Yeah but deciding not to vote for Biden just feels like a good trendy way to express my sympathies with Palestineans... /s

I mean, if you get into business with a renowned fraudster, him trying to commit fraud and steal from you seems pretty par for the course...

It's a mystery! I'll never understand why the week after yet another price hike, I quit because of the price hike. I guess I just act randomly in response to price hikes.

A few things happened pretty quickly.

During the pandemic, tech profits soared which led to massive hiring sprees. For all the press about layoffs at the big guys, I think most still have more workers than they did pre-pandemic.

Interests rates soared. Before the pandemic interest rates were ludicrously low, in other words it cost almost nothing to borrow money. This made it easier to spend on long term or unclear projects where the hope seemed to be "get enough users, then you can monetize." Once interest rates rose, those became incredibly expensive projects, so funding is now much more scarce. Companies are pulling back on bigger projects or, like reddit, trying to monetize them faster. Startups are also finding it harder, so fewer jobs.

And of course, AI. No one is quite sure how much that'll change the game but some folks think most programmers will be replaceable, or at least 1 programmer will be able to do the work of several. So, rather than hire and go through everything severance etc might entail, I think a lot of companies are taking a wait and see approach and thus not hiring.

The inflation reduction act is probably the most significant piece of climate change policy in American history and is expected to bring emissions to a little under half 2005 levels.

Also, I think it capped insulin prices at $35 a month? That was the hope anyway.

"But I read a book written by one of the few people who were privileged enough to read and write, and things didn't seem so bad!"

I look forward to reading what an online community that specializes in Linux and Star Trek memes has to say about personal hygiene...

Far right extremists claim easy solutions to complex problems. With housing etc pricea going through the roof it's easy to demonize foreigners etc.

Look what happened in Germany with hyper inflation.

How could the free market betray us like this?!?

Not really.

The lottery is paid for by those who all have an equal chance of winning that prize. Also, the profits from lotteries are usually spent on social funds etc.

I feel more conflicted about thr fact that it preys on addiction and those who buy the most lottery tickets are often those who can least afford them. I find that much more grotesque than a random person getting very lucky, but to each their own.

My old pot dealer let people roll a free joint outside with some busted weed under a sign "roll yourself one!" if they bought enough. A guy I know took this as an excuse to roll a giant cannon of a joint.

There is now a sign saying "roll yourself a reasonable sized joint."

Generally, social justice is at best, a distraction from real issues, albeit with very good intentions.

(We talk about human dignity, representation in film etc but not say, the fact most of our stuff is made by children who occasionally burn to death making it. If I were one of the billionaires running things, I would be overjoyed that people were so distracted about what a comedian said versus how our entire economic model is structured.)