Hacker News: dfilppi

New comment by dfilppi in "DOGE Track"

dfilppi — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 16:38:38 +0000

DOGE has no power. It produces information. Is the premise of this page that information about government operations is bad? If the goal is to persuade somebody that government should grow with no oversight forever, good luck. Democrats will read the site with horror. Republicans will cheer the accomplishments listed. People in neither camp probably won't pay attention, but if they do, they'll split down the middle.

New comment by dfilppi in "Google to back three new nuclear projects"

dfilppi — Thu, 08 May 2025 14:47:59 +0000

Nuclear (hopefully fusion at some point) is the only plausible way to meet energy needs in the future (that we currently know of). Fear of nuclear waste isn't irrational, but highly overblown because catastrophic events are more emotionally compelling than the slow degradation of either living standards and/or environment caused by competing technology.

New comment by dfilppi in "Does current AI represent a dead end?"

dfilppi — Fri, 27 Dec 2024 16:43:57 +0000

Somehow, fallible humans create robust systems. Look to "AI' to do the same, at a far higher speed. The "AI" doesn't need to recite the Fibonacci sequence; it can write (and test) a program that does so. Speed is power.

New comment by dfilppi in "Millions Still Months Behind on Rent After Eviction Moratorium Ends"

dfilppi — Sat, 25 Sep 2021 03:07:07 +0000

Apparently they can declare anything and people will obey

New comment by dfilppi in "Killing Robots and Just War Theory"

dfilppi — Thu, 29 Jul 2021 14:38:14 +0000

Nope. Setting aside resistance to government, there is home defense, which is more practical.

New comment by dfilppi in "Beyond “Fermi’s Paradox” XVI: What Is the “Dark Forest” Hypothesis?"

dfilppi — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 14:31:58 +0000

I suspect that any advanced species would abandon life as soon as possible. E.g. become non-biological and immortal. Then interstellar travel is trivial.

New comment by dfilppi in "Beyond “Fermi’s Paradox” XVI: What Is the “Dark Forest” Hypothesis?"

dfilppi — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 14:27:32 +0000

Perhaps. But we're not talking about individuals.

New comment by dfilppi in "Status, Wealth, & Power: Network Effects Demand a New Social Contract"

dfilppi — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 16:34:25 +0000

The "social contract" is not a contract, but the word "contract" is used to infer some kind of responsibility or "norm". In reality it refers to what ever equilibrium has been reach in a certain market context between business owners and everybody else. It is a fiction.

New comment by dfilppi in "Status, Wealth, & Power: Network Effects Demand a New Social Contract"

dfilppi — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 16:32:02 +0000

Trickle down doesn't "work", because "work" has been defined a certain way. Define "work" another way, and it does "work". It also presumes that the government somehow has first dibs on what people earn, which is absurd.

New comment by dfilppi in "Humanity Has Flipped the Amazon Forest from Carbon Sink to Source"

dfilppi — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 14:43:11 +0000

Humanity hasnt. Brazil has

New comment by dfilppi in "The Problem of Evil (2015)"

dfilppi — Sun, 11 Jul 2021 16:37:11 +0000

Yes but if Santa Claus exists, how can you explain the Easter bunny?

New comment by dfilppi in "Sports Owners Use Their Teams to Avoid Millions in Taxes"

dfilppi — Thu, 08 Jul 2021 14:43:58 +0000

In the plus side at least the government doesnt get the money

New comment by dfilppi in "Carbon removal hype is becoming a dangerous distraction"

dfilppi — Thu, 08 Jul 2021 14:38:44 +0000

Using nuclear energy doesnt require the overthrow of capitalism.

New comment by dfilppi in "Simple, solar-powered water desalination (2020)"

dfilppi — Fri, 02 Jul 2021 15:10:12 +0000

That is acceptable

New comment by dfilppi in "NATO is looking to connect with startups"

dfilppi — Fri, 25 Jun 2021 14:22:28 +0000

The inevitable rise of Skynet

New comment by dfilppi in "The drought in the western U.S. is getting bad"

dfilppi — Wed, 09 Jun 2021 14:55:54 +0000

California has an ocean. Desalinated. Not brain surgery.

New comment by dfilppi in "Lifetime Earnings in the United States over Six Decades"

dfilppi — Fri, 28 May 2021 14:32:18 +0000

You switched from income to wealth

New comment by dfilppi in "How corporations buy and food made with prison labor"

dfilppi — Wed, 19 May 2021 16:46:47 +0000

The cost of imprisoning them is borne by taxpayers, but the imprisoned arenl responsible. So add that to their income.

New comment by dfilppi in "A Recap of the Mars Terraforming Debate"

dfilppi — Thu, 13 May 2021 19:30:47 +0000

Mars needs more gravity and raw materials (nitrogen). I suggest a large impactor or impactors to solve both. Now how to get them there...

New comment by dfilppi in "The Amazon Rainforest Now Emits More Greenhouse Gases Than It Absorbs"

dfilppi — Sat, 08 May 2021 03:21:11 +0000

Yes it is theirs even if the world depends on it.