Hacker News: dbspin

New comment by dbspin in "Polymarket gamblers threaten to kill me over Iran missile story"

dbspin — Mon, 16 Mar 2026 14:50:11 +0000

Unfortunately what you're describing is precisely the opposite of the meaning of 'democratised'. A more accurate term would be commoditised. In this case the capacity to manipulate events becomes as tied to wealth as it is to access to information.

New comment by dbspin in "Harold and George Destroy the World"

dbspin — Sun, 15 Mar 2026 15:50:13 +0000

They may have dropped from the level of death during the war itself. A transnational conflict that involved every continent on earth. But I'd be shocked if the numbers dead from war in the post war period did not exceed the median number of civilian victims of war pre-WW1 or in the post war period. The World Wars normalised the idea of total war, of death squads and killing fields and mechanised genocide. Those have continued apace, everywhere from the Congo to Cambodia. At the time they were novelties in 'the civilised' world.

New comment by dbspin in "Elon Musk pushes out more xAI founders as AI coding effort falters"

dbspin — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 23:18:23 +0000

It's literally called aesthetics, the philosophical approach is the original meaning of the word - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aesthetics

Properly, focusing on aesthetics as an ethic would be practicing the philosophy of aestheticism - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aestheticism

New comment by dbspin in "Colon cancer now leading cause of cancer deaths under 50 in US"

dbspin — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:02:35 +0000

For set related jobs, the hours are the shoot. If the shoot runs long, everybody's on set. It's an exploitative - and in my view, completely unnecessary - culture. The marriages, parental relationships and health costs cannot be justified by the supposed necessity of dollar savings. But currently - especially in the US, film sets all to often work sweatshop hours. More enlightened practices, like 'French hours' (a ten hour day), are also possible. The films created under these conditions don't seem any worse, and the people involved are inarguably happier and healthier.

New comment by dbspin in "ATMs didn’t kill bank teller jobs, but the iPhone did"

dbspin — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 23:57:41 +0000

Isn't it obvious why?

We contact support services to fix material problems. 'This booking is wrong.' 'I want a refund for that.' AI systems aren't empowered to solve these problems. At best they can provide information. If the answer is information - the user can likely already find it online themselves (often from a better AI model than they're going to find running your support line). If they're calling, they most often want something done.

New comment by dbspin in "Colon cancer now leading cause of cancer deaths under 50 in US"

dbspin — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 17:19:34 +0000

One hundred percent. I work in film, and recently had an argument with a friend around this point. He's incredibly healthy, and frequently works a large number of unsociable hours. I was pointing out that filmmaking hours make no concession for family or age. He'd convinced himself that he'll have no more difficulty doing 80 hour weeks in his forties and fifties than he does in his mid thirties, because he 'takes care of himself'. The implication being that everyone could work those hours if they just ate better and held multiple martial arts belts as he does. It was no use pointing out that he'd confused cause and effect.

New comment by dbspin in "Rendezvous with Rama"

dbspin — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 22:38:11 +0000

Counterpoint, I very much enjoyed the sequels (all but the last). They added three dimensional characters, especially women and explored a variety of aspects of first contact. They're a believable examination of how humans recreate the same social ills over and over, given the opportunity for utopia.

New comment by dbspin in "How to stop being boring"

dbspin — Fri, 20 Feb 2026 15:18:14 +0000

> Truth is, once youth passes, over time people become increasingly disinterested in others.

I find almost exactly the opposite is true. As you age your perceived value lessens, while you find the nuances of human behaviour ever more fascinating. Meanwhile many of the current cohort of twenty somethings seem disinterested in everything, including one another.

New comment by dbspin in "America's pensions can't beat Vanguard but they can close a hospital"

dbspin — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 12:04:12 +0000

That's factually wrong - extrinsic demands decrease intrinsic motivation. There's a tonne of research on this. Similarly negative conditioning is less effective than positive.

New comment by dbspin in "America's pensions can't beat Vanguard but they can close a hospital"

dbspin — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 20:03:53 +0000

> People don't value what they get for free

No education is free, it's paid in time and effort. I value my degree because it was difficult, not because it had a cost attached. One that could be purchased without effort would have no value.

New comment by dbspin in "America's pensions can't beat Vanguard but they can close a hospital"

dbspin — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 20:02:46 +0000

A liberal education serves a social function. It makes human beings.

There's a student loan crisis because US education is dominated by for profit colleges (in start contrast to most other countries) and because student loans lack ordinary consumer productions (in stark contrast to all other countries).

In the US students act as guarantors for debt obligations between the government and commercial institutions. The reverse of the usual arrangement.

New comment by dbspin in "America's pensions can't beat Vanguard but they can close a hospital"

dbspin — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 16:21:07 +0000

Great example of narrow rationality. Huge amount of Americas current problems can be traced back to a poorly educated population. Universal access to third level education, combined with a school system designed to educate - in direct opposition to current goal of producing labour units for corporate; would massively improve pretty much ever aspect of American life.

The market lens is myopic, the market cannot be expected to produce social goods in proportion to necessity - that's not any part of its function.

I agree that the student loan system is insane. Students need grants to cover cost of living while they focus on learning, education itself of course should be free.

New comment by dbspin in "The US is flirting with its first-ever population decline"

dbspin — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 12:46:12 +0000

You've missed my point... Those allowances and subsidies don't remotely cover the cost of having children. Especially in the US with the wild costs of hospital childbirth itself.

New comment by dbspin in "The US is flirting with its first-ever population decline"

dbspin — Tue, 10 Feb 2026 15:56:23 +0000

I don't think there's a country in Europe that funds childcare remotely to the level of cost. The most generous I'm aware of is certain states / cities in Germany that provide free 'Kita', essentially Kindergarten. In addition to maternity leave, national insurance etc. But this certainly doesn't cover the numerous costs (including time off work etc) associated with having kids.

Would be an interesting experiment to actually pay people to have kids - i.e.: financially reward them in accordance with the costs involved. I suspect, as with an actual liveable UBI, the results would differ radically.

New comment by dbspin in "The US is flirting with its first-ever population decline"

dbspin — Tue, 10 Feb 2026 15:53:27 +0000

I think you missed the sarcasm.

New comment by dbspin in "Discord will require a face scan or ID for full access next month"

dbspin — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 20:12:47 +0000

Sortation.

New comment by dbspin in "Amazon closing its Fresh and Go stores"

dbspin — Wed, 28 Jan 2026 10:31:52 +0000

The only time I tried one of these it locked my credit card, while visiting the US. Not a fun time.

New comment by dbspin in "Douglas Adams on the English–American cultural divide over "heroes""

dbspin — Mon, 26 Jan 2026 19:24:49 +0000

Well for one, no real life mob overlord has a killer sound track and the best DOPs in the business making him look 'cool'. Real life violence doesn't cut away. Real life doesn't have moments of humours for the families of the murdered left behind etc etc.

I'm a filmmaker myself, and the nature of narrative television is to glamorise.

New comment by dbspin in "Douglas Adams on the English–American cultural divide over "heroes""

dbspin — Thu, 22 Jan 2026 17:37:09 +0000

David Brent is poisonous, and indeed hatable. The point of the British version of the show is not that he's more tolerable or likeable to the British. If anything it's more pointed how awful he is this side of the water, given the preponderance of bosses exactly like this. What makes the show work in the UK (and Ireland), is a greater cultural willingness to see the worst aspects of reality reflected in entertainment. Versus the focus on escapism in even the most grim US television - i.e.: Tony Soprano is a monster, but he also has charisma and glamour. Walter White is dying and becoming more and more amoral, but he also goes from being a dork to a badass. Both characters are utter glamorisations of what their real life counterparts would be like. Along with the surrealism there's a genuine existentialism to the darkest of UK comedy - from early Alan Partridge to Nighty Night. An actual interest in examining the nature of cruelty and suffering.

New comment by dbspin in "Ask HN: How can we solve the loneliness epidemic?"

dbspin — Sat, 17 Jan 2026 15:01:45 +0000

My point stands - if anything a cocktail party is potentially less expensive to host since you know in advance numbers and preferences.

> These are somewhat normal things as part of a knit-community adult life.

As something of an adult myself (I'm 46), I'm well aware of how community functions. I'm also aware of the 'keeping up with the jones' nature of wealth and how corrosive that is to community - being entirely founded on the selective and exclusive nature of spending.

My contention stands, there is no need whatsoever to spend thousands on a cocktail party. One doesn't need to 'opt out' of social life. It's perfectly possible to serve cocktails yourself, to buy 'off the shelf' brands rather than expensive whiskey etc. It's perfectly possible to prepare your own food, or work with a chef who organises 'super club' style catering, which does not cost thousands.

It's a choice to live this way, not a fate. And doubtless it affords status among other high worth individuals - just as it dooms you to a life of fruitless comparison and ostentatiousness.