Richard Stallman's Political Notes' Journal

Raw milk battle

Man Americans are jumping on a bandwagon for raw milk based on choosing a political side

— rather than based on medical facts.

Some of the arguments are evidently irrational. For instance, one proponent argues that more dangers is virtuous because that requires producers to be more careful: if raw milk increases the danger caused by "cutting corners".that will make everyone more careful.

Experience says, however, that increasing the danger that can result from any sort of slip-up will mean more people harmed by slip-ups. Safety engineering is based on recognizing that everyone makes mistakes, so we should design a system in which mistakes don't cause bad consequences.

Historic military case

A US army officer was convicted of sexual harassment after pressuring a junior officer under his command to have sex with him.

I gather that this sort of thing happens often but is rarely punished. So this is an improvement. But this was worse than most cases of sexual harassment, so the sentence he received seems too weak to me.

EPA air quality

*White US neighborhoods have more EPA air quality monitors, study finds.*

This despite the fact that white US neighborhoods tend on the average to have more pollution than black neighborhoods — so the EPA is not doing that part of its job fairly.

This systematic racial unfairness is one of many kinds, which add up to what is called structural racism.

I have a hunch that the system involved, in this particular case, is a simpler system than in many other cases. Perhaps studying how this system functions, and how it produces unfair results, could shed like on how structural racism more generally, and on how to prevent it.

Kash Patel

*Ex-FBI officials worry that Kash Patel as director may wield unlimited power.*

That could include *opening investigations unilaterally*.

Some past FBI directors have done such things, and their power threatened freedom in the US. The fascist might relish that.

SafeRent discrimination

A woman who was rejected for renting an apartment on the strength of some computation's result sued for racial discrimination.

People have proposed laws to prohibit using the output of an program to evaluate individuals and decide how to treat them. Those laws were aimed at decisions made by government bodies, meaning that the government would be the user of that program.

This example shows that judging people to make advice for private entities to judge people by can be likewise devastating.

If we wanted to address this problem with a law, what might that law require? Perhaps it should require the advice-giver to show everyone concerned what recorded facts the evaluation is based on.

The article assumes that when SafeRent describes the software a "AI", that has some substantial meaning. We have no reason to think it does. That could be nothing more than hype for SafeRent's marketing. Or it could be an excuse for refusing to tell a court how the score is calculated.

Meta donation to Trump

Facebook donated a million dollars to the corrupter's inauguration.

I supposs this is not a crime, but it is in effect a bribe.

Universal Healthcare

*Debunking Every Myth You Hear Against Universal [Medical]care.*

Stand up to Chevron

*President Biden: stand up to Chevron and pardon Steven Donziger.*

Amazon Labor Union

Amazon warehouse in Staten Island workers are on strike.

If Americans had elected Kamala Harris, these workers would have a good chance of making Amazon give them better wages and working conditions. But Bezos just had Amazon pay a million dollars to the corrupter's inaugural ceremony, and we must expect him to do what he was paid to do.

Consumer protectionism

* For all its supposed "populism", the new administration will probably target offices that protect consumers* and workers.

The CEO suck-ups to Trump

When a bully is powerful enough, rich people (and those who want to be rich) all fawn on per, hoping perse will pave their way to more riches. That is what the executives of big companies are doing now for the wrecker.

Amazon donates to Trump

Amazon has donated a million dollars to the wrecker's inauguration fund, as a token of loyal greed.

Shell lawsuit

Various big oil companies are suing Greenpeace in an attempt to wipe it out

We should not have to depend on organizations such as Greenpeace to protect civilization from environmental disaster (including global heating and more). This is governments' mission.

Syrian rebel offensive

Syrians backed by Turkey are having border clashes with Rojava,

Which is distracting Rojava from keeping PISSI

under control.

How to tax billionaires

Thomas Piketty refutes the claims that governments cannot tax billionaires, offering methods to overcome supposed obstacles.

Democrats must dump neoliberal economics

Joseph Stiglitz: *The message to Democrats is clear: you must dump neoliberal economics [and become progressive].*

</li>

BBC complained to Apple over fake news

*BBC says it has complained to Apple over fake news [output from a bullshit generator] attributed to [BBC].*

</li>

Abortion pills mailed into Texas from New York doctor

Texas is suing a New York doctor for mailing abortion pills to a woman in Texas. Texas has passed a law prohibiting mailing abortion pills into the state; meanwhile, New York State has passed a law meant to protect against any such lawsuits from Texas.

I've read that there are networks of women who send each other these pills. I have a feeling that women in Texas can best keep their helpers safe by arranging for anonymous mailing of these pills.

</li>

Musk-rat's conflicts of interests

*The musk-rat's six major conflicts of interest with the federal government.*

</li>

Polio vaccine approval

One of RFK Jr's close associates filed to revoke approval of polio vaccine. Loss of the polio vaccine would produce an epidemic after a few years.

I wonder how billionaires' families would respond to this. Get vaccinated in other countries, while most Americans have to go without?

</li>

Allowing Syria to recover

To enable Syria to recover, the US should cancel sanctions on Syria. Those sanctions were meant to defeat Assad. Now that Assad's enemies have defeated him, the sanctions don't make sense any more.

I can imagine the US negotiating an agreement with the Syrian rebels and Rojava, using the dropping of the sanctions as an incentive for them to come to a peaceful accommodation.

</li>

Mistake to let companies analyze your genetic data

It is a terrible mistake to let a company analyze your genetic data. If that company goes bankrupt, as 23 And Me has done, it will be forced to see that data to people who will use it against you.

</li>

Medical records systems

How Epic medical records systems help hospitals cheat medical insurance companies by finding opportunities to exaggerate what treatments were done, so as to charge more.

This requires doctors to spend more time entering additional data that are useful for such "upcoding". Here is more information.

Epic also makes the nonfree Javascript code and apps that hospitals pressure patients to use to access these servers. If I used them, Epic would control the computing on my computer. I refuse to give the control of the computing on my computer to Epic (or anyone else), so I refuse to use those web sites and apps.

Maybe, as a result of my noncooperation, EPIC misses some opportunities for "upcoding".

</li>

Whole Foods workers file to unionize

Workers at a Whole Foods store have filed to unionize. The next step will be for the company to harass them to change their minds before the actual vote.

</li>

Priority of environmental protection

Australia's Labor Party said it was going to prioritize environmental protection — but dropped the proposed law at the last minute.

This decision, shocking to Labor supporters, strikes me as entirely consistent with the policy of allowing major expansion of fossil fuel extraction. After all, if the new federal Environmental Protection Agency were going to be effective, it would need to brake that expansion.

Here's more about the complex political dispute.

If "not giving the Greens a victory" is enough to motivate Labor to leave the environment in danger, I have a feeling its priorities are weak.

</li>

Ecology of places humans abandoned

Studying the ecology of places that humans have abandoned.

Sometimes human presence enables many species to make a complex ecosystem, where otherwise a suffocating monoculture of one dominant species could take over and exclude all else.

</li>

Iran's threat to finish building nuclear weapons

Iran has threatened to finish building nuclear weapons if the West resumes trade sanctions against Iran.

It looks like the West and Iran agree that the better choice is no sanctions and no Iranian nuclear weapons. Obama negotiated an agreement to bring that about, and the wrecker broke it. Biden tried to negotiate resumption, but this failed. I never found out why it failed.

</li>

Urgent: Protect Social Security and Medicare from the wrecker

US citizens: call on Congress to protect Social Security and Medicare from the cuts that the wrecker, the musk-ox, and that wiseacre of Oz want to make.

If you phone, please spread the word! Main Switchboard: +1-202-224-3121

</li>

Urgent: Extend the premium tax credits

US citizens: phone your congresscritter and senators urging them to extend the premium tax credits in the current session of Congress.

If you phone, please spread the word! Main Switchboard: +1-202-224-3121

</li>