RCS? That’ll be the protocol that’s handled by Google, which meant for me that it had to go. Stick with SMS/MMS and use Signal for text communication over the internet. Whilst you’re at it, replace all the Google apps with the Fossify alternatives. Fuck Google and fuck Apple.

It’s hard to know what the right move is in this post-truth world as we all have our biases and legitimate reasons for thinking the way that we do. I remember around the turn of the millennium thinking that the rise of the internet would herald in an new era of enlightenment where access to information would increase the intelligence of literally everyone. Boy, was I wrong. Turns out the Information Age should have been called the Disinformation Age.

I think the rise of Trump is a reaction to a broken system that has become too corrupt and too big to sustain itself. It might not be all bad in the long term, but right now it feels like the world is falling apart. If you look at all systems (particularly biological) they tend to eventually decentralise to function more effectively. The lungs, liver, heart, kidneys, stomach all function independently from each other yet work together to benefit the whole, trading off excess resources for things that they lack yet need. Evolution created this system from what was a primordial soup of waring organisms, viruses, cells, bacteria, etc. Perhaps humanity is on the cusp of that transition into a more coherent functioning planetary system. Countries should use the resources they have and trade the excess for things that they don’t have but need, much like the organs in the body do. Perhaps America needs to decentralise and has gotten too big to function effectively. I don’t know, but these are the kind of things I think about now and again.

There’s a lot about the way the world works that makes little sense so something has got to change. Take a simple example like prawns caught off the west coast of Scotland. How can it be more efficient to send them to China to get packaged before returning again to be consumed? Utter madness! But that’s the centralised system of exploitation. It’s cheaper, but neither effective nor healthy.

Take the banking crisis where money was thrown at the banks to bail them out. What a dumb idea that achieved absolutely nothing. It was like sticking a band aid on a gunshot wound. It stopped the bleeding for a while, but didn’t fix the problem. Then you look at Iceland who did the complete opposite to everyone else and let their banks fail. The bankers ended up in jail like they rightly should have done and now their economy is booming.

I don’t know where I’m going with all this, I kind of fell down a rabbit hole of hoping that there’s a light at the end of the dark tunnel we all seemingly find ourselves in.

TikTok!? Who gives a shit? How about save Palestine first?

Scotland stayed in the UK because people bought into the fear-mongering being spread by the UK government. There were several fronts the UK targeted us with. Pensions was one (which scared all the old folks), currency was another (even though there was no real reason we couldn’t continue to use the pound). The economy was also targeted under the argument that we were too small a country to sustain ourselves, despite having a similar population size to Norway who survive extremely well as an independent nation. Between oil, tourism, gaming/tech industry, and whisky exports we could have not only survived but thrived. One other argument was that we’d have to reapply for entry into the EU and that staying in the UK guaranteed we’d remain in Europe, only for English voters to vote the UK out of the EU several years later. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot. Scotland voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU but it didn’t matter as it was a UK wide election, so basically we were told to shut the fuck up and put up. This should have been a significant change in circumstances that would trigger another independence referendum, but such referendums require UK parliament approval and the Tory scum wouldn’t let us hold one. Personally I would have been inclined to declare independence unilaterally, but given how 55% of the population were chicken-shits in 2014, it would be unlikely to happen. There’s also the cultural aspect that stops Scotland becoming independent. A large part of the population are Protestant and have been brainwashed through generations to believe in the laughable antiquated concept of King & Country. Basically Scotland has a long history of being kicked in the teeth by the English ruling class. So much so that many people have absolutely no confidence in self-determination or belief in their own ability to thrive and succeed. If only these people who feel that they need to be looked after would fuck off to the England they love so much, Scotland could move forward into the 21st century as a progressive, forward-thinking nation. Independence supporters always get labelled as rascist and anti-English, but the opposite is the truth. We’re welcoming to everyone who wants to make their home here and contribute to making the country a success - English, African, American, Chinese, whatever.

Aye, people criticise the Scottish government but they have short memories. They forget what it was like before devolution and particularly prior to SNP rule. Labour and the Tories never gave a fuck about Scotland. They still don’t. The only sadness is that we never got full independence. Whilst there is indeed a lot to criticise with the SNP there’s also much that they have given us and making sure rural communities get decent internet access is just one of those things. Hell, my broadband is better up here than it was when I lived in the central belt. The National Health Service works better up here too, and free health with free prescriptions has got to be a good thing. Down in England they still have to pay for prescriptions. Honestly, I don’t understand why 55% voted to stay in the UK back in 2014. I guess it’s like people voting Trump - there’s just a lot of fucking dummies out there.

Weather’s shit a lot of the time here in Scotland.

Recently Highland & Lothian Broadband rolled out full fibre here in the Northern Highlands - the installation of which was government funded. I’m pretty rural so I grabbed the basic package at £35 per month (about $45) and it’s more than enough for my needs. However the top package 2000Mbps (up & down) will set you back £54.99 per month (approx’ $71), although that’s an introductory offer and goes up to £89.99 (approx’ $116) after 24 months. I can’t fault the service. No caps, no limits, router is modern with WiFi 6 although I ethernet most things using my old router as a switch. I also don’t seem to be blocked from any websites. My previous provider, BT Broadband, blocked me from The Pirate Bay requiring me to use a VPN. Not so with Highland Broadband. Straight in, no problems.

In all honesty and without any sarcasm that was obviously present in my previous comment, looking in at the US as an outsider, I don’t hold out much hope for America. It’s not just Team Trump, it’s the whole system. The previous lot weren’t much better (and often sometimes worse). Everything seems extremely polarised which will never pan out well. Big corporations seem to control everything (from internet and food to finance and pharma), there’s no free health care (a human right considered by many countries but viewed as communism by America). I could go on and on, but I would only sound unnecessarily negative. A good idea would be to get out and get off an obvious sinking ship. This is probably easier said than done, but there’s always a way. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not perfect elsewhere, but I think once the US collapses it’ll be a wake-up call for a lot of countries who will also have to adjust having relied so heavily on America through trade as well as culturally. If too big to fail was a real thing, then we wouldn’t have history books full of empires collapsing. With all sincerity, good luck.

Unlimited full fibre here in the rural nothern Highlands of Scotland for £35 per month.

Your internet seems similar to your politicians: useless and expensive.

I find the UI pretty slick. No confusion over what needs to be done. All the tools are there plus I had to rely on it recently to get one of my machines back up and running. It worked flawlessly and restored everything from the backup images like my system had never been down.

Well, looks like it’s not safe for them to play against European teams now too. What a shame.

Try Foxclone. I prefer it over Clonezilla.

https://foxclone.org/

And why the fuck are they in the Europa league? Last I checked Israel was nowhere near Europe. Aren’t they Semitic and from the Middle East? At least they love to use that definition when they shout “antisemitism” at anyone who criticises them. And why are they in the European Song Contest? Anyway, no sympathy. They clearly like violence so let them have it.

The extension is called Firefox.

I think you’re being a bit over dramatic. The US is already fucked. It’s Rome before the fall. If Trump gets in the inevitable decline will only happen quicker. The Democrats are wolves in sheep’s clothing who merely slow this decline. A two party system controlled by the same lobbyists is only an illusion of democracy. Until the American people break out of that, there’s no hope. I don’t hold out much hope for America. The collapse has been on the cards for decades. A country gets the president it deserves. The US is built on greed, corruption, decadence, fraud and imperialist ideology. Everyone else in the world can see it for exactly what it is. Goodbye America. The experiment failed.

Yeah, they did that here in 2014 with peer pressure and the likes. The most ridiculous thing that occurred was “The Vow” which appeared two days before the referendum in the shittiest of shitty tabloid newspapers, promising the people of Scotland new powers, more say and the political equivalent of a goody bag. It was so cartoonish I didn’t think people would fall for it, but some did, and it was enough to swing the vote. Needless to say “The Vow” never came into effect. Surprise! Surprise!

Kamala’s not promising anything, let alone horeshit, so my prediction is sadly a Trump win.

Weird looking bastard, isn’t he?

You vote with your heart for a party that reflects your values. Never align with what you think is the lesser of two evils. They are both still evil. This is the problem with what is essentially a two party system like they have in the US. Forget the consequences. If you don’t agree with the policies of the two main parties, then vote for a third that reflects your values. Years ago, here in Scotland, the SNP were regarded as a fringe movement only for them to gain power to a point where they acquired an over-all majority under a system of Proportional Representation (a system that makes gaining an over-all majority extremely difficult). How did this happen? Over time and under the realisation that the two main parties didn’t reflect people’s values, they chose instead to vote with their hearts. This lead to the opportunity in a 2014 referendum to become an independent country. Sadly, the population was duped and decided to stick with the devil they knew, but the fight goes on. People in the US need to do the same. Genocide is never acceptable. It is a red line. If you vote for a third party and Trump gets in then your conscience is clear and a message has been sent. Then the fight goes on and you deal with that problem next. It’s small steps, one stage at a time. Certain things have to be regarded as unacceptable. It’s a case of “Non Serviam” regardless of the conditions.

It’s an interesting take on it for sure, but I think .io will remain. While geopolitics can be a huge factor, there’s too many top level domains tied up in it. In the end, money talks and bullshit walks.

I don’t get it either. I think that’s exactly what will happen in the end and that this is a story about nothing that the media has latched onto (I’ve seen this reported elsewhere). I guess they’ve got to try and find as much content as they can to try and detract from reporting on the genocide in Gaza.

I’ve been thinking about doing just that for my next phone.