Hacker News: istjohn

New comment by istjohn in "EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices"

istjohn — Tue, 09 Jun 2026 16:07:24 +0000

It's the saying, "It's easier to ask forgiveness than get permission."

https://quoteinvestigator.com/2018/06/19/forgive/

New comment by istjohn in "Switzerland wil have a referendum to cap population at 10M"

istjohn — Tue, 09 Jun 2026 02:02:30 +0000

Fringy parts like the POTUS?

New comment by istjohn in "Pre-Modern Armies for Worldbuilders, Part I: Why They Fight"

istjohn — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 21:29:25 +0000

Edit: The prominently displayed title of the blog is "A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry." It's precisely what it says on the tin.

He's a military historian writing for a popular audience who naturally get much of their intuitions from pop culture. Of course he's going to find unrealistic elements in creative works. I've never seen him dismiss the overall value of a work due to these unrealistic elements. I enjoy having my misapprehensions acquired from pop culture corrected by an expert. I imagine many of his loyal readers first discovered him through one of his critiques of military depictions in The Lord of the Rings like I did. If you don't enjoy that, he's just not for you. No need to yuck my yum.

New comment by istjohn in "Plants can sense the sound of rain, a new study finds"

istjohn — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 00:37:09 +0000

They did better drinking a placebo than swishing and spitting a beverage with real sugar, so no.

New comment by istjohn in "Edit store price tags using Flipper Zero"

istjohn — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 21:17:21 +0000

I'm absent minded enough to accidentally do this on a bad day. I haven't yet, to my knowledge.

New comment by istjohn in "Unfolder for Mac – A 3D model unfolding tool for creating papercraft"

istjohn — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 22:16:55 +0000

From another comment: https://pepakura.tamasoft.co.jp/pepakura_designer/

New comment by istjohn in "NHS staff refusing to use FDP over Palantir ethical concerns"

istjohn — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 18:28:04 +0000

...in the air

New comment by istjohn in "NHS staff refusing to use FDP over Palantir ethical concerns"

istjohn — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 18:27:21 +0000

I notice you are using the phrase "constitutional law" now, where as the original question was whether the UK can be said to have "a constitution."

The oddities of this "duck" go far beyond its lack of entrenchment. It also lacks form and definition in the way that a puff of smoke lacks form and definition. It includes such nebulous elements as common law, unwritten convention, and even legal commentary of various law scholars. It's also said to be in constant flux as it evolves over time.

It may be a useful abstraction within the context of UK law to refer to this amorphous blob as the "constitution," but for anyone unfamiliar with the UK's system of government, to say the UK has a constitution is grossly misleading in as much as all of the conclusions the listener will draw from that assertion will be false. It's like characterizing a chicken eating grain out of your hand as being "attacked by a dinosaur." The chicken may belong to the clade "Dinosauria" and may have inadvertently pecked your palm in its feeding frenzy, but in as much as it communicates information contrary to fact, it is a confabulation. At best, it's a lawyer's lie, to coin a phrase.

New comment by istjohn in "NHS staff refusing to use FDP over Palantir ethical concerns"

istjohn — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 15:45:48 +0000

From your link: "This enables the constitution to be easily changed as no provisions are formally entrenched."

It doesn't look like a duck, it doesn't quack like a duck, yet you insist that this goose-shaped creature is a duck.

New comment by istjohn in "FTC action against Match and OkCupid for deceiving users, sharing personal data"

istjohn — Mon, 30 Mar 2026 20:19:58 +0000

What exactly will improve if men are more blunt and non-apologetic?

New comment by istjohn in "AI got the blame for the Iran school bombing. The truth is more worrying"

istjohn — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 23:50:33 +0000

It would be journalistic malpractice to avoid reporting on anything that the government does that the government isn't willing to admit publically to doing. It's possible to ascertain facts, even of the actions of the US government, to a level of certainty sufficient to report them as facts, even when the government disputes the facts.

New comment by istjohn in "Miscellanea: The War in Iran"

istjohn — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 06:41:55 +0000

The Dem leadership is almost as pro-Israel as the Republicans. Schumer will go through the motions of condemning the war, but inside, he's tickled pink. Remember, it was a Dem president who supplied bombs for the Israel genocide in Gaza for two full years.

New comment by istjohn in "Miscellanea: The War in Iran"

istjohn — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 06:29:40 +0000

If Trump truly cared about nukes, he wouldn't have torn up the treaty in his first term. This war's about catering to Israel and distracting from the Epstein files.

New comment by istjohn in "US Job Market Visualizer"

istjohn — Mon, 16 Mar 2026 17:16:21 +0000

Total addressable market

New comment by istjohn in "Fentanyl makeover: Core structural redesign could lead to safer pain medications"

istjohn — Thu, 26 Feb 2026 18:30:12 +0000

Is that such a bad thing? Plenty of people will take medications for the rest of their life -- statins, antipsychotics, antidepressants, ADHD meds, antiretrovirals. The stigma of chronic medicine use needs to go away.

New comment by istjohn in "Assistant to the Regional Manager"

istjohn — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 00:42:07 +0000

The entire idea of post-scarcity doesn't withstand the slightest scrutiny. Even if unlimited energy and matter could be summoned by magic, one would be limited by space and the speed of light, and by the threat of black hole formation if too much matter and energy is crammed into too small a region of space. In addition, one's time would be limited by the impending heat death.

New comment by istjohn in "Shifts in U.S. Social Media Use, 2020–2024: Decline, Fragmentation, Polarization (2025)"

istjohn — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 01:53:07 +0000

AI detectors are snake oil.

New comment by istjohn in "U.S. life expectancy hits all-time high"

istjohn — Sun, 01 Feb 2026 04:08:32 +0000

Your source doesn't support your claim.

New comment by istjohn in "Does running wear out the bodies of professionals and amateurs alike?"

istjohn — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 14:37:22 +0000

The Wikipedia article on that race is a must-read: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1904_Summer_O...

New comment by istjohn in "In 6 violent encounters, evidence contradicts immigration officials' narratives"

istjohn — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 00:36:16 +0000

Our cities are being occuppied by paramilitary forces who are assaulting residents, routinely telling brazen lies about high-profile incidents, and racially profiling without pretense. This is not normal.