steph

women's rights and wrongs // salty sapphic // literature and media nerd // is hololive just an excuse to continue being an idol fan? in this essay, i will

[KangusBangus @KangusB3]

No boomer has ever applied to 500 jobs and gotten 5 emails back and 2 interviews and no employment.

They do not understand the world that we live in. They cannot understand it, that would shatter their world view. They reflexively call you lazy to protect their view of reality.

[Richard @ricwe123]

What most people already understand, even without the economic terminology, is that firms like BlackRock operate less like investors and more like modern feudal landlords.

They buy essential infrastructure,water networks, ports, energy grids, data centres, and other public necessities, often using vast amounts of borrowed money and paying prices that ordinary market participants cannot match.
Once the acquisition is complete, the debt is pushed onto the acquired company itself.

The result is simple: the public pays.

Consumers repay that debt through higher water bills, rising energy prices, increased fees, and declining service quality.
The infrastructure becomes a cash-extraction machine.
Profits flow upward to shareholders and executives, while the financial burden flows downward to households.

When the model inevitably breaks down, the consequences are socialised. Communities are left with crumbling infrastructure, polluted rivers, and failing services.
Thames Water's £14 billion debt mountain and repeated sewage scandals are a stark example of what happens when financial engineering takes precedence over public stewardship.

The executives who loaded the company with debt have already collected their bonuses.
The investors have already taken their returns.
And when the system finally reaches breaking point, taxpayers are expected to pick up the bill.

Privatise the gains.
Socialise the losses.
That is the business model.

[Aditya Bidikar @adityab]

I don’t understand this. Till a couple of years ago, EVERYONE wrote without AI. Now you can’t write without it? What’s this learned helplessness?

[adrienne @barelytolerabIe]

Imagine blowing 30 years of search engine dominance—so much so that your website became a verb—only to kill your search engine in favor of a inferior product only tech bros and their sycophants like.

[6ɪx✦ @ok6ixx]

I accidentally walked into a "locals only" type izakaya. You know the kind, no English, everyone knows each other, they got quiet when I walked in.

I was about to leave but the owner called out "sit, sit!" and pointed to a seat at the bar.

I was the only non-regular there. Everyone else clearly came there after work every day, had their usual orders, their usual seats.

The guy next to me, drunk off his ass, started talking to me in slurred Japanese. I understood maybe every fifth word.

The owner translated some of it: "he wants to know if you like baseball."

I said sure, yeah. That was the wrong answer because the drunk guy wanted to have a full conversation about baseball.

For the next hour, with the owner translating bits and pieces, I had this passionate discussion about Japanese baseball with a man who could barely sit straight.

Other regulars joined in. Someone bought me a beer. Someone else ordered food for me without asking what I wanted.

The owner kept saying "they are excited to talk to foreigners. Usually foreigners don't come here."

By the end of the night, I'd exchanged contact info with three people, been invited to someone's house for dinner (I was leaving the next day, couldn't go), and learned way too much about the Hanshin Tigers.

When I tried to pay, the owner said the drunk baseball guy already paid my bill. I tried to find him to thank him. He'd already left.

The owner said "he says you are a good listener. That is rare for young people."

I was just too confused to do anything but nod and smile, but apparently that counted as good listening.

[-Shiyoi- @Shiyoi296633]

いきなり「AI」と言われて、自分も驚きました。幸い、レイヤーを統合する前にバックアップを取る習慣があったので助かりました。これでもまだ「AI」と言うなら、もう言いようがありません。

[selina is ᐸcuteᐳ and ᐸpopᐳ @inkblotPrincess]

we're about to see the worst announcement of all time

[Bri @wordsandsense]

My good friend Ursula K. Le Guin has some thoughts on this

[禿道道🐟 @dearemon]

我真的笑快去世⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯

百變怪居然出茶具組 我要發瘋🤣🤣🤣

[Librarianshipwreck @libshipwreck]

Neat fact: the historic Luddites were not defeated because they lacked popular support or because of the “inevitable” march of technological progress. Rather they were violently put down by state force (military).

Just a neat fact! Meanwhile, on a totally unrelated note…

[recluse; @cosine_distance]

I once got job security advice from an old timer who worked at IBM: "you have to inject subtle time bombs in the code that only you can disable. If they ever fire you they have to hire you back at 2x as a consultant"

[Nara Indriyani @Naraindryni]

finally, i got it 🤣

[Annie? Rauwerda? @anniierau]

"why use google?" webpage from 1999

[スタミナ定食 @stamina6505]

額装はいいぞ…

[Studio STELLAR @ST_STELLAR_info]

☄️#HoshimachiSuisei Merch Update☄️

◼︎ Birthday & 8th Anniversary Celebration Merch
◼︎ "Echoes Baa" Merch

An update for our overseas fans and customers who prefer non-credit card payment methods.

We are currently making the final adjustments to set up this special sales period for you.

Sales are now expected to launch between early and mid-June.
Thank you very much for your patience and understanding.
We truly appreciate your continued support.

[佐藤日向 @satohina1223]

この使い方、可愛いと思うのです
#スタァライト9thEX

[AKIHABARAゲーマーズ本店 @akiba_gema]

🎈Happy Birthday🎈

🎉本日5/29🎉は
『#魔法少女リリカルなのは 』シリーズ
フェイトさんのお誕生日ゲマ！

魔法少女リリカルなのは EXCEEDS Gun Blaze Vengeance
7/4の放送開始にどんどん近づいてきたゲマ🎵
引き続きゲーマーズは、
全力全開‼️で超応援ゲマよ💖

#なのは #nanoha #なのはEXGV
#フェイト・テスタロッサ生誕祭2026
#フェイト・T・ハラオウン生誕祭2026

[🎐 Polyaness 🎐 @VnixxiR]

My wife loves pogiemon
I love my wife
Some of our favorites