworthy search answer, but doing so with one of the greediest companies on the face of the earth, a beacon of smog shining in colors antithetical to the iNaturalist mission statement. It's a disgrace.

In conclusion, I want to believe in the good of iNaturalist. The point stands, though, that to do this is a step in the worst possible direction. Especially when they, for all intents and purposes, already had a system that works! With their 'computer vision' model providing basic suggestions (if not always accurate in and of itself), and user suggested IDs providing further details and corrections where needed.

If you're an iNaturalist user who stands in opposition to this decision, leave a comment on this blog post, and maybe we can get this overturned.

[Note: Yes, I am aware there is good AI used in science, this is generative AI, which is a different thing entirely. Also, if you come onto this post with strawmen or irrelevant edge-cases I will wring your neck.]

[nyancrimew]

i do bootleg cybersecurity for protesters and im both inspired by you and exhausted by how little is known about cybersecurity. i am not an expert or a hacker, i just like helping and having the 2 brain cells required not to discuss legal activities on INSTAGRAM

the point of this question is: how do you push people uninterested in tech/security to care more about not getting doxxed and charged? what can i do to help them? i did some basic scraping and showed one person how easily i could find all her info from her insta and that scared her into being better. but i dont have the time to do that for everyone

this site from the EFF has some really great and easy to follow opsec input, especially for protestors and activists (it even attempts to not be just US specific)

[opencommunion]

"The story of  'John Doe 1' of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is tucked in a lawsuit filed five years ago against several U.S. tech companies, including Tesla, the world’s largest electric vehicle producer. In a country where the earth hides its treasures beneath its surface, those who chip away at its bounty pay an unfair price. As a pre-teen, his family could no longer afford to pay his $6 monthly school fee, leaving him with one option: a life working underground in a tunnel, digging for cobalt rocks.  But soon after he began working for roughly two U.S. dollars per day, the child was buried alive under the rubble of a collapsed mine tunnel. His body was never recovered. 

The nation, fractured by war, disease, and famine, has seen more than 6 million people die since the mid-1990s, making the conflict the deadliest since World War II. But, in recent years, the death and destruction have been aided by the growing number of electric vehicles humming down American streets. In 2022, the U.S., the world’s third-largest importer of cobalt, spent nearly $525 million on the mineral, much of which came from the Congo.

As America’s dependence on the Congo has grown, Black-led labor and environmental organizers here in the U.S. have worked to build a transnational solidarity movement. Activists also say that the inequities faced in the Congo relate to those that Black Americans experience. And thanks in part to social media, the desire to better understand what’s happening in the Congo has grown in the past 10 years. In some ways, the Black Lives Matter movement first took root in the Congo after the uprising in Ferguson in 2014, advocates say. And since the murder of George Floyd and the outrage over the Gaza war, there has been an uptick in Congolese and Black American groups working on solidarity campaigns.

Throughout it all, the inequities faced by Congolese people and Black Americans show how the supply chain highlights similar patterns of exploitation and disenfranchisement. ... While the American South has picked up about two-thirds of the electric vehicle production jobs, Black workers there are more likely to work in non-unionized warehouses, receiving less pay and protections. The White House has also failed to share data that definitively proves whether Black workers are receiving these jobs, rather than them just being placed near Black communities. 'Automakers are moving their EV manufacturing and operations to the South in hopes of exploiting low labor costs and making higher profits,' explained Yterenickia Bell, an at-large council member in Clarkston, Georgia, last year. While Georgia has been targeted for investment by the Biden administration, workers are 'refusing to stand idly by and let them repeat a cycle that harms Black communities and working families.'

... Of the 255,000 Congolese mining for cobalt, 40,000 are children. They are not only exposed to physical threats but environmental ones. Cobalt mining pollutes critical water sources, plus the air and land. It is linked to respiratory illnesses, food insecurity, and violence. Still, in March, a U.S. court ruled on the case, finding that American companies could not be held liable for child labor in the Congo, even as they helped intensify the prevalence. ... Recently, the push for mining in the Congo has reached new heights because of a rift in China-U.S. relations regarding EV production. Earlier this month, the Biden administration issued a 100% tariff on Chinese-produced EVs to deter their purchase in the U.S. Currently, China owns about 80% of the legal mines in the Congo, but tens of thousands of Congolese work in 'artisanal' mines outside these facilities, where there are no rules or regulations, and where the U.S. gets much of its cobalt imports.  'Cobalt mining is the slave farm perfected,' wrote Siddharth Kara last year in the award-winning investigative book Cobalt Red: How The Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives. 'It is a system of absolute exploitation for absolute profit.' While it is the world’s richest country in terms of wealth from natural resources, Congo is among the poorest in terms of life outcomes. Of the 201 countries recognized by the World Bank Group, it has the 191st lowest life expectancy."

[tacky-tramp]

An open letter to the Organization for Transformative Works' legal team:

Dear @transformativeworks Legal,

I am requesting that you take action on Speechify/WordStream's wholesale theft of non-commercial fanworks for commercial purposes.

As you are probably aware, Speechify, an app that uses AI voices to turn user-supplied text into audiobooks, has created a spinoff app called WordStream. WordStream has scraped many, many works of fanfiction from AO3, and has published AI-generated audiobooks of these fics. They charge users for access to these audiobooks, under a subscription model. Not only has this company, run by Cliff Weitzman, violated AO3 users' copyrights, it has done so for profit.

I understand that only authors themselves can file DMCA takedown notices when their fics are stolen. However, there are steps the OTW can take on this matter:

1. Notify all AO3 users via email that their work may have been stolen, and give them next steps. This is what companies are required to do in the event of a data breach, and that's effectively what this is.

2. Publish a blog post about WordStream's theft, and promote it on social media.

3. Send a letter to Speechify, educating them about fanfiction and copyright. Explain that fanfiction is *not* in the public domain, and therefore the users whose work they've stolen have legal recourse against them. Demand they take down all fanfiction they have stolen.

4. Reach out through your networks in tech and publishing to raise awareness of this and marshall support for a campaign to pressure Speechify to remove all fanfiction they posted without author permission.

I am a former OTW volunteer, and I would be happy to assist with any of this!

Thanks,

tacky_tramp

[ms-demeanor]

The thing about LLMs is that they're like cars that have a touchscreen on the console; it's more expensive and worse than what came before in almost all circumstances.

And like car touchscreens it's something that I suspect that the vast majority of consumers dislike and would prefer not to use.

But that doesn't mean that touchscreens are bad it just means they don't belong in cars.

It *IS* a massive problem that "AI" is being shoved at us by a bunch of people who invested WAY too much into AI and are trying to make a return on their investment. It is *ALSO* a problem that "AI" is a terrible name for the pattern interpretation tools that tech companies have dumped billions of dollars into so people are being told that a lot of things that are just pretty basic algorithmic tools are "AI," which makes the whole thing feel overhyped, oversold, and useless (which it is for a tremendous number of people!)

But I get really frustrated with claims that AI slop is what ruined google search (google search has been ruined for a long time; when their goal became "people need to do more searches so we can serve them more ads" instead of "we need to return the best results for our users" it was destroyed and that had nothing to do with AI and everything to do with a profit motive) or that AI is why we're being inundated by spammers (spammers have been a problem for a VERY long time) or that it's impossible to find good info these days because the internet is full of garbage AI articles to generate clicks (that has been the BANE OF MY EXISTENCE in terms of research for MUCH LONGER than GPT4 has been around it is called search engine optimization and if you haven't had your results full of poorly written non-information listicles for the last seven years I suspect you haven't been doing quite the same volume of searching as I have been).

These are known problems that are being exacerbated by this particular kind of tool, but the problem with phishing isn't that the emails are extremely tailored to particular users, it's that the world is chock full of scammers who are incentivized to treat people like shit for money.

[astrocafecoffee]

• Your special qualities and career •

( according to your Destiny number)

•For entertainment purposes only, enjoy, pls don't repost my work without my permission •

💖 MASTERLIST

💖 DESTINY MATRIX CHART

💖 MIXED PERSONA CHART OBSERVATION

----------------💫-------------------

✨ What is destiny number?

☞ A Destiny Number, also known as an Expression Number, is a numerical value calculated from the letters of an individual's full birth name. It reveals a person's life purpose, personality traits, strengths, and challenges. The Destiny Number is considered a key aspect of numerology, providing insight into an individual's potential and life path.

✨ Calculation link : here

Note : if your destiny Number comes out as 11, 22 or 33 . Don't add them, Cause these are master numbers.

• DESTINY NUMBER 1 •

•Special qualities:

Individuals with a Destiny Number of 1 are natural-born leaders, innovators, and pioneers.

They exude self-assurance and confidence, which helps them take risks and pursue their goals.

They have a strong desire to succeed and make a lasting impact.

Destiny Number 1 individuals often possess a charming and magnetic personality.

They have a natural inclination to start their own ventures and take charge of their destiny.

They are effective communicators, able to articulate their ideas and inspire others.

•Career paths:

Starting their own business or venture is a natural fit for Destiny Number 1 individuals.

They excel in executive positions, management, or leadership roles.

Careers in tech, research, and development suit their innovative nature.

Destiny Number 1 individuals thrive in creative industries like art, design, music, or writing.

Their problem-solving skills make them excellent consultants or strategists.

They are natural orators and motivators, making them great public speakers or coaches.

Their charisma and leadership abilities make them suitable for roles in politics or social activism.

• Often compatible with: Destiny no 3,5,7,9 individuals.

•DESTINY NUMBER 2 •

• Special qualities:

Exceptional listening and communication skills, able to understand and connect with others on a deep level

Strong emotional intelligence, empathy, and compassion, making them excellent counselors and friends

Diplomatic and mediating skills, able to bring people together and resolve conflicts.

Adaptable and flexible, with a ability to adjust to new situations and challenges.

Cooperative and team-oriented, with a strong sense of loyalty and commitment.

Intuitive and sensitive nature, with a strong connection to their emotions and the emotions of others.

•Careers:

Counselors, therapists, or coaches, helping others navigate life's challenges and achieve their goals

Diplomats, mediators, or negotiators, bringing people together and resolving conflicts in personal and professional settings

Human resources or personnel managers, using their emotional intelligence and communication skills to build strong teams

Teachers, trainers, or educators, inspiring and guiding others in academic and personal growth

Artists, designers, or musicians, expressing themselves creatively and bringing joy to others

Writers, poets, or journalists, using their words to inspire, educate, and connect with others

Sales or marketing professionals, using their communication skills and emotional intelligence to build strong relationships with clients and customers

Social workers or non-profit professionals, dedicating themselves to making a positive impact in their communities

•Often compatible with : Destiny number 4,6,8,9 individuals.

•DESTINY NUMBER 3•

•special qualities:

Exceptional creativity and imagination, with a talent for finding innovative solutions to problems .

Strong communication and expression skills, both verbal and written, with a ability to articulate ideas clearly and persuasively

Natural performers and entertainers, with a charisma and stage presence that draws others in

Optimistic and enthusiastic approach to life, with a ability to inspire and motivate others

Versatile and adaptable, with a ability to adjust to new situations and challenges with ease

Quick-witted and humorous, with a ability to think on their feet and come up with clever solutions

Innovative problem-solving skills, with a ability to think outside the box and come up with creative solutions

Leadership and motivational abilities, with a ability to inspire and guide others towards a common goal

• careers :

Graphic designers ie. Creating visual elements for websites, magazines and brands.painters, art exhibition, sculptors, commercial potrait and landscape photography.

Fashion designers

Writer, poet , journalists , writing and publishing books across various genres.

Theatre actors, working in movies , tv shows, commercials , musicians, or performing in various styles ballet/ hip-hop .

Public speaker/ motivational speaker/ life coach/ business coach.

Marketing and advance professionals , public relation specialist.

Teachers/ educators.

Media / entertainment professionals.

• Often compatible with : Destiny number 1,5,6 individuals.

•DESTINY NUMBER 4•

•Special Qualities:

Destiny Number 4 individuals are practical and detail-oriented, with a talent for organization and management.

They value stability and security, and work towards creating a solid foundation in their lives and careers.

Destiny Number 4 individuals are hardworking and diligent, with a willingness to put in the effort necessary to achieve their goals.

They are loyal and dedicated to their loved ones, colleagues, and causes they believe in.

Destiny Number 4 individuals are skilled problem-solvers, able to analyze situations and find practical solutions.

•Career Paths:

Destiny Number 4 individuals excel in designing and building structures, systems, and processes.

They make excellent managers, administrators, and executives, able to organize and lead teams.

Destiny Number 4 individuals are skilled in finance, accounting, and economics, and excel in careers like banking and investing.

They are detail-oriented and analytical, making them excellent scientists, researchers, and laboratory technicians.

Destiny Number 4 individuals excel in information technology, software development, and data analysis.

They make excellent healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, and medical administrators.

Destiny Number 4 individuals are drawn to careers in government, public policy, and non-profit organizations.

•often compatible with: Destiny number 1,2,6,8,9 individuals.

•DESTINY NUMBER 5 •

•Special Qualities:

Destiny Number 5 individuals are highly adaptable and flexible, able to adjust to new situations and challenges with ease.

They are curious and love to learn, with a thirst for knowledge and new experiences.

Destiny Number 5 individuals are creative and innovative, with a talent for finding novel solutions to problems.

They possess excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, and are able to articulate their ideas clearly and persuasively.

Destiny Number 5 individuals value freedom and independence, and prefer careers that allow them to work autonomously.

•Career Paths:

Destiny Number 5 individuals excel in creative fields like graphic design, painting, sculpture, photography, and fashion design.

They make excellent writers, journalists, and authors, with a talent for storytelling and communication.

Destiny Number 5 individuals are curious and analytical, making them excellent researchers and scientists.

They are natural entrepreneurs, able to develop innovative products and services and launch successful startups.

Destiny Number 5 individuals excel in consulting and strategy, helping businesses and organizations improve their operations.

They make excellent teachers and educators, able to inspire and guide students in various subjects.

Destiny Number 5 individuals love to travel and explore new places, making them a great fit for careers in the travel and hospitality industry.

• Often compatible with : Destiny number 1,3,7,9 individuals.

• DESTINY NUMBER 6 •

•Special Qualities:

Destiny Number 6 individuals are responsible and reliable, taking their commitments seriously.

They value family and home life, creating a warm and nurturing environment.

Destiny Number 6 individuals have a strong desire to care for and support others.

They are loyal and dedicated to their loved ones and causes they believe in.

Destiny Number 6 individuals are skilled problem-solvers, able to find practical solutions.

They possess creative talents, often expressed through art, music, or other forms of self-expression.

•Career Paths:

Destiny Number 6 individuals make excellent nurses, doctors, and healthcare administrators.

They are caring and supportive teachers, inspiring students and fostering growth.

Destiny Number 6 individuals excel in social work, counseling, and therapy.

They express their creativity through art, music, graphic design, and other artistic pursuits.

Destiny Number 6 individuals love food and nutrition, making them excellent chefs and nutritionists.

They create warm and welcoming spaces, reflecting their love for home and family.

Destiny Number 6 individuals are drawn to careers in non-profit organizations and community service.

• often compatible with:Destiny number 2,4,8,9 individuals.

•DESTINY NUMBER 7•

•Special Qualities:

Destiny Number 7 individuals are analytical and logical, with a talent for problem-solving.

They are independent and self-sufficient, valuing freedom and autonomy.

Destiny Number 7 individuals are drawn to spirituality and philosophical pursuits.

They are curious and love to learn, with a thirst for knowledge and wisdom.

Destiny Number 7 individuals strive for perfection and have high standards.

They are introspective and reflective, with a strong connection to their inner world.

•Career Paths:

Destiny Number 7 individuals excel in scientific research, analysis, and experimentation.

They are drawn to philosophical and theological pursuits, seeking truth and understanding.

Destiny Number 7 individuals make excellent analysts, strategists, and consultants.

They are skilled writers and journalists, communicating complex ideas with clarity.

Destiny Number 7 individuals are inspiring teachers and professors, sharing their knowledge and wisdom.

They excel in software development, programming, and coding.

Destiny Number 7 individuals are skilled investigators and detectives, solving mysteries and uncovering truth.

•Often compatible with: Destiny number 1,3,5 individuals .

• DESTINY NUMBER 8•

•Special Qualities:

Destiny Number 8 individuals are natural leaders, with a strong desire to manage and direct.

They are highly ambitious and driven to succeed.

Destiny Number 8 individuals exude confidence and charisma.

They are skilled strategists, able to plan and execute plans effectively.

Destiny Number 8 individuals have a natural talent for managing finances and resources.

They command respect and authority, with a strong presence.

•Career Paths:

Destiny Number 8 individuals are well-suited for top leadership positions.

They excel in starting and running their own businesses.

Destiny Number 8 individuals are effective managers and directors.

They make excellent financial advisors, accountants, and investors.

Destiny Number 8 individuals are drawn to careers in law and justice.

They are natural politicians and government leaders.

Destiny Number 8 individuals excel in real estate development and management.

• Often compatible with:Destiny number 1,2,4,6 individuals.

• DESTINY NUMBER 9 •

•Special Qualities:

Destiny Number 9 individuals are compassionate and caring, with a strong desire to help others.

They are innovative and forward-thinking, with a vision for a better world.

Destiny Number 9 individuals are highly creative and expressive.

They are empathetic and understanding, with a strong connection to others.

Destiny Number 9 individuals possess wisdom and intuition, often gained through life experiences.

They have a broad perspective and understanding of global issues.

•Career Paths:

Destiny Number 9 individuals excel in careers helping others, such as non-profit work, social services, and charity organizations.

They are drawn to creative fields like art, music, writing, and design.

Destiny Number 9 individuals make excellent leaders, inspiring and motivating others towards a shared vision.

They are passionate about sharing knowledge and guiding others.

Destiny Number 9 individuals are often drawn to careers in sustainability, conservation, and environmental protection.

They may pursue careers in spirituality, counseling, or religious leadership.

• Often compatible with: Destiny number 1,2,4,6,7 individuals.

• MASTER DESTINY NUMBER 11•

•Special Qualities:

Master Number 11 individuals have a strong spiritual connection and intuition.

They are innovative and forward-thinking, with a vision for a better world.

Master Number 11 individuals are highly creative and expressive.

They are empathetic and understanding, with a strong connection to others.

They have the ability to illuminate the path for others and guide them towards their purpose.

Master Number 11 individuals operate at a higher level of consciousness, understanding the mysteries of the universe.

•Career Paths:

Master Number 11 individuals make excellent spiritual leaders, guides, and mentors.

They are drawn to creative fields like art, music, writing, and design, creating innovative and visionary works.

Master Number 11 individuals are natural healers, using their intuition and spiritual connection to help others.

They excel in careers that require innovative thinking and problem-solving.

Master Number 11 individuals are passionate about sharing their knowledge and guiding others towards their purpose.

They are drawn to careers helping others, such as non-profit work, social services, and charity organizations.

• Often compatible with: Master Destiny no. 22 and 33 , Destiny number 7, 9 .

• MASTER DESTINY NUMBER 22 •

•Special Qualities:

Master Number 22 individuals have the ability to turn their visions into reality.

They are natural leaders, with a strong sense of purpose and direction.

Master Number 22 individuals combine creativity with practicality to create innovative solutions.

They have the ability to manifest their desires into reality.

Master Number 22 individuals operate at a higher level of consciousness, understanding the mysteries of the universe.

They possess excellent diplomatic skills, able to balance different perspectives and interests.

• Career Paths:

Master Number 22 individuals make excellent leaders in various fields, inspiring and guiding others towards a shared vision.

They excel in careers that require innovative design and practical problem-solving.

Master Number 22 individuals are natural entrepreneurs, turning their ideas into successful businesses and products.

They are drawn to careers in diplomacy, mediation, and conflict resolution.

Master Number 22 individuals are passionate about sharing their knowledge and guiding others towards their purpose.

They excel in creative fields like art, design, and music, creating innovative and practical works.

• Often compatible with : Master destiny Number 11 and 33, destiny number 4,6,8.

• MASTER DESTINY NUMBER 33 •

• Special Qualities:

Master Number 33 individuals have a strong desire to teach and guide others.

They are deeply compassionate and caring, with a strong sense of social responsibility.

Master Number 33 individuals are highly creative and innovative.

They possess excellent listening skills and empathy, understanding others on a deep level.

Master Number 33 individuals have a strong spiritual connection, understanding the mysteries of the universe.

They are natural leaders, inspiring and guiding others towards a shared vision.

• Career Paths:

Master Number 33 individuals make excellent teachers, guides, and mentors.

They are drawn to careers in social services, non-profit organizations, and charity work.

Master Number 33 individuals excel in creative fields like art, music, writing, and design.

They are natural counselors and therapists, helping others overcome challenges.

Master Number 33 individuals are drawn to careers in spirituality, guiding others towards enlightenment.

They excel in careers that require creativity, innovation, and leadership.

• Often compatible with: Master destiny number 11 ,22 , destiny number 6,9.

-----------------💫------------------

Thanks for reading ✨

- Piko 💫

[mostlysignssomeportents]

How to shatter the class solidarity of the ruling class

I'm touring my new, nationally bestselling novel The Bezzle! Catch me WEDNESDAY (Apr 11) at UCLA, then Chicago (Apr 17), Torino (Apr 21) Marin County (Apr 27), Winnipeg (May 2), Calgary (May 3), Vancouver (May 4), and beyond!

Audre Lorde counsels us that "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House," while MLK said "the law cannot make a man love me, but it can restrain him from lynching me." Somewhere between replacing the system and using the system lies a pragmatic – if easily derailed – course.

Lorde is telling us that a rotten system can't be redeemed by using its own chosen reform mechanisms. King's telling us that unless we live, we can't fight – so anything within the system that makes it easier for your comrades to fight on can hasten the end of the system.

Take the problems of journalism. One old model of journalism funding involved wealthy newspaper families profiting handsomely by selling local appliance store owners the right to reach the townspeople who wanted to read sports-scores. These families expressed their patrician love of their town by peeling off some of those profits to pay reporters to sit through municipal council meetings or even travel overseas and get shot at.

In retrospect, this wasn't ever going to be a stable arrangement. It relied on both the inconstant generosity of newspaper barons and the absence of a superior way to show washing-machine ads to people who might want to buy washing machines. Neither of these were good long-term bets. Not only were newspaper barons easily distracted from their sense of patrician duty (especially when their own power was called into question), but there were lots of better ways to connect buyers and sellers lurking in potentia.

All of this was grossly exacerbated by tech monopolies. Tech barons aren't smarter or more evil than newspaper barons, but they have better tools, and so now they take 51 cents out of every ad dollar and 30 cents out of ever subscriber dollar and they refuse to deliver the news to users who explicitly requested it, unless the news company pays them a bribe to "boost" their posts:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/04/saving-news-big-tech

The news is important, and people sign up to make, digest, and discuss the news for many non-economic reasons, which means that the news continues to struggle along, despite all the economic impediments and the vulture capitalists and tech monopolists who fight one another for which one will get to take the biggest bite out of the press. We've got outstanding nonprofit news outlets like Propublica, journalist-owned outlets like 404 Media, and crowdfunded reporters like Molly White (and winner-take-all outlets like the New York Times).

But as Hamilton Nolan points out, "that pot of money…is only large enough to produce a small fraction of the journalism that was being produced in past generations":

https://www.hamiltonnolan.com/p/what-will-replace-advertising-revenue

For Nolan, "public funding of journalism is the only way to fix this…If we accept that journalism is not just a business or a form of entertainment but a public good, then funding it with public money makes perfect sense":

https://www.hamiltonnolan.com/p/public-funding-of-journalism-is-the

Having grown up in Canada – under the CBC – and then lived for a quarter of my life in the UK – under the BBC – I am very enthusiastic about Nolan's solution. There are obvious problems with publicly funded journalism, like the politicization of news coverage:

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2023/jan/24/panel-approving-richard-sharp-as-bbc-chair-included-tory-party-donor

And the transformation of the funding into a cheap political football:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/poilievre-defund-cbc-change-law-1.6810434

But the worst version of those problems is still better than the best version of the private-equity-funded model of news production.

But Nolan notes the emergence of a new form of hedge fund news, one that is awfully promising, and also terribly fraught: Hunterbrook Media, an investigative news outlet owned by short-sellers who pay journalists to research and publish damning reports on companies they hold a short position on:

https://hntrbrk.com/

For those of you who are blissfully distant from the machinations of the financial markets, "short selling" is a wager that a company's stock price will go down. A gambler who takes a short position on a company's stock can make a lot of money if the company stumbles or fails altogether (but if the company does well, the short can suffer literally unlimited losses).

Shorts have historically paid analysts to dig into companies and uncover the sins hidden on their balance-sheets, but as Matt Levine points out, journalists work for a fraction of the price of analysts and are at least as good at uncovering dirt as MBAs are:

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-04-02/a-hedge-fund-that-s-also-a-newspaper

What's more, shorts who discover dirt on a company still need to convince journalists to publicize their findings and trigger the sell-off that makes their short position pay off. Shorts who own a muckraking journalistic operation can skip this step: they are the journalists.

There's a way in which this is sheer genius. Well-funded shorts who don't care about the news per se can still be motivated into funding freely available, high-quality investigative journalism about corporate malfeasance (notoriously, one of the least attractive forms of journalism for advertisers). They can pay journalists top dollar – even bid against each other for the most talented journalists – and supply them with all the tools they need to ply their trade. A short won't ever try the kind of bullshit the owners of Vice pulled, paying themselves millions while their journalists lose access to Lexisnexis or the PACER database:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/02/24/anti-posse/#when-you-absolutely-positively-dont-give-a-solitary-single-fuck

The shorts whose journalists are best equipped stand to make the most money. What's not to like?

Well, the issue here is whether the ruling class's sense of solidarity is stronger than its greed. The wealthy have historically oscillated between real solidarity (think of the ultrawealthy lobbying to support bipartisan votes for tax cuts and bailouts) and "war of all against all" (as when wealthy colonizers dragged their countries into WWI after the supply of countries to steal ran out).

After all, the reason companies engage in the scams that shorts reveal is that they are profitable. "Behind every great fortune is a great crime," and that's just great. You don't win the game when you get into heaven, you win it when you get into the Forbes Rich List.

Take monopolies: investors like the upside of backing an upstart company that gobbles up some staid industry's margins – Amazon vs publishing, say, or Uber vs taxis. But while there's a lot of upside in that move, there's also a lot of risk: most companies that set out to "disrupt" an industry sink, taking their investors' capital down with them.

Contrast that with monopolies: backing a company that merges with its rivals and buys every small company that might someday grow large is a sure thing. Shriven of "wasteful competition," a company can lower quality, raise prices, capture its regulators, screw its workers and suppliers and laugh all the way to Davos. A big enough company can ignore the complaints of those workers, customers and regulators. They're not just too big to fail. They're not just too big to jail. They're too big to care:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/04/teach-me-how-to-shruggie/#kagi

Would-be monopolists are stuck in a high-stakes Prisoner's Dilemma. If they cooperate, they can screw over everyone else and get unimaginably rich. But if one party defects, they can raid the monopolist's margins, short its stock, and snitch to its regulators.

It's true that there's a clear incentive for hedge-fund managers to fund investigative journalism into other hedge-fund managers' portfolio companies. But it would be even more profitable for both of those hedgies to join forces and collude to screw the rest of us over. So long as they mistrust each other, we might see some benefit from that adversarial relationship. But the point of the 0.1% is that there aren't very many of them. The Aspen Institute can rent a hall that will hold an appreciable fraction of that crowd. They buy their private jets and bespoke suits and powdered rhino horn from the same exclusive sellers. Their kids go to the same elite schools. They know each other, and they have every opportunity to get drunk together at a charity ball or a society wedding and cook up a plan to join forces.

This is the problem at the core of "mechanism design" grounded in "rational self-interest." If you try to create a system where people do the right thing because they're selfish assholes, you normalize being a selfish asshole. Eventually, the selfish assholes form a cozy little League of Selfish Assholes and turn on the rest of us.

Appeals to morality don't work on unethical people, but appeals to immorality crowds out ethics. Take the ancient split between "free software" (software that is designed to maximize the freedom of the people who use it) and "open source software" (identical to free software, but promoted as a better way to make robust code through transparency and peer review).

Over the years, open source – an appeal to your own selfish need for better code – triumphed over free software, and its appeal to the ethics of a world of "software freedom." But it turns out that while the difference between "open" and "free" was once mere semantics, it's fully possible to decouple the two. Today, we have lots of "open source": you can see the code that Google, Microsoft, Apple and Facebook uses, and even contribute your labor to it for free. But you can't actually decide how the software you write works, because it all takes a loop through Google, Microsoft, Apple or Facebook's servers, and only those trillion-dollar tech monopolists have the software freedom to determine how those servers work:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/04/which-side-are-you-on/#tivoization-and-beyond

That's ruling class solidarity. The Big Tech firms have hidden a myriad of sins beneath their bafflegab and balance-sheets. These (as yet) undiscovered scams constitute a "bezzle," which JK Galbraith defined as "the magic interval when a confidence trickster knows he has the money he has appropriated but the victim does not yet understand that he has lost it."

The purpose of Hunterbrook is to discover and destroy bezzles, hastening the moment of realization that the wealth we all feel in a world of seemingly orderly technology is really an illusion. Hunterbrook certainly has its pick of bezzles to choose from, because we are living in a Golden Age of the Bezzle.

Which is why I titled my new novel The Bezzle. It's a tale of high-tech finance scams, starring my two-fisted forensic accountant Marty Hench, and in this volume, Hench is called upon to unwind a predatory prison-tech scam that victimizes the most vulnerable people in America – our army of prisoners – and their families:

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250865878/thebezzle

The scheme I fictionalize in The Bezzle is very real. Prison-tech monopolists like Securus and Viapath bribe prison officials to abolish calls, in-person visits, mail and parcels, then they supply prisoners with "free" tablets where they pay hugely inflated rates to receive mail, speak to their families, and access ebooks, distance education and other electronic media:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/02/captive-customers/#guillotine-watch

But a group of activists have cornered these high-tech predators, run them to ground and driven them to the brink of extinction, and they've done it using "the master's tools" – with appeals to regulators and the finance sector itself.

Writing for The Appeal, Dana Floberg and Morgan Duckett describe the campaign they waged with Worth Rises to bankrupt the prison-tech sector:

https://theappeal.org/securus-bankruptcy-prison-telecom-industry/

Here's the headline figure: Securus is $1.8 billion in debt, and it has eight months to find a financier or it will go bust. What's more, all the creditors it might reasonably approach have rejected its overtures, and its bonds have been downrated to junk status. It's a dead duck.

Even better is how this happened. Securus's debt problems started with its acquisition, a leveraged buyout by Platinum Equity, who borrowed heavily against the firm and then looted it with bogus "management fees" that meant that the debt continued to grow, despite Securus's $700m in annual revenue from America's prisoners. Platinum was just the last in a long line of PE companies that loaded up Securus with debt and merged it with its competitors, who were also mortgaged to make profits for other private equity funds.

For years, Securus and Platinum were able to service their debt and roll it over when it came due. But after Worth Rises got NYC to pass a law making jail calls free, creditors started to back away from Securus. It's one thing for Securus to charge $18 for a local call from a prison when it's splitting the money with the city jail system. But when that $18 needs to be paid by the city, they're going to demand much lower prices. To make things worse for Securus, prison reformers got similar laws passed in San Francisco and in Connecticut.

Securus tried to outrun its problems by gobbling up one of its major rivals, Icsolutions, but Worth Rises and its coalition convinced regulators at the FCC to block the merger. Securus abandoned the deal:

https://worthrises.org/blogpost/securusmerger

Then, Worth Rises targeted Platinum Equity, going after the pension funds and other investors whose capital Platinum used to keep Securus going. The massive negative press campaign led to eight-figure disinvestments:

https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2019-09-05/la-fi-tom-gores-securus-prison-phone-mass-incarceration

Now, Securus's debt became "distressed," trading at $0.47 on the dollar. A brief, covid-fueled reprieve gave Securus a temporary lifeline, as prisoners' families were barred from in-person visits and had to pay Securus's rates to talk to their incarcerated loved ones. But after lockdown, Securus's troubles picked up right where they left off.

They targeted Platinum's founder, Tom Gores, who papered over his bloody fortune by styling himself as a philanthropist and sports-team owner. After a campaign by Worth Rises and Color of Change, Gores was kicked off the Los Angeles County Museum of Art board. When Gores tried to flip Securus to a SPAC – the same scam Trump pulled with Truth Social – the negative publicity about Securus's unsound morals and financials killed the deal:

https://twitter.com/WorthRises/status/1578034977828384769

Meanwhile, more states and cities are making prisoners' communications free, further worsening Securus's finances:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/02/14/minnesota-nice/#shitty-technology-adoption-curve

Congress passed the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act, giving the FCC the power to regulate the price of federal prisoners' communications. Securus's debt prices tumbled further:

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/117/s1541

Securus's debts were coming due: it owes $1.3b in 2024, and hundreds of millions more in 2025. Platinum has promised a $400m cash infusion, but that didn't sway S&P Global, a bond-rating agency that re-rated Securus's bonds as "CCC" (compare with "AAA"). Moody's concurred. Now, Securus is stuck selling junk-bonds:

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/117/s1541

The company's creditors have given Securus an eight-month runway to find a new lender before they force it into bankruptcy. The company's debt is trading at $0.08 on the dollar.

Securus's major competitor is Viapath (prison tech is a duopoly). Viapath is also debt-burdened and desperate, thanks to a parallel campaign by Worth Rises, and has tried all of Securus's tricks, and failed:

https://pestakeholder.org/news/american-securities-fails-to-sell-prison-telecom-company-viapath/

Viapath's debts are due next year, and if Securus tanks, no one in their right mind will give Viapath a dime. They're the walking dead.

Worth Rise's brilliant guerrilla warfare against prison-tech and its private equity backers are a master class in using the master's tools to dismantle the master's house. The finance sector isn't a friend of justice or working people, but sometimes it can be used tactically against financialization itself. To paraphrase MLK, "finance can't make a corporation love you, but it can stop a corporation from destroying you."

Yes, the ruling class finds solidarity at the most unexpected moments, and yes, it's easy for appeals to greed to institutionalize greediness. But whether it's funding unbezzling journalism through short selling, or freeing prisons by brandishing their cooked balance-sheets in the faces of bond-rating agencies, there's a lot of good we can do on the way to dismantling the system.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/08/money-talks/#bullshit-walks

Image: KMJ (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Boerse_01_KMJ.jpg

CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

[letmeintumb1r]

Here's a free videogame idea:

PC building simulator but Warhammer 40k

You play as a young Mechanicus adept under the supervision of Archmagos

Gameplay: Basically the same as "PC building simulator" plus a little bit of"House Flipper". Every now and then you get orders to fix various tech: from something simple like lasgun and vox to something biomechanical like cogitators and servitors.

Just like every good techpriest your duty stats and ends with prayers: at the beginning to calm the Machine Spirit and at the end to awaken it. Next you disassemble the machine and look for a defect or error. Fix it with spare parts or order them from warehouse. Pray, run the test, send back, profit!

Location: You get an old abandoned hangar and two or three broken servitors at your disposal.

Your first mission is to fix one of the servitors and clean up the mess accumulated over years of non-use.

Later when you got some cash and experience you can start customising you workplace OR EVEN YOURSELF! You are Mechanicus after all.

[sizzlingsandwichperfection-blog]

Hi. I've started writing a semi-weekly TB Newsletter, if you're interested in that kind of thing. Here's the second letter--about public-private partnerships, leprosy, and my forthcoming big announcement about expanding access to tuberculosis care. You'll hear more about that on Thursday. Anyway, here's the newsletter. You can sign up here.

---

In advance of the Big Announcement this Thursday, I made a vlogbrothers video today on how we end TB–with the comprehensive care plan often known as S-T-P, which is short for “Search, Treat, and Prevent.” But one thing I didn’t discuss in that video is the downstream benefits of comprehensive TB care.

Once you’ve hired community health workers to screen for TB, it becomes much easier to screen for other illnesses like diabetes, high blood pressure, and non-TB lung issues (especially lung cancer). TB is notoriously a disease of vicious cycles–a disease of malnutrition that makes malnutrition worse, a disease of poverty that makes poverty worse, and so on–but addressing TB can be a story of virtuous cycles: TB survivors become TB advocates, as I’ve seen with my friend Henry in Sierra Leone. More effective TB treatment leads to less stigmatization of the disease, as communities come to see the disease as curable and survivable rather than terrifying and deadly. And better access to TB care leads to a stronger overall healthcare system, because more community health workers are better connected to more primary healthcare clinics, which allows communities to better address all kinds of health problems.

—

Mycobacterium tuberculosis is not the only bacteria of its family that causes a lot of human suffering; there is a closely related species called mycobacterium leprae that causes the disease known as Hansen's Disease, or more commonly leprosy. There are still around 200,000 cases of leprosy diagnosed each year around the world, and while the disease is curable, it also remains–especially if not caught and treated early–a significant driver of suffering and disability in our world. 

There are many connections between TB and leprosy: Not only are the bacteria that cause these illnesses very similar, but patients have often expressed similarities in experience. TB patients who were encouraged or forced to live in sanitariums often compared themselves to lepers. One disheartening parallel between the diseases is that in both cases, those living with these illnesses are often abandoned by their families and must make new social connections within the new community of “leper” or “consumptive.” Also, both Hansen’s Disease and TB continue to exist largely because of systemic failures rather than due to a lack of knowledge or technology.

—

I really recommend Dr. Salmaan Keshavjee’s TED talk about how we ended TB in the U.S., and how we can end it using the same strategy around the world.

—

Last link from me today: I’ve been thinking a lot about the complex intersection between public and private investment (for reasons that will be clear on Thursday!) and I keep coming back to one infographic in an excellent paper (https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0256883) about the public money that was poured into the creation of the GeneXpert Machine, which can quickly and accurately test for TB. The GeneXpert machine has created a lot of profit for Danaher’s shareholders, and it has also created some societal benefit, but it could create a lot more societal benefit if it created less profit for Danaher’s shareholders. This tension seems to me one of the defining features of 21st century life. Anyway, here is the infographic:

That’s the money–over $250,000,000 of it–that came from taxpayers (mostly in the U.S. and Europe) to fund the creation of the GeneXpert Machine. And yet, this tech largely funded by the public is controlled entirely by private enterprise. I’m troubled by that model of value allocation, even if I still believe that private money and private enterprise have important roles to play in fueling innovation. But taking a quarter billion dollars of public money and then claiming total ownership over a technology, and using that ownership to deny the technology to the world’s poorest people, seems like a deeply flawed system of resource distribution to me.

I’ll see you on Thursday. I’m nervous and excited.

DFTBA,

John

[fairuzfan]

According to social media posts, the non-profit’s funds were used to purchase military equipment. “Your support allowed us to get my son and his elite sniper unit the most advanced scopes needed in order to have an advantage over Hamas when they go into Gaza,” Daniel’s mother Melissa wrote in a note shared by a family friend on Facebook on October 27, 2023.

“There is advance [sic], high tech equipment that only the United States Army, and only the Navy SEALs have. We can get this equipment for the snipers,” she said, also sharing a voice note by Daniel himself.