I see Richard Wolff; I upvote.

Bernie Sanders, the Justice Democrats, the Working Families Party, and Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are a failed experiment.

We need an independent grassroots movement by and for the working class.

Check out Workers Strike Back.

For those interested:

We need to build an organized, unified movement of working people to systematically take on the rich who run society, and to undermine their ability to rule. Our goal must be to both fight for radical change in the present and to bring down the billionaires and their system. There is no other path to avoid total disaster for human civilization and the planet.

Working people need to be clear about who our enemies are. Our enemies are not other working-class or middle-class people, immigrants, the poor, Muslims, trans people, ordinary Republican or Democratic voters, nor independent voters or nonvoters. Our enemies are those who make millions or billions of dollars a year, own the politicians, own the land and resources, and who call the shots in this system. Our enemies are also those who justify and protect the interests of the rich.

The billionaires themselves are fully responsible for the disasters engulfing us — Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, the healthcare CEOs, the major shareholders on Wall Street. It is not some collective “we” or “human nature” which is responsible; it’s the rich who put their profits ahead of everything and everyone. We need to end the billionaire class and their system once and for all.^[1]

Sad, but true.

Not Just Bikes informed many about city planning.

By forcing your citizens to die for profit?

These endless wars will continue, since money has to be made, and corporations and oligarchs have a lot of sway when it comes to foreign policy.

The next war my country’s oligarchs and corporations are pushing for is with Iran and China; the duopoly is owned and funded by these corporations and oligarchs.

I am against conscripts.

We must always be highly critical of those with power, money, and influence; especially governments and politicians (and the oligarchs that control/sway them).

I have known about those videos being posted on twitter.

I shared some of them last year, it is great that people are escaping the echo cambers we created for ourselves!

“I was playing heroines, but in real life I wasn’t earning a living,” said Shibata, now 60. These days, she also works as a home organizer, helping people de-clutter. “Voice acting as a profession just doesn’t pay,” she said.

Even in a country where a culture of overwork permeates a wide range of businesses, the anime industry is notorious for the grueling hours that workers put in. Animators in their early 20s earn less than 2 million yen ($12,948) a year, according to industry data, compared with over 3 million yen for a person of a similar age living in Tokyo. That’s less than half of what US entry-level animators earn, websites like Glassdoor show. Creative workers also complain of late and uncertain payments.

Some, though, sense change is afoot. A working group for the United Nations Human Rights Council last year called out Japan’s anime industry for its poor treatment of workers, along with cases of sexual violence and harassment in the country’s entertainment business. In a May report, the group referred to “excessively long working hours” and low pay, as well as a disregard for creative workers’ intellectual property rights.

Acknowledging such worries, lawmakers passed a new law that took effect in November to boost protections for freelance workers. Late last month, regulatory officials at Japan’s Fair Trade Commission launched a study on labor practices within the anime industry and invited workers to submit complaints.

Once considered a geeky, so-called otaku obsession, anime is now considered mainstream. In 2020, when the pandemic brought Hollywood production to a halt, Demon Slayer: Mugen Train topped global box office sales at over $470 million. In Japan, around 400 anime titles are now produced for TV and theaters every year, attracting dedicated fans who go on to buy related merchandise. The genre’s popularity among global streaming audiences has also prompted a flurry of acquisitions. Sony, which bought anime streaming service Crunchyroll in 2021, became the largest shareholder of anime publisher Kadokawa Corp. in an alliance announced late last year. Movie producing and distributing company Toho Co. bought US-based anime distributor Gkids Inc. for an undisclosed amount to strengthen the Japanese firm’s US reach.

That later evolved into the current system in which studios work within budgets set by powerful committees of publishers, toymakers and businesses which finance the series and share royalties. Production companies outsource work to small anime studios and voice actors’ agencies, which in turn hire even smaller companies and freelancers. This helps companies work on multiple series at once and mitigate any potential losses. As a result, revenue is spread thinly, and it can take months for compensation to filter through to illustrators and voice actors.

Actors often wait six months or longer to get paid, according to Nobunari Neyoshi, who until last year ran a voice actor agency alongside his sound-production business for a decade. “Violations of subcontracting laws are rampant,” said 47-year-old Neyoshi, adding that sometimes actors don’t get paid at all. He closed his voice-acting business due to poor sales.

Workers are also often employed over the phone or via messaging apps without formal contracts, leaving it unclear how much, or even whether, they’ll get paid. “It’s common across the industry to be asked to start working on something even before any paperwork is done,” said Aina Sugisawa, a 24-year-old trainee at Tokyo-based studio TMS Entertainment Co., part of Sega Sammy Holdings Inc. and known for hit series like Detective Conan.

Unlike in Hollywood where a strike by screenwriters and performers brought movie and TV production to a halt in 2023, the majority of Japanese voice actors and illustrators don’t belong to labor unions. Numako, the former union official, says he’s always struggled to convince colleagues to join him.

The new law on freelancers forces companies to provide written contracts, including details on pay, to all workers. Businesses are now prohibited from demanding extra work without promising additional pay and are also required to pay workers within 60 days. The government is stepping up surveillance, and regulators are also inviting workers to blow the whistle on law-breaking activity.

One underlying problem, industry insiders say, has been the sheer number of people willing to endure poor conditions just to be involved in an art form they’ve loved since childhood. Breaking into the industry is still highly competitive; manga and anime illustrators regularly rank among the top dream professions of school children. Some blame themselves for their lack of financial success: there’s always a more senior job to aspire to. Key frame animators are responsible for drawing crucial images at the start and end of major scenes and earn more than those drawing sequences in between. With skills and experience, they can also move on to better-paid jobs including directors. But such senior roles are few. The field of voice acting can be even more competitive.

Shrinking demographics and technological innovation including AI are also seen bringing change — as well as an existential challenge. Japan Research Institute expects a labor shortage among anime illustrators, estimating their number to decline to roughly 5,600 by 2030 from around 6,200 in 2019. Production studios have already been turning to overseas labor, with Toei Animation sending 70% of its animation work to a branch in the Philippines, even though crucial processes remain in Japan. Many fear that AI will replace jobs, particularly at the entry level, turning away younger artists.

Real change, though, will require workers to act rather than expecting laws to protect them automatically, said Yasunari Yamada, a lawyer with expertise in freelance work. “Freelancers need to recognize that they’re business operators, and take action if they think something’s wrong,” he said.

Some are starting to speak up. Shibata, the voice actor, recently learned that a video game using her voice was reissued a few years ago without paying her royalties. After decades of work under her belt, including key roles in popular series like Saint Seiya, a story about mystical warriors, she complained, prompting the publisher to agree to a payment.

“People have just been clinging to whatever job they get, because if you say something negative you’re put out to pasture,” she said. “Everyone’s been putting up with it.”

FYI:

This was posted by a new account, around 9 mins old.

This is the first post they made. No comments, yet.

Generated Summary Below:

Video Description:

Former member of the Greek parliament and Minister of Finance Yanis Varoufakis joins host Chris Hedges on this episode of The Chris Hedges Report to explain how capitalism is dead and a new form of capital, the title of his new book, “Technofeudalism,” has arisen and holds power akin to the feudal lords of medieval times.

Generated Summary:

Introduction to [Technofeudalism]

• [Yanis] Varoufakis, a former Greek Parliament member and Minister of Finance, presents his argument in his book titled " [Technofeudalism]: What Killed Capitalism." He posits that capitalism is no longer viable and has been replaced by a new system he refers to as [Technofeudalism].
• Varoufakis claims that the dynamics of capitalism that once governed economic systems have ceased to function effectively, leading to the emergence of this new economic paradigm.
• He identifies two primary forces that contributed to the rise of [Technofeudalism]: the privatization of the Internet by major tech companies in China and the United States, and the responses of Western governments and central banks to the 2008 financial crisis.
• The author introduces the concept of “Cloud Capital,” which he argues has dismantled the foundational pillars of capitalism, specifically markets and profits, leading to a new form of economic structure.

The Shift from Capitalism to Cloud Capital

• Varoufakis explains that traditional markets, which served as the medium of capitalism, have been replaced by digital trading platforms that superficially resemble markets but fundamentally differ from them.
• He asserts that profits, once the driving force of capitalism, have been supplanted by a form of rent that must be paid to access digital platforms and the cloud, which he terms “Cloud Rent.”
• The ownership of wealth and power has shifted from traditional capital owners, such as those owning machinery and infrastructure, to the owners of cloud capital, leading to a return of individuals to a status akin to serfs.
• Varoufakis warns that this transformation threatens individual autonomy and freedom as people contribute to the wealth of a new ruling class through both unpaid and waged labor.

Defining Cloud Capital

• In discussing Cloud Capital, Varoufakis elaborates on its origins and characteristics, noting that capital has existed in various forms long before the advent of capitalism.
• He describes Cloud Capital as an automated network composed of technology and machinery, which is designed not for production in the traditional sense but for behavioral modification.
• The interaction with devices like Siri, Google Assistant, or Amazon Alexa exemplifies how individuals unknowingly train these systems while simultaneously being influenced by them.
• Varoufakis highlights that this automated system can shape desires and preferences, leading to a direct sale of products bypassing traditional market structures.

The Impact on Labor and Employment

• The author discusses the implications of [Technofeudalism] on labor, particularly for those in traditional wage labor positions, such as workers in warehouses or factories.
• He notes that modern workplaces utilize advanced algorithms to monitor and manage workers, significantly altering the nature of work and reducing autonomy.
• Varoufakis contrasts the revenue allocation of traditional manufacturers, which historically allocated a large percentage of revenue to wages, with modern tech companies that allocate significantly less.
• This shift in capital distribution contributes to a decrease in job quality and availability, exacerbating economic inequality and diminishing opportunities for wage laborers.

The Role of Central Banks and Financial Systems

• Varoufakis emphasizes the role of central banks in the post-2008 financial landscape, arguing that their actions have not saved capitalism but instead facilitated its transformation into [Technofeudalism].
• He describes how the financial system’s reliance on printed money has encouraged the growth of cloud capital while imposing austerity measures on the general populace.
• The author points out that the financial benefits of central bank actions have primarily accrued to large tech companies rather than traditional industries, leading to a disconnection between capital investment and real economic growth.
• Varoufakis concludes that this transformation has resulted in a new class of economic elites, whom he refers to as “Cloudists,” who operate outside the traditional capitalist framework.

Collective Action and Resistance

• In the latter part of the discussion, Varoufakis explores potential avenues for resistance against the forces of [Technofeudalism], emphasizing the need for collective action.
• He suggests that traditional forms of labor organizing must be combined with modern digital tools to effectively challenge the dominance of cloud capital.
• Varoufakis offers practical examples, such as creating parallel payment systems and organizing consumer boycotts, to empower individuals and communities.
• He advocates for a rebalancing of power dynamics, where the working class can leverage cloud capital to their advantage, thus transforming the current economic landscape.

About Channel:

Covering US foreign policy, economic realities, and civil liberties in American society.

About: Chris Hedges, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, author and commentator provides compelling story telling, archive interviews & show content covering US foreign policy, economic realities and civil liberties in American society.

Advocacy group America’s Voice believes that U.S. rural and agricultural regions will likely be the hardest hit by Trump’s immigration policies, which threaten mass detention and deportation of millions.

Border Patrol agents in unmarked vehicles have allegedly been carrying out racially profiled raids in California’s agricultural center after stalking immigrants outside stores, CalMatters reports.

Estimates suggest that between 400,000-800,000 people are farmworkers in California, which is responsible for about 13% percent of the country’s agricultural production value that is worth more than $25 billion, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The USDA estimated that between 2020-2022 about 32% of crop farmworkers were U.S. born, 7% were immigrants who had obtained citizenship, 19% were authorized immigrants, mostly permanent residents or green-card holders and the remaining 42% were unauthorized to work. The majority of these workers have Latino backgrounds.

The AV report noted how anti-immigrant crackdowns in the past decade have led to devastating impacts for farms, such as crop rot, across several states, including Alabama, Florida and Georgia.

"The unmarked cars, the racial profiling, abusive harassment, and wide dragnets are likely just the tip of the spear of the incoming administration and the signs are unmistakable: there are ‘enemy invaders’ within threatening everything ‘real Americans’ hold dear, and the federal government will be interested in critical oversight in how local officials deal with the ‘enemy.’

It warns, "The tone and culture they set will be just as important as the policies they begin to implement. As individual law enforcement and vigilantes feel empowered to take drastic action with little concern for consequences or oversight, our situation could get out of hand quickly and mass family separations will likely begin again. And, as we saw, the impacts will be felt by families, communities, businesses – and, frankly, all of us.

True, thanks for clarifying!

login anonymously

What does this mean?

Is it similar to Chrome’s “Incognito” mode?

Damn, Aurora is linked to google and you need to login to get apks, unlike F-Droid.

Aurora Store enables you to search and download apps from the official Google Play store. You can check app descriptions, screenshots, updates, reviews, and download the APK directly from Google Play to your device. To use Aurora Store, you need to have a Google Play account, and log in to your Google Play account when you first open and configure Aurora Store.

(Alternatively Aurora Store also allow you to login anonymously)

Unlike a traditional app store, Aurora Store does not own, license or distribute any apps. All the apps, app descriptions, screenshots and other content in Aurora Store are directly accessed, downloaded and/or displayed from Google Play.

Aurora Store works exactly like a door or a browser, allowing you to log in to your Google Play account and find the apps from Google Play.

Please note that Aurora Store does not have any approval, sponsorship or authorization from Google, Google Play, any apps downloaded through Aurora Store or any app developers; neither does Aurora Store have any affiliation, cooperation or connection with them.

F-Droid is cool, but limited with apks.

https://f-droid.org/

F-Droid is an installable catalogue of FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) applications for the Android platform. The client makes it easy to browse, install, and keep track of updates on your device.

Yes, this is just another policy that hinders the working class, the duopoly does like their police state.

Anyone have any thoughts on APKPure as an alternative?

Wow, awesome!

If interested, you should look into the billionaires that own a good amount of California water, and the politicians that help them.

Videos:

More Perfect Union, 08:08: https://lemmy.world/post/24266937

Sabby Sabs, 33:29: https://lemmy.world/post/24258142

Briahna Joy Gray, 30:26: https://lemmy.world/post/24260706

TIL

YOU CAN’T CUT BACK ON FUNDING! YOU WILL REGRET THIS! is a catchphrase originating from the video game Sim City 2000, where it is shouted towards the player (the mayor) by the transportation advisor if he attempts to cut transit funding.

While it isn’t the character’s name, he is sometimes referred to as “Norm” due to his similar appearance to Norm Abram of This Old House.[9]^[1]

This Old House, The New Yankee Workshop, and Ask This Old House are great shows to learn DIY skills!

For those interested in Norm:

On May 19, 2022, it was announced that after 43 years, Abram would retire from the show. A one hour special titled The House that Norm Built aired online and on PBS stations on October 3, 2022, surveying his career with the program.[11][12]

In 1988, Morash planned to launch a spinoff of This Old House called The New Yankee Workshop, featuring Abram. They needed a convenient place to videotape, and used the shop in the small building that Abram built in 1979 in Morash’s backyard.[10] The shop’s layout and equipment were expanded and adapted to match Abram’s preferences, in a space measuring 36 by 26 feet (11.0 by 7.9 m).[13][14] The New Yankee Workshop was first aired in 1989 with Abram as the host.[4] The program showcased furniture or other projects and emphasized classic, elegant designs, made using a combination of simple handtools and newer power tools and equipment.[4] The show aired for 21 seasons on PBS, then was suspended indefinitely as Abram decided to focus on other projects.[10][15][16]

He has also contributed to efforts to train younger students in the building trades, such as the Generation NEXT apprenticeship program.[10]

More recently, he bought a new old house in Rhode Island near the coast, where he plans to build a new woodworking shop, and he is also interested in learning shipbuilding.[16][23]^[2]

He is still going strong, yt video 3 days ago:

Website: https://www.newyankee.com/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@newyankeeworkshop

Edit: fixed last quote, and fixed second citation format

“I do apologize for any strife or trauma, but it had to be done,” the Ivy League graduate reportedly wrote in a manifesto admitting to killing UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson. “These parasites had it coming.”

Luigi Mangione—the 26-year-old man arrested in Pennsylvania Monday on gun charges and suspected of last week’s assassination of UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson—was carrying a manifesto condemning insurance industry greed, police said after his apprehension.

New York Police Department (NYPD) Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said Mangione was in possession of a 9mm handgun—possibly a ghost gun made with numerous parts or a 3D printer—the type used to kill Thompson, as well as a silencer and what he described as an anti-corporate manifesto.

Three bullet casings were inscribed with the words “deny,” “defend,” and “depose”—a phrase commonly used by critics to describe insurance industry tactics to avoid paying patient claims. UnitedHealth, the nation’s biggest private insurer, is notorious for denying more claims than any other insurance company.

Mangione’s social media posts run the gamut from praising the opinions of right-wing figures like Elon Musk and Tucker Carlson to leaving positive reviews on Goodreads for books including Dr. Seuss’ cautionary environmental tale The Lorax and the manifesto of Theodore Kaczynski—better known as the Unabomber.

“He had the balls to recognize that peaceful protest has gotten us absolutely nowhere and at the end of the day, he’s probably right,” Mangione controversially opined of Kaczynski, whom he called “an extreme political revolutionary.”

“When all other forms of communication fail, violence is necessary to survive,” he asserted.

“The FBI is aware of the offensive and racist text messages sent to individuals around the country and is in contact with the Justice Department and other federal authorities on the matter,” the FBI said on Thursday.

FBI Link: https://www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/fbi-statement-on-offensive-and-racist-text-messages

Brian Hughes, of the Trump campaign, told NBC that they would take legal action “if we can find the origin of these messages which promote this kind of ugliness in our name.

“President Trump built a diverse and broad coalition of support, with voters of all races and backgrounds,” he said in a statement to NBC. “The result was a landslide victory for his commonsense mandate for change. This will result in a second term that is beneficial to every working man and woman in our nation.”

It is important to escape our self-built echo chambers. Many independent journalists and commentators spoke of an increase in minority support for Trump and Harris not reaching the Biden numbers.

We must focus on building up a grassroots movement that is for the working class and moving away from the duopoly.

Stay hopeful!

Alt. Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20241007151423/https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/atandt-verizon-reportedly-hacked-to-target-us-govt-wiretapping-platform/

Multiple U.S. broadband providers, including Verizon, AT&T, and Lumen Technologies, have been breached by a Chinese hacking group tracked as Salt Typhoon, the Wall Street Journal reports.

It is unclear when the intrusion occurred, but WSJ cites people familiar with the matter, saying that “for months or longer, the hackers might have held access to network infrastructure used to cooperate with lawful U.S. requests for communications data.”

According to the WSJ, the attack was discovered in recent weeks and is being investigated by the U.S. government and security experts in the private sector.

Salt Typhoon has been active since at least 2019 and is considered a sophisticated hacking group focusing on government entities and telecommunications companies typically in the Southeast Asia region.

Security researchers also found that the threat actor attacked hotels, engineering companies, and law firms in Brazil, Burkina Faso, South Africa, Canada, Israel, France, Guatemala, Lithuania, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Thailand, and the United Kingdom.

The hackers usually obtain initial access to the target network by exploiting vulnerabilities, such as the ProxyLogon vulnerabilities in Microsoft Exchange Server (CVE-2021-26855, CVE-2021-26857, CVE-2021-26858, and CVE-2021-27065).

In previous attacks attributed to Salt Typhoon/Ghost Emperor, the threat actor used a custom backdoor called SparrowDoor, customized versions of the Mimikatz tool for extracting authentication data, and a Windows kernel-mode rootkit Demodex.

Chinese APT hacking groups have been increasingly targeting U.S. and European networking devices and ISPs in cyberespionage attacks.

In August, cybersecurity researchers at Lumen’s Black Lotus Labs disclosed that the Chinese threat actors known as “Volt Typhoon” exploited a zero-day flaw in Versa Director to steal credentials and breach corporate networks. During these attacks, the threat actors breached multiple ISPs and MSPs in the U.S. and India, which is not believed to be related to the recent breaches.

In September, Black Lotus Labs and law enforcement disrupted a massive Chinese botnet named “Raptor Train” that compromised over 260,000 SOHO routers, IP cameras with malware. This botnet was used by the “Flax Typhoon” threat actors for DDoS attacks and as a proxy to launch stealthy attacks on other organizations.

While these attacks have been attributed to different Chinese hacking groups, they are believed to operate under the same umbrella, commonly sharing infrastructure and tools.

True, they always seem to be missing on the most important of times.

Well, the government forced the rail road unions to agree to the watered-down negotiations instead of their original demands due to the laws passed.

Instead of siding with the working class and forcing corporations to meet the Uninos demands, they help the corporations and once again betray the working class.

I agree though; in this case, they did nothing to help make it worse or better for the unions, but alleged pressure was added as always.

Again, Harris is not doing as well as before, Muslim support for Dr. Jill Stein and other groups is at an all-time high, and the support Trump is receiving from the working class is increasing, so intervening in a strike would lessen support of the Democrats even more than it already is at.

I don’t think we will agree on this, due to my views on the intentional systematic problems our society has:

The duopoly likes to play political theater; both act like they are for the working class, but in reality, policy helps the owner-class much more, while crumbs are offered to the working class to keep us quiet.

The settlement pushes the strike and any potential shortages past the November presidential election, eliminating a potential liability for Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee. It’s also a big plus for the Biden-Harris administration, which has billed itself as the most union-friendly in American history. Shortages could have driven up prices and reignited inflation.

Thursday’s deal came after administration officials met with foreign-owned shipping companies before dawn on Zoom, according to a person briefed on the day’s events who asked not to be identified because the talks were private. The White House wanted to increase pressure to settle, emphasizing the responsibility to reopen the ports to help with recovery from Hurricane Helene, the person said.^[1]