Hacker News: standardUser

New comment by standardUser in "Nashville uses eminent domain to block data center near zoo"

standardUser — Thu, 06 Aug 2026 04:24:09 +0000

Big Tech has accumulated too many grievances across too many segments of society and made too much money in the process, so let's not act surprised at a backlash. And data centers are remarkably well-suited as a focal point for people to express those accumulated grievances. So I wouldn't look too hard at all the many and varied reasons that data centers are being opposed, but instead at the quickness and ferocity and consistency with which they are being opposed. It reminds of the movement in the US and Canada in the 90's to oppose unfettered globalization - though this already feels larger and more widespread (and less late to the party).

New comment by standardUser in "Young adults are poor despite every metric which suggests otherwise"

standardUser — Sat, 18 Jul 2026 17:14:10 +0000

A growing segment of young men increasingly embrace violence, conspiracy theories, far-right politics and machismo in general. Women can tolerate and even embrace a lot of male-coded things, like sports and cars and video games, but do you really expect them to embrace the manosphere or Trumpism? Not to say that this is universal - but there is a clear trajectory and we see it throughout the developed world (see: South Korea).

New comment by standardUser in "Young adults are poor despite every metric which suggests otherwise"

standardUser — Sat, 18 Jul 2026 17:10:05 +0000

Those 60-year-olds existed in a brief and exceptional moment of wealth creation brought about by factors that are unlikely to happen again in ours or our children's lifetime. The problem being that the American ethos decided to pretend that brief moment was normal and sustainable.

New comment by standardUser in "Young adults are poor despite every metric which suggests otherwise"

standardUser — Sat, 18 Jul 2026 16:56:09 +0000

"Marriage follows the same pattern. Women now substantially outnumber men on university campuses and outpace them in degrees earned, yet the preference for husbands who match or exceed a wife’s income and education has not correspondingly relaxed. The result is a radical market mismatch."

I read a lot on this particular topic and this is a little too narrow of a reading. There is a more dominant trend - women and men are drifting apart culturally faster than they are economically. Men who keep pace culturally can get away with falling behind economically, and, to a lesser degree, vice versa. But you can't fall behind on both and expect to find a lot of women interested in dating or marrying you.

New comment by standardUser in "Why American ambulance rides are so expensive"

standardUser — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 23:39:15 +0000

The genius part is that the negotiations that determine how much they can get away with charging completely excludes the consumer. Two for-profit entities, with no mandate to actually provide care, decide how much they should pay each other.

New comment by standardUser in "Why American ambulance rides are so expensive"

standardUser — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 23:36:15 +0000

And then do what, precisely? Quit your job and find one with better insurance options?

New comment by standardUser in "Men's average testosterone levels have halved in last 50 years"

standardUser — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 19:11:01 +0000

If hitting a home run is getting a woman pregnant, then I'd wager men are hoping to strike out in 3 pitches during 99.5% of their at bats.

New comment by standardUser in "GPT‑Live"

standardUser — Wed, 08 Jul 2026 20:08:35 +0000

I don't think most adults can get much social value or satisfaction from an AI conversation they know is not a real person. Those who can get that satisfaction likely have so few human-to-human interactions that an AI companion may be as good a solution to chronic loneliness as any.

I'd be more worried about the inevitable robo-nannies who could end up talking more to young children than actual people.

New comment by standardUser in "Men's average testosterone levels have halved in last 50 years"

standardUser — Tue, 07 Jul 2026 22:10:12 +0000

“Obesity and diabetes could easily account for all of this,”

Wither Ozempic? I've seen several friends and family members use it to great effect and thought it might sweep the nation. But I imagine most of the same barriers that keep people from eating better or moving more are also in play when trying to engage with any new habit.

New comment by standardUser in "Men's average testosterone levels have halved in last 50 years"

standardUser — Tue, 07 Jul 2026 22:04:09 +0000

Seems like a minor issue, since most men only utilize their sperm two or three times in their entire lives, if at all. Maybe men should be freezing sperm while they're young and virile.

The War on Self-Driving Cars Will Kill People

standardUser — Thu, 02 Jul 2026 18:02:11 +0000

Article URL: https://reason.com/2026/07/01/the-war-on-self-driving-cars-will-kill-people/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48765192

Points: 4

# Comments: 4

New comment by standardUser in "Sony Deletes 551 Movies PlayStation Owners Paid For"

standardUser — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 21:05:36 +0000

The list of legislation we need is getting very big very fast, but our Congress is dysfunctional and the president only cares about the SAVE act. Even when we've had a functional Congress, most protections like these are written in favor of corporations and/or weakened by the next administration.

New comment by standardUser in "Department of Commerce has lifted export controls on Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5"

standardUser — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 01:37:19 +0000

You're suggesting a for-profit company both hobbled it's own product and is actively lying about doing so. The only way that's true is if the Trump admin has crawled all the way up Anthropic's ass. But by all accounts, this is just another 10% effort by Trump and friends.

New comment by standardUser in "Department of Commerce has lifted export controls on Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5"

standardUser — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 01:33:27 +0000

Better than a foosball table and kegerator.

Europe's Great AC Debate

standardUser — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 20:53:52 +0000

Article URL: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/europes-great-ac-debate-highlights-hot-takes-and-hysteria.html

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48739057

Points: 3

# Comments: 0

New comment by standardUser in "U.S. allows Anthropic to release Mythos AI to ‘trusted’ US organizations"

standardUser — Sat, 27 Jun 2026 00:40:18 +0000

Meanwhile, China is pushing the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO), which, in the face of internal divisions and impotent leadership among Western nations, could prove to be the first global regime that China gets to build and lead.

New comment by standardUser in "U.S. allows Anthropic to release Mythos AI to ‘trusted’ US organizations"

standardUser — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 23:20:43 +0000

All of the agencies responsible for those regulations were created by and get their funding from Congress. Currently, they're asleep at the wheel. Or a better idiom might be "cowering in the corner".

New comment by standardUser in "U.S. government will decide who gets to use GPT-5.6"

standardUser — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 23:09:12 +0000

Any future president will know better than to economically hamstring our closest allies and important trading partners.

New comment by standardUser in "U.S. government will decide who gets to use GPT-5.6"

standardUser — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 23:07:18 +0000

Trade is being reconfigured in the midst of Trump's idiotic trade war (and even more idiotic real war) and militaries worldwide, particularly our closest allies, are seeking non-US sources of arms.

New comment by standardUser in "OpenAI to Stagger Release of GPT 5.6 at Request of U.S. Government"

standardUser — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 06:44:07 +0000

AI and microchips should probably be treated like nuclear weapons and disease research. They all have profound non-military value, but powerful nations hoard them, build elaborate systems to deter proliferation, and reap most of the benefits. It's not exactly fair, but it's worked surprisingly well with some technologies over several generations.

But I don't see it happening soon, which probably means it will be too late. There's simply not enough competent political leadership in the world.