#Personalized Prediction
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Astrologer Sandilya is well known Hindu astrologer who has made lots of the people to come out from the troubles. He has made it aware to every person even who were no idea of how astrology is working for them.
#Personalized Prediction#Astro Service#Numerology#Vastu#Miscellaneous#Palmistry#Tarot#Svara vidya#Face reading astrology
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The first act of Alecto is Harrow descending into hell. There are nine circles of hell in Dante’s Inferno. There are nine dead lyctoral cavaliers. There are nine resurrection beasts. Nona the Ninth implies the cavaliers are fighting the resurrection beasts Somewhere. Theory: in Alecto, Harrow will encounter each dead cav/corresponding RB one by one, liberating their souls a la the biblical harrowing of hell, culminating in her reuniting with the fragment of Gideon’s soul she consumed in a manner not unlike Dante’s Beatrice. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk
#theory time meow meow#this is the sequel to my cav/RB meta post from way back when#the locked tomb#alecto the ninth#alecto theories#alectopause#also I feel like they’ll have personalities that correspond to the circles’ main sins#tlt meta#alecto speculation#alecto predictions
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#🐉#personally im option 1 because at least if its the second one at least some of the fault isnt mine#i can live with being unable to control or predict other people#whereas if i cant articulate myself in the first place i feel a lack of self control. which i cant stand.
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a good experience more people on this website should have is confidently bringing up some leftist talking point you picked up from tumblr around family members, only for them to ask extremely basic and predictable followup questions/rebuttals that you have no response to because you just internalized the three-paragraph post with 3k notes. this only needs to happen a few times for the lesson to stick and the sooner the better
#whenever you see a radical post that you agree with just imagine yourself reading it off to the most contentious person you know#and if you can't think of answers to their most predictable questions maybe go back and read the post again or even (gasp) do some research
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Being autistic and not knowing what to do in certain situations is already bad enough.
But it’s even worse when you try explaining and the other people freak out like a bunch of NPCs and say shit like “Why not? Are you stupid? Do you not know The Rules? Haven’t you followed The Tutorial?????!!!!!!” (Not literally but it has the same effect!)
(Oblivion NPC behaviour! Many such cases)
And if you say anything to indicate that this is not the case they freak out! Or they just ignore your ass. At the best of times!
Acting like they’re filing a glitch report with God and that we’re somehow malfunctioning!
It’s sickening and exhausting to see!
Sickeningly predictable too!
Now, my parents at least understand. As do my other relatives and some people I’ve worked with. (Others not so much)
As did some of my friends, but still.
#dougie rambles#personal stuff#vent post#autism#actually autistic#being autistic#autistic things#autistic#neurodivergent#neurodiversity#neurodiverse#fucking hell#i feel sick#enough of this shit#predictable#belittling#ableism#neurotypicals#bullying#belligerent#bullshit#instructions#or lack thereof#rules#tutorial#feel free to reblog#reblog if you agree#sick of this shit#1k#many such cases
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Hmm...
Kinger has acted like a father/mentor to Pomni in this episode, even telling her to cherish people since they could suddenly be gone...
...his wife has abstracted, which has lead his mind getting further deteorated...
...he finds comfort in the darkness just like an Abstracted does...
and these fricking socks exist!
Heck, Zooble even has commented on the fact they thought Kinger would be next to become abstracted!
...
It's not long before he too follows Queenie's fate, is it...?
#It's ok: not the first time I predicted a fave of mine recieving a sad fate...#The Amazing Digital Circus#TADC Spoilers#Kinger#TADC Kinger#Queenie#TADC Queenie#Personal Rambles
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Curly's little blurb on his steam trading card just keeps reminding me he is a much more miserable person than people realize.
We don't get a lot of his thoughts, inner confliction that aren't bogged down by what Jimmy says or does. Even in the The Last One and Then Another, his dialogue is reflective, not the Curly before the crash but the result of everything. Parts of the him he was are there of course, but also disfigured and warped beyond recognition just like he is physically.
Curly really doesn't think much of himself and desires. He clearly chases fleeting moments of happiness. He doesn't really have prospects for himself, assumes in a similar way to Swansea, that if it should make it happy then he is happy. Though, he hasn't reached the point Swansea did to admit it doesn't. He neither sees the glass half full or empty, it's just water, something he needs and he'll take it from any perspective.
He wasn't running from anything but he's never really been going towards something either. He's listless. I've been using the term complacent to describe how he feels about his life and the closest people (really just Jimmy) in it, but now that word feels too neutral, too nice. Happier than Curly really was. There isn't just one word for it, he's unfulfilled, uncertain, uninspired. There are no active problems he faces and that's the issue, why should he be upset?
I believe he really is a person who doesn't know who he is or wants to be. He follows a structure. I don't think he's suicidal, but he clearly doesn't think about what makes him happy. He's numb. I suppose that is a better word than complacent, used to the feeling even if he hates it. It doesn't hurt so why stop it?
#like curly is very much does his job goes home takes care of self repeat i dont think hes like an asocial person but he doesn't take the tim#time to indulge in himself the way he thinks hes a bigger picture guy so as long as nothing is disrupted hes relatively okay even if its#slowly chipping away at him and making him feel hollow like he thought space was endless that he could never reach a point of feeling finis#he never had to predict what to do after the end and suddently he realizes there was no end to it because there cant be an end to nothing#hes accomplished so much objectively but hes done nothing with his life outside of his work like he mentions no hobbies other friends or an#thing of the sort he doesn't even feel like he can vent it cause what? hes complaining about how hard it is to get promoted to have securit#in a job you hate and a position that keeps weighing you down like I feel like if he explained himself at the party and didn't let Jimmy t#talk for him hed actually have made points the others would get cause even if they envied his position he still is justified in being unhap#not everything that you think would bring you happiness does or fulfills even a small part of that desire#idk hes a lot more fucked in the head but like towards himself than people realize like how he lets Jimmy treat him is indicitive of that i#mouthwashing#mouthwashing game#captain curly#curly mouthwashing
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secret admirer part eight
633 words
one two three four five six seven
Earlier that day...
Tommy has a problem. He knows it.
He knows he shouldn’t ignore Carol when she wants to actually talk to him. He knows he shouldn’t share everything they do with one another with Steve. He knows he shouldn’t hound Steve for details about his sex life in return. He knows he shouldn’t care who Steve is sleeping with and he doesn’t. He doesn’t.
He knows.
He also knows that taking his anger out on someone else isn’t going to help much, but he gets a sick sense of satisfaction imagining the freak opening his locker only to find a withering note inside.
Tommy waits until the halls are mostly clear before slipping the paper through the slits in the locker. He honestly doesn’t even remember what he’s written.
As he turns around and leans against the wall to wait for Steve to finish in the bathroom so they can get out of here, he notices someone staring at him from across the hall. The kid is short and has this jittery look about him that means he must be a freshman.
Tommy raises an eyebrow at him. “What’re you looking at, freak?”
The kid pales and scurries off down the hall.
Steve emerges from the bathroom a moment later. He snatches his bag off of the floor where it sits by Tommy’s feet. “Alright, man, let’s get this shit ready,” he says, referring to the party they’re throwing tonight.
<>
When one of the freshman recruits approaches Eddie as he’s climbing into his new van after Hellfire and tells him he saw Tommy Hagan slipping a note into his locker, Eddie thinks he must be joking. The kid assures him he’s not. Eddie shoos him away and lets it sink in.
After those first few days when he was sure he was being pranked, Eddie had tried his best not to think too hard about who it was that was leaving him notes. It was obviously some closeted guy who didn’t wanna be found out.
Eddie knows how he’d feel if anyone discovered the truth about him. Sure, there are rumors, but no one really knows.
As much as H talks about how brave Eddie is, he’d never risk doing what it is that H does. He’s the brave one.
So Eddie respected his wishes. He didn’t launch an investigation even though he thinks it wouldn’t be that hard. He tried his best to ignore the breadcrumbs.
He has no choice but to follow them now, though.
Everything starts to click into place in Eddie’s mind.
H as in Hagan; he’d get his ass kicked if he stared cause he’s Tommy Hagan and Eddie is Eddie and also a guy; H doesn’t read outside of class and - not to stereotype, but - Tommy’s a jock; when Eddie overcharged him, he gave the boy the same birthday fee spiel as everyone else that week, so Tommy knew it was his birthday.
Gareth literally saw him put a note into his locker, for Christ’s sake. There’s no denying it.
Tommy Hagan is writing him love notes.
…Tommy Hagan is writing him love notes?
He was going to head over to the only party being held this weekend - which just so happens to be at Tommy’s best friend’s place - to hopefully empty his stash and maybe prance a bit for whoever was writing the notes but now that he knows Tommy Hagan is behind the whole thing, he doesn’t know how to feel.
The guy goes out of his way to be an asshole whenever possible. He’s never been anything other than a nuisance to people like Eddie, and even Eddie himself on a few occasions.
It doesn’t add up, but it has to be him. Eddie just doesn’t get it.
He skips the party.
nine
tag list (closed)
@sofadofax @noodle-shenaniganery @queenie-ofthe-void @friendlyneighborhoodgaycousin @devondespresso
@dreamingtheimpossibe @plutoshelm @jaywhohasthegay @scarlet-malfoy @hotluncheddie
@dreamy-jeans137 @justdrugsformethanks @estrellami-1 @travelingtwentysomething @sleepy-steve
@wheneverfeasible @bisexual-and-broke @lil-gremlin-things @n0-1-important @xxbottlecapx
@tinyplanet95 @dannys-guilt-ridden-cockroach @theohohmoment @corvus-perplexus @hippieg1rl420
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sorry if i missed anyone!!
#who saw that coming#not me#i'll tell ya that#there IS one person who predicted it tho#😑#WITCH!!#tommy hagan#eddie munson#steve harrington#stranger things#what's the ship name for tommy/eddie and is that even applicable here#pre steddie#tommy hagan pov#eddie munson pov
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i really had to draw her
#*wearing tshirt that says ''most predictable person in the world''* i am so tuning in for this show#acro trip#berry blossom#art tag
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Surveillance pricing
THIS WEEKEND (June 7–9), I'm in AMHERST, NEW YORK to keynote the 25th Annual Media Ecology Association Convention and accept the Neil Postman Award for Career Achievement in Public Intellectual Activity.
Correction, 7 June 2024: The initial version of this article erroneously described Jeffrey Roper as the founder of ATPCO. He benefited from ATPCO, but did not co-found it. The initial version of this article called ATPCO "an illegal airline price-fixing service"; while ATPCO provides information that the airlines use to set prices, it does not set prices itself, and while the DOJ investigated the company, they did not pursue a judgment declaring the service to be illegal. I regret the error.
Noted anti-capitalist agitator Adam Smith had it right: "People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices."
Despite being a raving commie loon, Smith's observation was so undeniably true that regulators, policymakers, and economists couldn't help but acknowledge that it was true. The trustbusting era was defined by this idea: if we let the number of companies in a sector get too small, or if we let one or a few companies get too big, they'll eventually start to rig prices.
What's more, once an industry contracts corporate gigantism, it will become too big to jail, able to outspend and overpower the regulators charged with reining in its cheating. Anyone who believes Smith's self-evident maxim had to accept its conclusion: that companies had to be kept smaller than the state that regulated them. This wasn't about "punishing bigness" – it was the necessary precondition for a functioning market economy.
We kept companies small for the same reason that we limited the height of skyscrapers: not because we opposed height, or failed to appreciate the value of a really good penthouse view – rather, to keep the building from falling over and wrecking all the adjacent buildings and the lives of the people inside them.
Starting in the neoliberal era – Carter, then Reagan – we changed our tune. We liked big business. A business that got big was doing something right. It was perverse to shut down our best companies. Instead, we'd simply ban big companies from rigging prices. This was called the "consumer welfare" theory of antitrust. It was a total failure.
40 years later, nearly every industry is dominated by a handful of companies, and these companies price-gouge us with abandon. Worse, they use their gigantic ripoff winnings to fill war-chests that fund the corruption of democracy, capturing regulators so that they can rip us off even more, while ignoring labor, privacy and environmental law and ducking taxes.
It turns out that keeping gigantic, opaque, complex corporations honest is really hard. They have so many ways to shuffle money around that it's nearly impossible to figure out what they're doing. Digitalization makes things a million times worse, because computers allow businesses to alter their processes so they operate differently for every customer, and even for every interaction.
This is Dieselgate times a billion: VW rigged its cars to detect when they were undergoing emissions testing and switch to a less polluting, more compliant mode. But when they were on the open road, they spewed lethal quantities of toxic gas, killing people by the thousands. Computers don't make corporate leaders more evil, but they let evil corporate leaders execute far more complex and nefarious plans. Digitalization is a corporate moral hazard, making it just too easy and tempting to rig the game.
That's why Toyota, the largest car-maker in the world, just did Dieselgate again, more than a decade later. Digitalization is a temptation no giant company can resist:
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1wwj1p2wdyo
For forty years, pro-monopoly cheerleaders insisted that we could allow companies to grow to unimaginable scale and still prevent cheating. They passed rules banning companies from explicitly forming agreements to rig prices. About ten seconds later, new middlemen popped up offering "information brokerages" that helped companies rig prices without talking to one another.
Take Agri Stats: the country's hyperconcentrated meatpacking industry pays Agri Stats to "consult on prices." They provide Agri Stats with a list of their prices, and then Agri Stats suggests changes based on its analysis. What does that analysis consist of? Comparing the company's prices to its competitors, who are also Agri Stats customers:
https://pluralistic.net/2023/10/04/dont-let-your-meat-loaf/#meaty-beaty-big-and-bouncy
In other words, Agri Stats finds the highest price for each product in the sector, then "advises" all the companies with lower prices to raise their prices to the "competitive" level, creating a one-way ratchet that sends the price of food higher and higher.
More and more sectors have an Agri Stats, and digitalization has made this price-gouging system faster, more efficient, and accessible to sectors with less concentration. Landlords, for example, have tapped into Realpage, a "data broker" that the same thing to your rent that Agri Stats does to meat prices. Realpage requires the landlords who sign up for its service to accept its "recommendations" on minimum rents, ensuring that prices only go up:
https://popular.info/p/feds-raid-corporate-landlord-escalating
Writing for The American Prospect, Luke Goldstein lays out the many ways in which these digital intermediaries have supercharged the business of price-rigging:
https://prospect.org/economy/2024-06-05-three-algorithms-in-a-room/
Goldstein identifies a kind of patient zero for this ripoff epidemic: Jeffrey Roper, a former Alaska Air exec who benefited from a service that helps airlines set prices. ATPCO was investigated by the DOJ in the 1990s, but the enforcers lost their nerve and settled with the company, which agreed to apply some ornamental fig-leafs to its collusion-machine. Even those cosmetic changes were seemingly a bridge too far Roper, who left the US.
But he came back to serve as Realpage's "principal scientist" – the architect of a nationwide scheme to make rental housing vastly more expensive. For Roper, the barrier to low rents was empathy: landlords felt stirrings of shame when they made shelter unaffordable to working people. Roper called these people "idiots" who sentimentality "costs the whole system."
Sticking a rent-gouging computer between landlords and the people whose lives they ruin is a classic "accountability sink," as described in Dan Davies' new book "The Unaccountability Machine: Why Big Systems Make Terrible Decisions – and How The World Lost its Mind":
https://profilebooks.com/work/the-unaccountability-machine/
It's a form of "empiricism washing": if computers are working in the abstract realm of pure numbers, they're just moving the objective facts of the quantitative realm into the squishy, imperfect qualitative world. Davies' interview on Trashfuture is excellent:
https://trashfuturepodcast.podbean.com/e/fire-sale-at-the-accountability-store-feat-dan-davies/
To rig prices, an industry has to solve three problems: the problem of coming to an agreement to fix prices (economists call this "the collective action problem"); the problem of coming up with a price; and the problem of actually changing prices from moment to moment. This is the ripoff triangle, and like a triangle, it has many stable configurations.
The more concentrated an industry is, the easier it is to decide to rig prices. But if the industry has the benefit of digitalization, it can swap the flexibility and speed of computers for the low collective action costs from concentration. For example, grocers that switch to e-ink shelf tags can make instantaneous price-changes, meaning that every price change is less consequential – if sales fall off after a price-hike, the company can lower them again at the press of a button. That means they can collude less explicitly but still raise prices:
https://pluralistic.net/2024/03/26/glitchbread/#electronic-shelf-tags
My name for this digital flexibility is "twiddling." Businesses with digital back-ends can alter their "business logic" from second to second, and present different prices, payouts, rankings and other key parts of the deal to every supplier or customer they interact with:
https://pluralistic.net/2023/02/19/twiddler/
Not only does twiddling make it easier to rip off suppliers, workers and customers, it also makes these crimes harder to detect. Twiddling made Dieselgate possible, and it also underpinned "Greyball," Uber's secret strategy of refusing to send cars to pick up transportation regulators who would then be able to see firsthand how many laws the company was violating:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/03/technology/uber-greyball-program-evade-authorities.html
Twiddling is so easy that it has brought price-fixing to smaller companies and less concentrated sectors, though the biggest companies still commit crimes on a scale that put these bit-players to shame. In The Prospect, David Dayen investigates the "personalized pricing" ripoff that has turned every transaction into a potential crime-scene:
https://prospect.org/economy/2024-06-04-one-person-one-price/
"Personalized pricing" is the idea that everything you buy should be priced based on analysis of commercial surveillance data that predicts the maximum amount you are willing to pay.
Proponents of this idea – like Harvard's Pricing Lab with its "Billion Prices Project" – insist that this isn't a way to rip you off. Instead, it lets companies lower prices for people who have less ability to pay:
https://thebillionpricesproject.com/
This kind of weaponized credulity is totally on-brand for the pro-monopoly revolution. It's the same wishful thinking that led regulators to encourage monopolies while insisting that it would be possible to prevent "bad" monopolies from raising prices. And, as with monopolies, "personalized pricing" leads to an overall increase in prices. In econspeak, it is a "transfer of wealth from consumer to the seller."
"Personalized pricing" is one of those cuddly euphemisms that should make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. A more apt name for this practice is surveillance pricing, because the "personalization" depends on the vast underground empire of nonconsensual data-harvesting, a gnarly hairball of ad-tech companies, data-brokers, and digital devices with built-in surveillance, from smart speakers to cars:
https://pluralistic.net/2024/03/12/market-failure/#car-wars
Much of this surveillance would be impractical, because no one wants their car, printer, speaker, watch, phone, or insulin-pump to spy on them. The flexibility of digital computers means that users always have the technical ability to change how these gadgets work, so they no longer spy on their users. But an explosion of IP law has made this kind of modification illegal:
https://locusmag.com/2020/09/cory-doctorow-ip/
This is why apps are ground zero for surveillance pricing. The web is an open platform, and web-browsers are legal to modify. The majority of web users have installed ad-blockers that interfere with the surveillance that makes surveillance pricing possible:
https://doc.searls.com/2023/11/11/how-is-the-worlds-biggest-boycott-doing/
But apps are a closed platform, and reverse-engineering and modifying an app is a literal felony – several felonies, in fact. An app is just a web-page skinned with enough IP to make it a felony to modify it to protect your consumer, privacy or labor rights:
https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/07/treacherous-computing/#rewilding-the-internet
(Google is leading a charge to turn the web into the kind of enshittifier's paradise that apps represent, blocking the use of privacy plugins and proposing changes to browser architecture that would allow them to felonize modifying a browser without permission:)
https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/02/self-incrimination/#wei-bai-bai
Apps are a twiddler's playground. Not only can they "customize" every interaction you have with them, but they can block you (or researchers seeking to help you) from recording and analyzing the app's activities. Worse: digital transactions are intimate, contained to the palm of your hand. The grocer whose e-ink shelf-tags flicker and reprice their offerings every few seconds can be collectively observed by people who are in the same place and can start a conversation about, say, whether to come back that night a throw a brick through the store's window to express their displeasure. A digital transaction is a lonely thing, atomized and intrinsically shielded from a public response.
That shielding is hugely important. The public hates surveillance pricing. Time and again, through all of American history, there have been massive and consequential revolts against the idea that every price should be different for every buyer. The Interstate Commerce Commission was founded after Grangers rose up against the rail companies' use of "personalized pricing" to gouge farmers.
Companies know this, which is why surveillance pricing happens in secret. Over and over, every day, you are being gouged through surveillance pricing. The sellers you interact with won't tell you about it, so to root out this practice, we have to look at the B2B sales-pitches from the companies that sell twiddling tools.
One of these companies is Plexure, partly owned by McDonald's, which provides the surveillance-pricing back-ends for McD's, Ikea, 7-Eleven, White Castle and others – basically, any time a company gives you a hard-sell to order via its apps rather than its storefronts or its website, you should assume you're getting twiddled, hard.
These companies use the enshittification playbook to trap you into using their apps. First, they offer discounts to customers who order through their apps – then, once the customers are fully committed to shopping via app, they introduce surveillance pricing and start to jack up the prices.
For example, Plexure boasts that it can predict what day a given customer is getting paid on and use that information to raise prices on all the goods the customer shops for on that day, on the assumption that you're willing to pay more when you've got a healthy bank balance.
The surveillance pricing industry represents another reason for everything you use to spy on you – any data your "smart" TV or Nest thermostat or Ring doorbell can steal from you can be readily monetized – just sell it to a surveillance pricing company, which will use it to figure out how to charge you more for everything you buy, from rent to Happy Meals.
But the vast market for surveillance data is also a potential weakness for the industry. Put frankly: the commercial surveillance industry has a lot of enemies. The only thing it has going for it is that so many of these enemies don't know that what's they're really upset about is surveillance.
Some people are upset because they think Facebook made Grampy into a Qanon. Others, because they think Insta gave their kid anorexia. Some think Tiktok is brainwashing millennials into quoting Osama bin Laden. Some are upset because the cops use Google location data to round up Black Lives Matter protesters, or Jan 6 insurrectionists. Some are angry about deepfake porn. Some are angry because Black people are targeted with ads for overpriced loans or colleges:
https://www.theregister.com/2024/06/04/meta_ad_algorithm_discrimination/
And some people are angry because surveillance feeds surveillance pricing. The thing is, whatever else all these people are angry about, they're all angry about surveillance. Are you angry that ad-tech is stealing a 51% share of news revenue? You're actually angry about surveillance. Are you angry that "AI" is being used to automatically reject resumes on racial, age or gender grounds? You're actually angry about surveillance.
There's a very useful analogy here to the history of the ecology movement. As James Boyle has long said, before the term "ecology" came along, there were people who cared about a lot of issues that seemed unconnected. You care about owls, I care about the ozone layer. What's the connection between charismatic nocturnal avians and the gaseous composition of the upper atmosphere? The term ecology took a thousand issues and welded them together into one movement.
That's what's on the horizon for privacy. The US hasn't had a new federal consumer privacy law since 1988, when Congress acted to ban video-store clerks from telling the newspapers what VHS cassettes you were renting:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_Privacy_Protection_Act
We are desperately overdue for a new consumer privacy law, but every time this comes up, the pro-surveillance coalition defeats the effort. but as people who care about conspiratorialism, kids' mental health, spying by foreign adversaries, phishing and fraud, and surveillance pricing all come together, they will be an unbeatable coalition:
https://pluralistic.net/2023/12/06/privacy-first/#but-not-just-privacy
Meanwhile, the US government is actually starting to take on these ripoff artists. The FTC is working to shut down data-brokers:
https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/16/the-second-best-time-is-now/#the-point-of-a-system-is-what-it-does
The FBI is raiding landlords to build a case against Frontpage and other rent price-fixers:
https://popular.info/p/feds-raid-corporate-landlord-escalating
Agri Stats is facing a DoJ lawsuit:
https://www.nationalhogfarmer.com/market-news/agri-stats-loses-motions-to-transfer-dismiss-in-doj-antitrust-case
Not every federal agency has gotten the message, though. Trump's Fed Chairman, Jerome Powell – whom Biden kept on the job – has been hiking interest rates in a bid to reduce our purchasing power by making millions of Americans poorer and/or unemployed. He's doing this to fight inflation, on the theory that inflation is being cause by us being too well-off, and therefore trying to buy more goods than are for sale.
But of course, interest rates are inflationary: when interest rates go up, it gets more expensive to pay your credit card bills, lease your car, and pay a mortgage. And where we see the price of goods shooting up, there's abundant evidence that this is the result of greedflation – companies jacking up their prices and blaming inflation. Interest rate hawks say that greedflation is impossible: if one company raises its prices, its competitors will swoop in and steal their customers with lower prices.
Maybe they would do that – if they didn't have a toolbox full of algorithmic twiddling options and a deep trove of surveillance data that let them all raise prices together:
https://prospect.org/blogs-and-newsletters/tap/2024-06-05-time-for-fed-to-meet-ftc/
Someone needs to read some Adam Smith to Chairman Powell: "People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices."
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/2024/06/05/your-price-named/#privacy-first-again
Image: Cryteria (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HAL9000.svg
CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en
#pluralistic#david dayen#the american prospect#surveillance advertising#commercial surveillance#predictive pricing#monopolism#monopolies#antitrust#unfair and deceptive method of competition#ftc act Section 5#ftca5#ripoffs#surveillance#twiddling#ip#apps#apps are shit#ziprecruiter#personalized pricing#price gouging#just and reasonable#interstate commerce act#one person one price#surveillance pricing#privacy first#billion prices project#ecommerce#ninetailed#cortado group
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Huh i have a new obsession
#my art#genshin impact#genshinimpact#emilie#emilie genshin impact#iT IS ABOUT HER !!!#I absolutely love tighnari and emilie friendship.....#first pic maybe it will become a standee for those 5 persons who care abt them (i am one of them)#tighnari#albedo#i can't believe they are really friend omg I predicted when I saw Emilie drop marketing
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DANI ROJAS & JAN MAAS Ted Lasso (2020-2023)
#ted lasso#tedlassoedit#tedlassosource#dani rojas#jan maas#cristo fernández#david elsendoorn#gifs.#they're literally best friends look at them#numbers right next to each other... no nonsense tall guy + silly smiley shorter guy... realist + idealist...#unstoppable force (jan's honesty & inability to read a room) vs immovable object (dani's positivity & inability to read a room)#in the first ep of s3 when they're talking about richmond being placed last on everyone's predictions for the season or smth:#jan spitting out statistics about relegations that no one wants to hear + dani's 'maybe they're trying to motivate us!'#the inability to read a room but on opposite ends of the spectrum is something that can be so personal ......
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Pick a Painting : All about your next s/o
Pick 1 painting that draws you the most and I will tell you whatever I can pick up on your next s/o. If you are drawn to 2, then take a look at both readings. Remember that this is a general reading so not everything will apply. Take what resonates and leave what doesn't behind.
#1
Very easily depressed. Mental health is always a concern - doesn't mean they're bad people. Just that their mental health is particularly weak. Easily defeated and blue. However, they do feel things very deeply. Very emotional people. Very, very sensitive and intuitive - you won't be able to lie to them. It's like they have this 6th sense or can read your mind. Don't even try to lie to them - you'll just be caught. Not even a white lie please with these people - a lie is considered a really big betrayal to them. Though their mental health is weaker than average, they will be able to take bad news too. They aren't THAT weak.
Probably has a very creative or almost genius-like side. Very lost in their own world/sometimes will just go off and do their own thing. When they are focused on sthing, they will give it their all. The type to like not sleep for 2 days just to finish something --could be a video game, artwork, song, dance, Excel spreadsheet, code, math problem, clothing, etc.
Though intuitive - they can be kind of anti-social and don't really like to be around big crowds or people in general. Quite closed in and guarded. Think bc they can see so much of the truth they get really boggled down with that "negativity" or that "ugly" side of ppl that they don't want to be in contact with many ppl.
They have a lot of wisdom and knowledge - might not be like the typical "nerd" feeling, but they just know a lot about things that interest them. Could be some particular history or about some theory or painting or sciences etc.
They are shy with physical affection or don't like it that much. The mental connection is more important to them than the physical one. They may be asexual or some may struggle with their sexuality or sex in general.
#2
Life of the party. Very popular s/o and well liked by others. They probably have had many dating experiences -- might not mean they are a player. They probably don't like really heavy relationships and people who are too clingy.
They are really fun and adventurous. They are very playful and charming. They can be kinda forgetful too. They're warm and will remind you of the sunshine.
They sometimes can be ignorant of the world/others' feelings so can come off as being shallow or dense. They're either very intelligent academically or they do very poorly in school - sort of 2 extremes here.
They're either quite athletic or quite artistic. Generally they do have a decent physique like somehow muscular even if they don't work out much.
They're pretty laidback and overall chill. They definitely have very interesting stories to tell/share. Overall pretty independent people and somehow can make bajillion friends.
Sometimes they might not be the most reliable out there. They can often forget promises and also aren't the most responsible ppl out there. Likely to be late to meetings and dates. They can sometimes even forget to bring their wallet or keys.
#3
They can be kind of arrogant and self-centered. They are very confident of themselves, sometimes overly confident. They gotta be the one that make decisions in the relationship. They have a strong, commanding presence. They have this leadership aura like people just naturally want to follow them.
Likely to be quite successful in their career or comes from wealth. Can be kinda spoiled in some ways and also out of check with reality. Bad at saving money, a big spender in many ways.
A lot of people admire your s/o. They'll likely be quite good looking or charming - something about them that'll make people want to take a 2nd look at them.
They probably will dress quite well or at least in a polished way. Kinda classy or perhaps very street style. Either way they will have decent fashion and care a lot about their appearances. They will want you to also look presentable too, so no sloppy lazy attire when you go out.
They likely are friends with people of influence - could be famous or powerful or rich or all of the above. You might feel a bit overwhelmed by their connections or their lifestyle if you don't also have a similar background as your s/o.
They'll have some sophisticated flair/air about them. They are strong communicators and are quite persuasive. They know what to say to make your heart flutter. They may be manipulative though - so be careful.
There's probably some secret they are hiding - not sure what exactly but I don't think they want you to find out.
#4
They are very introverted and quiet. Very observant and detail oriented. Some may suffer from OCD or OCD-like tendencies. They can be obsessive over details. They can either be very very clean or be super super messy.
They probably will wear glasses or have prescription lenses somewhere. They may possibly have some tattoos or piercings or at least some prominent scar or birth mark.
They are pretty serious and aren't ones to really joke around. They can be sarcastic though. They may seem kinda gloomy but it doesn't mean they are very pessimistic.
They're probably night owls and hate the mornings. They probably won't like sweet things or will love them a lot - no between.
They can be kinda self-conscious and have a bit of low self-esteem. Could be bc they were bullied in the past or they felt they were really ugly before?? Possibly they were overweight when they were young and then teased a lot or bullied a lot so now they still got that trauma. Could possibly have suffered from some eating disorder too or went through some extreme diets.
Their physical health may not be that good like possible chronic illnesses or have gone through a major surgery/illness. Possible cancer survivor too.
They have a kind heart and probably love animals. They likely have a pet or if they can't have one due to allergies, then they would still like them.
#5
Definitely suffered from some trauma in their childhood or before they date you. This trauma will probably be pretty bad and severe - TW: sexual assault/physical abuse/violence etc. The abuse could have been very bad.
They are either in the healing process when they meet you or they're still deeply suffering from this trauma and won't admit it. Their inner child definitely needs healing.
They likely came from a family that was broken in different ways. Possibly the parents weren't available/died young or the parent(s) were abusive - could be verbal or physical etc. Or perhaps the parents favored the other sibling a lot and ignored your s/o. Siblings were very toxic to your s/o. Whatever happened your s/o did not feel loved by their family and/or they were deeply hurt by their family. They will likely have cut off from their family or will leave them shorlty after dating you.
They have a lot of sad undertones and when you look at them very closely, you know they have a story to tell. They are probably very animated/sociable so you might not even notice at first that they've suffered so much but when you look closer, you will sense that they've gone through a lot. If that's not the case they could be just very cold and a bit of a loner - like they seem strong on the outside but inside they are suffering.
They may not be super good looking but they have this attractiveness to them that draws people to them. They have that sort of mystery to them. However, they probably don't have many friends and stick to themselves.
They are interesting as a person and are self reflective. They have depth to them and can understand people well.
#6
They probably come from a traditional family or a very large family. They might have been in a religious family too or a cult.
They are either very close to their family or have completely cut off from them. There's no in between.
They can feel very lost at times. They aren't very sure of themselves. They have an innocent vibe to them. They also trust people easily, almost too easily. You'd want to protect them or look after them.
They are idealistic and sweet. They are gentle and probably have a sweet/angelic voice. They are friendly and loving.
They can be unrealistic so they will need someone who can ground them. They probably start a lot of projects and never finish them.
They need a lot of reassurance as they can sometimes lack confidence or get nervous easily.
They will probably have a rounder face or rounder features like rounder eyes, lips etc. They may be on the shorter side for height like shorter than average or they may just have a petite build like smaller bone structure. This doesn't necessarily mean they are very skinny - it's just somehow they will feel "Small".
They have a lot of youthful energy. They can sometimes say really dumb things even though they are clever. They're not very street smart. They probably will get lost easily. They also probably love food. They also are probably kinda lazy.
#7
They're probably very athletic or very into health stuff. They can be a fitness nut and they probably enjoy a lot of sports. They might even be some competitive athlete, possibly even an Olympian.
They seem to be able to do a lot of things like not just excel in sports. They might even have a creative side like filming videos or writing stories etc.
They enjoy travelling and love exploring. They love nature and being away from the city.
They're very daring and adventurous. They are very energetic and have loads of energy - almost too much.
They get distracted easily. They possibly suffer from ADHD or just have trouble focusing for long periods of time. They might not be able to sit still so they likely hated going to school (besides doing something more active).
They have strong golden retriever energy. They mean well but sometimes they can be too blunt. They also can sometimes be quite fiery and will definitely stand up for you when needed. They have strong protective energy too.
They also are probably romantic and will surprise you with little things. They will also remember anniversaries etc.
#8
They are very calm and collected. They are determined and responsible. They can be kind of boring sometimes. They stick to a routine and don't like to deviate from it. They are quite stubborn.
They are loyal to you. They are committed in the relationship. They care a lot about you but often have trouble expressing it to you. Sometimes you might feel like they don't love you but it's their actions that prove that they do love you. They notice the little details about you, including all your habits. They love looking after you and could even want to groom you somehow like maybe cut your hair/brush your hair/help you shave etc.
They can nag a lot and are passive aggressive. They can seem like a parent sometimes but they do mean the best for you.
They can have a controlling side. They're really into being efficient so sometimes they might forget that people have feelings.
To a lot of people they are workaholics. They also are quite responsible. If you're disorganized they will help you be more organized.
They're not romantic at all. They are very pragmatic so if you're thinking you're getting a romantic Valentine's Day, no that won't be the case. However they'll probably order your favorite food and help you clean up your place so you aren't tired after school/work/etc. They'd give you an expensive high tech vacuum instead of some necklace bc you really need one to clean up your place.
They can sometimes be a bit petty and yes they do bear grudges for life...
#psychic readings#love readings#marriage readings#relationship readings#psychic predictions#psychic#pick a card#pick a pile#pick a picture#pick a card reading#intuitive readings#intuitive reading#intuition#divination#psychic reader#free psychic reading#s/o#love predictions#predictions#relationship predictions#personality readings
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PERSONAL YEARS IN NUMEROLOGY ︵͡ ⁺
personal year numbers tell the themes of your year similar to solar return charts in astrology. the energy begins on your birthday and ends on your next birthday, so if you have a later birthday in the year such as november, december, etc then the previous yearly personal number will be more telling about your current year. this post is specifically about the reduced personal year numbers, but eventually i’ll make a post about the unreduced energy in personal years as well. the reduced number is what matters most though
- to find your pyn refer to my numerology tutorial key (scroll down a little)
- trigger warning: violence, addiction, alcohol, drugs, weight, health issues, death
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number one: during 1 personal years you may encounter lots of conflict and get into more fights. you’re going to learn lots of hard lessons during these years and will have to work harder as well. the positives to these years are that if you make wise decisions you’ll likely gain more confidence, be more active, and have more will power in getting the things you want. these are great years for new beginnings and to create new things. people who are 11 life paths will benefit the most during these years. people who are 9 life paths will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number three: during 3 personal years you may debate or argue with people more, encounter immature people, be involved in criminal activity, or experience lots of gossip occurring in your life. the positives to these years if you make wise decisions are that you may socialize more, feel more creative, laugh more, or just have a fun year in general. these are great years to share your ideas with the world, make social media accounts, have fun, and make new friends. people who are 5’s will benefit the most during these years. people who are 4 life paths will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number four: during 4 personal years you may have to work harder, lack creativity, deal with a lot of jealousy, run into troubles with the law, or deal with violence. the positives to these years if you make wise decisions are that you may make lots of money, become more organized, become more disciplined, or get work done that will benefit you a lot in the next year. these are great years to work so you can be rewarded in the following year and also i’d recommend trying your hardest not to break laws. people who are 9 life paths will benefit the most during these years. people who are 3 life paths will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number five: during 5 personal years you may struggle with addiction to alcohol/drugs, experience conflict involving relationship wrecking, be irresponsible, or experience lots of jealousy/jealous people. the positives to these years if you make wise decisions are that you will travel a lot, have a glow up, be more adventurous, party a lot, have better health, have better luck, experience more freedom, or a higher sex drive. these are great years to procreate, have fun/party, date, take risks, socialize, or to change in general. people who are life path 5’s will benefit the most during these years. people who are life path 6’s will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number six: during 6 personal years you may feel less motivated and want to stay home a lot, feel like you need more appreciation, or struggle with weight issues. the positives to these years if you make wise decisions are that you can make new friends, become closer with the people you love such as your family, adopt a new pet, and have a normal year. these are great years for starting a family, showing love to others, receiving love from others, becoming a better person, and being responsible. people who are lifepath 4’s will benefit the most during these years. people who are life path 5’s will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number seven: during 7 personal years you may struggle with health issues, loneliness, conflict in your love life, being more paranoid, or being unlucky. the positives to these years is that you can gain lots of knowledge, becoming more in tune with your spiritual self/side and connect more to the spiritual realm, do better in school, or focus more on yourself and growing your mind in general. these are great years to take important tests, be single and learn to love being on your own, grow spiritually, and teach others or learn from others. people who are life path 11’s will benefit most from these years. people who are life path 8’s will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number eight: during 8 personal years your bad karma will come back to you. the positives to these years if you make wise decisions in your life are that good karma can also come your way if you’ve been living a righteous life, more balance can be created in your life, and your can become more powerful/confident. these are great years to be kind to others and also to make money. people who are life path 33’s will benefit the most during these years. people who are life path 7’s will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number nine: during 9 personal years there could be deaths in your life, good things could come to an end, you could have struggles with addiction, or you could make immoral decisions. the positives to these years if you make wise decisions are that you can manifest great things into your life, bad things could finally come to an end, you could learn to adapt optimistically to situations that had been challenging for you in the previous year, and you could complete projects. these are great years to have lots of compassion, manifest, allow yourself to express yourself emotionally through things like art, and good years for acting/performing in any way. people who are 4 life paths will benefit the most during these years. people who are 1 life paths will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number eleven: during 2/11 personal years you will be more emotional, experience events or conflicts that are emotionally challenging, and learn hard spiritual lessons. the positives to these years if you make wise decisions are that you can become more spiritual or grow spiritually, do better in athletics, become more popular (especially online), and you can use your emotional energy to create amazing art through things like acting, singing, etc. these are great years to make a social media account, be in a movie, become more interested in the occult, and to participate in athletics. people who are life path 1’s or life path 7’s will benefit the most during these years. people who are 9 life paths will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number twenty-two: during 22 personal years you will experience destruction in your life, restrictions, and burn bridges. the positives to these years if you make wise decisions are that you can manifest great things for upcoming years, become more confident in yourself, and achieve more. these are great years to body-build/gain muscle in the gym, manifest, lead, and build new things in your life. people who are life path 8’s will benefit the most during these years. people who life path 9’s will struggle the most during these years
✶₊ ֗ ໒ personal year number thirty-three: during 33 personal years you will experience ego deaths, spiritual challenges, and just lots of challenges in general. the positives to these years if you make wise decisions are that you can raise your vibration a lot, become closer to family, influence others, lead, gain lots of spiritual knowledge, and become more enlightened spiritually. these are great years to create, teach, influence others, and focus on becoming more powerful spiritually. life path 8’s will benefit the most during these years
©novy2sirius
#personal year numerology#personal year#numerology#numerology blog#spirituality blog#spiritual realm#spirit#spiritual#spirituality#matrix#numerology community#predictive numerology
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taash said "they were doing it" and people ran with the interpretation of an npc that doesn't know solas or the history of the elvhenan even when bellara interjected and said, no, that's not right. that's not how it was for the elvhenan. they formed bonds before they had physical bodies. and people ran to doompost or create weird anti-solavellan shit even though mythal & solas refer to each other as old friends and when she releases him there is no tenderness or love in it. it is the act of unchaining a dog from his post, the stepping down of a general. but to each their own ig.
#let the record show i think love was there. do I personally perceive it as romantic / sexual? no.#mythal's perception of love & care is warped in and of itself#i think they loved each other. but she loved what she could take from him and what he could give in terms of service#not because she was romantically into him#also i wish we knew more about her & elgar'nan. her regret prison form says she holds no love for him anymore#and it makes me wonder when that love soured. was it when she was blighted? before that? was that love also born of duty and companionship?#this is the last post i'm gonna make ab this i think#bc i believe people are too caught up in the modern western ideas of love as thing we give solely to our romantic partners#and we literally have a character go ”our perception is warped bc of the age we live in” and some of you are still being purposefully obtuse#and i think trick saying it's up to interpretation is basically admitting EA had them dumb down the game anyway#if everything ab the rise and fall of the evanuris in game#was condensed to five 2min cutscenes it says enough that whatever the writers wanted#was swiftly cut down by corporate dept. basically saying it's in the fans' court now#also bc it's an easy cop out around new players & non solasmancers who are indifferent ab him / dislike him#as a way to appeal thru a more sympathetic lense of look!! he loved and was led astray#not to mention the clear justinia / leliana parallels#and leliana gets angry if you imply she was romantically involved / in love w justinia#and the romance descr when you remake your inq saying the dread wolf could not predict what it would mean to fall IN LOVE#implying he had never fallen in love before or at the very least experienced a romantic love#also him saying drinking from the well would make you a slave and he gets really upset#yet ive seen takes of ”hes doing this for her cus he dgaf ab lavellan” ?? he got mythal killed when he told her ab the blight#whatever feelings of admiration he had for her have rotted. he is literally burdened by his mistakes and his choice in joining her#i feel like if i were a spirit bound and twisted into a weapon i would need my creator to tell me i am Free. i would need that closure#like when cole says its not abuse to bind him if he asks and solas said thats not always true???#if you perceive her interaction w him in vg third act as#anything more than the way justinia released leliana in inq then im sorry maybe youre just obtuse#solavellan#mythal#dragon age meta
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hi hello i like kerfur
listen i know the player character in votv is an actual character with a name and everything but consider: what if it was you tho
#voices of the void#votv#kerfur#votv kerfur#look if you've been here a while you know what i'm about#idk the idea of being stuck in a setting like votv with the closest thing to a companion being a robot#who's debatably about as sentient as a toaster. who then upgrades into a cuter person-shaped version#who is STILL debatably as sentient as a toaster#while your only outside contact is with your dubious shady bosses and the aliens who seem to have varying motives (none good)#is like. very delicious very juicy#oh also the supernatural spookies can't forget those! how fun how delightful#could be a psychological horror. and it is. but also it's a robot dating sim bc i'm predictable#i'm allergic to drawing their feet apparently whoops#my art
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