The first thing I did when I was issued a laptop for a job was check for monitoring software of any type. The second thing I did was become extremely suspicious when I couldn’t find any. I suppose the rule is “most likely” or “more often than not” while also being “always assume”.

Authoritative knee jerk with a bit of ignorance thrown in.

Well, at least we know you’re not vegan.

I got a NEW credit card faster than my bank was able to reissue and send me a replacement debit/credit. By like half the time.

I wasn’t aware biometrics were more secure. My info is clearly out of date! Though I was also thinking of the forced unlocking of phones by, er…other people.

Police. I’m talking about the popo.

Good old Tasker should be able to handle the bulk of automating things like an auto-shutdown. Might still need to insert custom code BUT they have a community. A couple searches and verification that you’re not being a dumbass and downloading something malicious and wham bam easy - or manually type it out. I dunno. Don’t be big dumb.

Tasker ain’t obsolete yet, dammit!

Remember, folks! NONE OF THIS MATTERS IF YOU GIVE UP YOUR CREDENTIALS JUST CAUSE SOMEONE CALLED AND SAID GRANDMA WAS INJURED IN A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT.

To further protect yourself, you can also:

1. Formally request that large transactions through your bank be done with you present, in person. Ask if you can set a limit and only if done in person also temporarily lift that limit.

2. Obtain a credit card. Either you fight to get your money back when fraud hits, or they fight to get their money back. You can guess which team is better staffed. I was procrastinating for ages getting one myself. Then another fraudulent transaction hit. Despite having a fair amount of knowledge in this realm and doing a solid amount of research independently AND reporting it immediately, it still took days to get money actually placed back into my account. AND THEN IT HAPPENED AGAIN with a brand new card within 30 days. Likely the shitty auto update service large organizations can subscribe to, or I got unlucky on a brute force attempt. Either way, a CC will save you this hassle.

3. Bitwarden.

4. Passwords only on your phone. No biometrics without a backup plan.

Rethink this stuff before you put yourself up as a reactionary

immediately reacts

Where companies with monopolies are found to gain that title by ousting competitors and brutal buyouts and tactics literally every time, Valve exists. Literally. They just exist. Big difference between a monopoly and the best.

Other companies also exist. In fact there are several launchers and two other digital distributors, and several websites, where one can purchase games. There are some things Steam is shit on. The still feels old interface as a broad example. Competitors could push in, like Epic. Instead, they manage to create the next step up from a gold-tainted dung pile, shit on their own launcher or store stability and performance, and create an experience so bad that Steam is able, through the fuckups of their rivals, maintain a market majority.

Exactly why “we” is important. People are struggling and it’s difficult to consider the world when your own life is falling apart.

Unfortunately I don’t have a true solution to this beyond the need for a real leader to step up. Well…there is another solution, though I’d rather not speak of it for fear of ending up on a list. It’s also not one I support. Still, I feel strongly that we can find our way.

At the very least I’m not just going to roll over.

I was taught a lesson when I was younger that you cannot compare your trauma to that of another. I also learned that it isn’t rage which defines progress, it is determination. Apathy, a loss of hope, quells the spirit and stunts progress. Those not on the Right are especially individualistic. We cater to the spirit of independence, while also celebrating love and community, though always as individuals to individuals. It’s not “I” or “Myself” that makes the change. The shift happens when we step up together and change sets in when there is a united, achievable goal.

In near every recent movement the Left has been a part of with the exception of Bernie, there has been nothing that was clearly defined and clearly achievable. Just a bunch of angry people loosely pointing fingers. FeelTheBern DID work and imagine how things may have been different not if Bernie had been elected, but if we with our strength of spirit continued down a united path. Bernie’s ENTIRE message was never about getting him elected, it was always about us coming together and being active as one.

I’m sad that so many people seem to have forgotten that.

I’d appreciate if people just like you would stop taking any solace and tolerating this bs. The ONLY reason this shit continues to happen is because too many people do nothing. Then when asked they get defensive and say, “What am I supposed to do?!” followed by “What are you doing?!” Like guys, you’re smart enough to recognize the perils of these industries, read journals and papers, and internalize the evidence, and you can’t fucking do a quick Google search on activism and even lightly contemplate entering yourself into local politics?

Come now.

There are literal bots on Reddit with less complexity able to measure the likelihood of a story being reliable and truthful, with facts and fact checkers. They’re not always right, they ARE useful though. Or were. Not sure about now, been over a year since I left.

When an individual does that, they are doing so with a clear choice that they made. In a war, men die and leave families behind, and because they chose to defend their country, they are used to defend the interests of those with long swords and heavy sticks. They die without a choice far too often because they were tricked into believing they defend their homes.

All too often they’re forced into conflict that has very little to do with that choice. If our military didn’t try so hard to coerce and trick younger people into joining and thus being forced into conflict, I would be a bit less resentful and hateful towards the practice. That, however, is not the case.

War is death. There is no glory. There is no pride. None of them are heroes by choice, and many never feel like heroes after their friends die by their side.

War is violence. A desire of man to take with force the independence of a people and exchange that for subservience under the guise of land, resources, need.

Young people are tricked to serve. Recruited to become servants, coerced through deceit to don colors and weapons. Made to repeat mistakes because smaller men want and are not freely given. To solely defend and defy the overreaching end of a tyrant’s sword is to fight for reason earned from treachery and desire.

Humanity is not defined by grief. We are defined by the selfless acts of love and kindness in the darkest hours. Make no mistake; monsters do exist, and the worst are never the ones in harm’s way.

My favorite little story was while working short-term at a company. Had some issues, did my normal troubleshooting steps and Google searches, identified what I felt the issue was and knew I wouldn’t have enough access to fix it. Reached out and got a response “Blah blah blaaah schedule blah blah Remote-In.”

Later on he sent me a message and remotes into my computer. I take control quick, open up notepad, and type out “Hi!”

To this day I swear that little show earned me more difficult fake phishing attempts. Which I mention because he specifically told me one day he had experience in the information security sector. Lo’ and behold!

@[email protected] got it mostly right from my research, though their backgrounds will still have that bar. If you use a black, or near black, background, especially one not at your native resolution, that gradient will be most noticeable. Using other backgrounds that do not have a black strip along the top you might still be able to see it if you squint.

For those of you curious: Change your background to a solid black from the background menu in settings, or grab something similar elsewhere. Then crank your brightness up. Chances are it’ll be there for you too if you’re not running a third party launcher.

I haven’t found a way to turn it off in native yet.

Alright… you’d be surprised how often a power button isn’t pressed, or tower/monitor is not plugged in. Sometimes the fix is the simplest possible solution.

Having worked in tech, though not as familiar with phones, I want to ask a question no one else has, which may be silly of me:

It’s not a background, is it?

After I unlocked the White Robe I used to go back into games and find people. Then I’d just chill with them chirping, giving subtle hints on where things were, and being patient while floating around levels. It remains one of my favorite games of all time.

Just saying, it may be wise to engage in acts of patience given the risk of the current climate. Hold him accountable after we get over the current hurdle. Like, keep it in your back pocket. We should hold advantages where we can and come together. That’s all. A sorta strategic focus to eliminate issues one at a time without dividing energy or people. Because I think the larger opinion is the same, we just differ on what to focus on first.

If you want Joe to win, I’d probably stop using that label for awhile. Make it easier to, y’know, do that thing.