QuoteGetting bigger will attract the same kind of trolls it always has

Trolls come and go but as long as I'm here every troll teaches me a little bit about how to deal with the next one.  Trolls don't evolve to a higher life form.  I do.

The ability to modify this place gives me ideas.  It would be nice for mods to have a button that will collapse a comment into a button that has to be pressed to see the comment.  The avatar is changed but is changed to show a troll.  Then a troll comment can be seen but will be optional because of the button.  A reader can read a thread with or without troll distraction.

Re used to change the avatars of problem children as a warning before sending them to the cooler in the original Diner.   We can do stuff way more fancy than that now.  I can make a troll corner thread, and that can be the only one they can use while they are in the cooler.  A dunce cap room.  And we can set up something where votes of other members can determine their fate while they are in the cooler on the top of that thread.

I will let the obstacle become the way.

This is some good shit.

Quote from: K-Dog on Jan 18, 2024, 09:36 AMIf we get to 44K members I would quit my part time job and spend my time improving the Doomstead experience.

Your day job is safe.  We won't be reaching 44K members in what is left of our lifetimes.

RE

I have a dream.  Click the globe, and check out the new guest article I posted.  It concerns exponential growth so even 44M is possible.

Quote from: K-Dog on Jan 18, 2024, 10:37 PMI have a dream.  Click the globe, and check out the new guest article I posted.  It concerns exponential growth so even 44M is possible.

Go buy a lotto ticket.  The chances of winning are better,

RE

The House of Representatives passed legislation last month giving TikTok two choices: find a buyer for the immensely popular video app, or face a nationwide ban in the U.S.

The Solution to this is easy.  Move the headquarters to Seattle.  Sell me TikTok for $1 and give me a corner office.  Make sure the cafeteria has good food, because I will show up once a week.

Then TikTok will have an American owner so what would the NSA, the CIA, the FBI, Homeland Security, and the Secret Service have left to complain about?

Not a damn thing I think.

The House Bill gives ByteDance, the owner six months to find a buyer for TikTok. If it does not sell it will become illegal for app stores and web-hosting companies to offer TikTok, because it is under the control of a "foreign adversary."

All this is strange since TikTok has let American spooks wire up the surveillance and fuckification tools to TikTok servers, so what is the problem this time?  It turns out ISRAEL does not want another foreign power controlling America and pro-Israel lobbying group Aipac buys American votes on a mass scale.  It is like the Highlander thing.  There can be only one.



This From the Middle East Eye:

QuoteAfter a bill in the US Congress was overwhelmingly passed to ban the social media app TikTok, social media users expressed outrage online and linked the move to pro-Israel groups trying to curb the surge of pro-Palestinian content on the platform.

The bill, which passed in the House by a 352-65 vote, requires that TikTok be sold to an American company or face a ban in the US.

To become law, it still needs to be passed by the Senate, which the Biden administration has been pushing to happen quickly.

The legislation was the culmination of a year-long effort and has been largely attributed to lawmakers with hawkish views on China.

TikTok was created by ByteDance, a company founded by Chinese entrepreneurs. While the app is owned by TikTok LLC, a company headquartered in the US, TikTok's ownership falls under ByteDance.

The Source

If news of my offer gets back to TikTok.    The Diner could be going through some changes.

RE and I could score a trip to China!

&

To all the people waiting for the next election cycle so they can vote, and make a difference.  I dedicate this song to you.


You are going to put the same war criminals in power again.

Quote from: K-Dog on Apr 06, 2024, 09:51 PMRE and I could score a trip to China!

I will contribute my 50 cents for 1/2 ownership.

Seriously, how hard could it be for the Chinese to find an Amerikan buyer?   There's a zillion ways to structure the deal so profits flow back to China.  They could split off the Amerikan division as a separate company and just sell that part while retaining control over the international version.  Separate editorial control and content.

The problem is, anyone who buys it will still be under pressure from the 3 letter agencies to censor any pro-Palestinian content.  If you think we have problems now with the MIB, it would be orders of magnitude worse with TikTok.  The problem isn't who owns it, it's the political spin of the platform and the level of popularity and number of users that draws the wrath of TPTB.  Chinese ownership is just the excuse to force a change in editorial policy.

Of course, I wouldn't mind being a tech Billionaire.   I'd get a high tech robotic leg from the Chinese.  Maybe have my other leg cut off also so I could jump really high and run real fast like the $6 Million Dollar Man!       


RE

I don't want to overdo it.  $1000 a week for life will do fine.  As long as I have the office, can visit the cafeteria, and set my own hours.  Still having both my legs, a high end gym membership would also be nice.  On your end you should negotiate for a bionic leg for sure.