Hacker News: Blackstrat

New comment by Blackstrat in "Ask HN: Advice for first-year CS students?"

Blackstrat — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 12:32:12 +0000

Apparently, you missed my opening statement. It depends on the OP's goals. But, by no means is my advice "last century". Many here approach their careers as if FAANG and technology was all there is. It's not. Tuition is unquestionably an issue. Nonetheless, it should be viewed as an investment. And no, Coursa is generally not an adequate substitute for an actual education. It's a way to familiarize oneself with a topic but by no means is it comparable to the typical university treatment. It's fine to believe that "it's different this time or today". It's not. History has shown repeatedly that it repeats. And contrary to what many think and hype, the current "AI" trends are not going to replace the need for human thinking. And if you believe it is, then why go to college at all?

New comment by Blackstrat in "Ask HN: Advice for first-year CS students?"

Blackstrat — Tue, 14 Jul 2026 19:46:04 +0000

Depends on your goals and much of the advice that you'll receive will revolve around maximizing the college experience. This is certainly important. However, as a hiring manager for several decades, one of the things that routinely frustrated me was a stream of candidates from very good schools that were totally ignorant of basic business practices. Most graduates will not work for FAANG companies upon graduation. They will go into industry. And yes, right now AI/vibe coding is all the rage. The issue becomes what value does one bring to the company. I've seen this play out many times over the decades. So my suggestion is to burn a couple of electives on things like accounting and business management. Learn to write well and speak well in front of any audience. When you interview with an insurance company after graduation, for example, the hiring manager isn't going to be overwhelmed with your ability to write a compiler or even necessarily your vibe coding skills. They will likely be impressed more by your presentation skills, your ability to grasp business concepts, etc. Enjoy college, but don't become so rigidly engaged with technical topics that you limit your future opportunities.

New comment by Blackstrat in "Too Many Books?"

Blackstrat — Sat, 11 Jul 2026 22:20:09 +0000

Why is it too many? Books are an experience that no digital medium can’t replicate or even imitate. Plus one owns their books in perpetuity, unlike digital that is merely licensed and ephemeral.

New comment by Blackstrat in "Ask HN: How to get a non-technical friend into tech?"

Blackstrat — Mon, 06 Jul 2026 21:04:33 +0000

If they are actually interested in the profession, and not just the money, find a smaller company in the area that’s hiring for a less specialized role, one a generalist has a chance of performing, eg a customer support role somewhere that maintains some development efforts. Even this will be difficult if the last ten years or so hasn’t afforded them some basic people and business skills. In other words, regardless of the role, they have to bring something to the job. Assuming they do and can get hired, then it’s about learning that business, technical space, etc. It will be a lot of work regardless. Is FAANG a possibility? Yes, perhaps, but not a probable one. However, there thousands of commercial companies uilding and deploying interesting projects and paying very good salaries.

New comment by Blackstrat in "Happy Independence Day"

Blackstrat — Mon, 06 Jul 2026 19:29:56 +0000

I'll stand by my comments. There is a perception here that the Trump administration is historically dangerous and we've never seen anything like it. That's not factually defensible. Now in my 70s, I've seen presidents come and go and frankly the vast majority of them have left a lot to be desired. All presidents have engaged in activities that at best could be considered extralegal, particularly when viewed from the "other side". Realistically, Trump has done less damage to the country than Biden for example. Or more correctly Biden's team. The decline of western democracies stems from being unwilling to stand up for the very values that made those countries successful, massive immigration from Mexico and the Middle East, unwillingness to reject radical Islam, calling for the elimination of police, etc (the list is lengthy) are all reflections of a lack of civic courage on the part of elected officials the world over. France, Spain, Great Britain, Germany, as well as the US have all surrendered much of their culture to immigration. And the results aren't favorable to traditional Western countries. So yes, most are in decline. And attempts to halt the decline, as some of Trump's policies are directed, are met with scorn and derision, claims of fascism, etc. Such claims are historically inaccurate.

New comment by Blackstrat in "Happy Independence Day"

Blackstrat — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 12:42:13 +0000

As expected, communism is alive and well here. I find the lack of historical perspective here to be a serious indictment of the educational system.

New comment by Blackstrat in "Happy Independence Day"

Blackstrat — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 20:41:12 +0000

Turn off CNN , FoxNews, MSNBC or wherever you’re getting your hyperbolic reaction. You have much more to be concerned with, such as the DSA takeover of the Democratic Party and the alignment with antisemitism than anything Trump dreams up.

New comment by Blackstrat in "Supreme Court upholds broad conception of birthright citizenship"

Blackstrat — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 12:50:45 +0000

No, I'm saying the use of the 14th amendment to justify the majority opinion is disingenuous, as Thomas points out.

New comment by Blackstrat in "Supreme Court upholds broad conception of birthright citizenship"

Blackstrat — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 12:00:38 +0000

Another bad decision that won't stand the test of time. The decision says more about the justices themselves than it does the decision. Voting the "right way" gets positive press attention, invites to the DC social circle, etc. Kavanaugh and Barrett are both attention seeking, weak willed individuals that Roberts plays like puppets. Personally, Trump should not have nominated either of them. And W's nomination and selection of Roberts over Scalia was appalling. Neither a textualist or an originalist could have ruled that way. And using the 14th Amendment as justification is historically disingenuous, as Clarence Thomas pointed out. Birth tourism will thrive.

New comment by Blackstrat in "The case for physical media ownership"

Blackstrat — Sun, 28 Jun 2026 11:12:52 +0000

So pirating is the answer? I don't think so. It's unethical and illegal. Buy the physical media of the books, movies, and music that you consume. Quit screwing the creators. I've seen numerous complaints on HN about one's code being stolen. What's the difference?

New comment by Blackstrat in "U.S. science is in chaos"

Blackstrat — Thu, 18 Jun 2026 19:10:02 +0000

Perhaps it could. And perhaps you think erecting tents on the White House grounds for state events, like a third world country, is okay as well. The government funds a ridiculous amount of "science", some of which has no utility. That's not the government's role. These types of projects can be funded by the university or private industry or not at all. Being a "scientist" and wanting to research some idea DOES NOT entitle you to taxpayer funding. Again, as I and others here have noted, the money is in interest, defense, and transfer payments. Personally, I'd like to see reforms on all social programs. If one is capable of working, then they work. Until you live somewhere that has a thriving economy in government money and see the abuse, you have no idea what you're talking about. Should government money be used to buy booze? Potato chips? I assure you that it happens everyday. I've seen it first hand. So fix the social programs and then we'll talk about funding fringe science research. And let's quit funding the 120+ foreign biolabs doing DOF research. We've seen that script before.

New comment by Blackstrat in "U.S. science is in chaos"

Blackstrat — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 19:50:55 +0000

These counter arguments would be more persuasive if they didn't sound like left wing talking points. No one on this thread nor in the media knows the reality of what happened in Iraq. That most here dislike Trump, I get it. But, to pretend that this administration is somehow behaving differently than others in the past is ahistorical and disingenuous at best.

New comment by Blackstrat in "U.S. science is in chaos"

Blackstrat — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 19:16:17 +0000

Down voted, imagine that. Predictable as sunrise. So what should be cut?

New comment by Blackstrat in "U.S. science is in chaos"

Blackstrat — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 19:11:41 +0000

The government can't fund everything. Too much of the budget is tied up in transfer and interest payments squeezing out other more viable research. The federal government doesn't have unlimited funds. Something has to give.

New comment by Blackstrat in "What if we legally required politicians to work regular jobs 2 months a year?"

Blackstrat — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 19:08:11 +0000

Term limits. Congress was never intended as a profession. I wish the Constitution had included term limits from the beginning. Alas, everyone wants to get rid of someone else's senator/representative but are never willing to vote against their own.

New comment by Blackstrat in "US Consumer Price Index up 4.2%"

Blackstrat — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 11:18:24 +0000

This is not inflation. The is a supply and demand issue. There are two factors: increasing energy costs due to the season and the rising costs of AI data centers (a big impact in my area). And secondly, the disruption of the oil supply during the continued Middle East conflict. These two issues have caused an energy price spike. Yes, it will eventually result in wide spread costs. But, as the components in the above report indicate, it is not yet spread widely. We are all sensitive to gas price fluctuations. We'd all be better off if we admitted that alternative fuels, other than nuclear, will never provide the requisite energy required to advance civilization. It's time to quit pretending that it will and start building nuclear power plants. Wind and solar farms are not the answer. And end the Iraq war aggressively. It's been nearly 50 years and it's clear that Iraq will never negotiate honestly. So Trump and his allies need to stop pretending and end it. And the same applies to the Ukraine-Russia conflict - no more US tax dollars to the Ukrainian dictator.

New comment by Blackstrat in "American Wealth, Sliced Up"

Blackstrat — Thu, 04 Jun 2026 19:26:30 +0000

I love the reaction that I see when people are told they are responsible for their own outcomes and it takes work. Getting down voted for such comments is hilarious.

New comment by Blackstrat in "Vibe-coding phenomenon lifts AI startup Supabase to $10.5B valuation"

Blackstrat — Thu, 04 Jun 2026 19:25:07 +0000

Remember the dot.com bubble? We're living it again.

New comment by Blackstrat in "American Wealth, Sliced Up"

Blackstrat — Thu, 04 Jun 2026 19:21:05 +0000

Generally, income distribution is a solved problem. The issue is that too many people aren't willing to take the steps necessary to get the income they seek. They'd rather scream about the minimum wage, the ultra-rich, the evil white men, etc. Redistribution schemes do not work. Bottom line, stay in school, get a functional education, stay off drugs, moderate alcohol intake, and don't have kids early, particularly when you aren't married. Yes, I'm aware that there are those people for whom such steps are insurmountable. That's where community organization come into play, e.g., churches, NGOs. It isn't the government's role to ensure equal outcomes. That's called communism. And it fails everywhere it's tried.

New comment by Blackstrat in "The Public Should Own Half of the Big A.I. Companies"

Blackstrat — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 19:08:57 +0000

Under no conditions should the government own AI companies. The government has its hands in too many companies already. What needs to happen is stricter enforcement of copyright laws and intellectual property rights. In other words, AI training data should be curtailed substantially until such time as the companies are willing to pay for it. It's no different than the various other internet piracy issues, e.g., movies and music. Just more hype at the moment. That too will pass.