Nostr notes by Jen

AI has two areas of socially beneficial use: - pattern analysis, ...

2026-10-11T08:36:12Z

In reply to nevent1q…r43v
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AI has two areas of socially beneficial use:

- pattern analysis, where there is too much data for human to feasibly analyse and the specialist model is built to specific requirements, trained on specific data, and constantly refined by human experts. Eg, looking for patterns in very large data sets in scientific research, identifying plants. These are typically very small and efficient.

- collection of algorithms that is complicated and nuanced enough to appear superficially intelligent. Eg, chess playing computers and other game engines. These are typically very small and efficient.

I have yet to see any other use case that isn't better served by a different existing technology.

Looking things up? Actual web search, going direct to reliable sources, and following citations are more reliable and more efficient. For most general purpose questions, looking it up on Wikipedia is quicker, far less resource intensive, and far more informative and reliable than AI.

Coding? Not if you want something reliable, secure and/or maintainable.

Art? Human creativity will always be more profound and meaningful.

Spelling and grammar checking? We've had non-AI systems for decades that are reasonable. If you really want quality, a human being is the only system capable of understanding both the rules and the artistic and stylistic choices in breaking them.

I find it quite notable that the gaming industry is not crowing about embedding AI everywhere. It has already been using smaller, more specific AIs (usually in the complicated algorithm sense) for computer opponent / character behaviour, map generation, etc for multiple decades, so it isn't afraid of the term. It more recently uses purpose-built small language models for some NPC dialogue, so it's happy to use new technologies. Across all software, games are unusual in selling directly to their users - most other software is bought by managers and used by staff. So games have to be high quality or they lose customers very quickly. I don't believe their lack of churning out AI-produced games is a coincidence - it's a ruthless industry that knows how it makes money.

what percentage of Europeans are disabled such that they ...

2026-09-25T12:57:55Z

In reply to nevent1q…dgq8
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what percentage of Europeans are disabled such that they can't exercise regularly?

can we apply the triple lock to minimum wage, personal ...

2026-08-22T07:33:28Z

In reply to nevent1q…hxvk
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can we apply the triple lock to minimum wage, personal allowances, and benefits, please?

I don't in any way begrudge pensioners getting a better deal - they should do. But I'd really like to see the same principles applied to the rest of us.

I like a glossary. I like being able to check if I've not ...

2026-08-20T10:10:59Z

In reply to nevent1q…zj0w
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I like a glossary.

I like being able to check if I've not understood a word or phrase despite the context of the writing. Usually, I can get it, but not always. It's also something my autistic son struggles with, because his brain doesn't think sideways like that.

I also like learning around new things, and a glossary provides an opportunity in a way that the main prose doesn't. For example, if someone "poured molasses" clearly molasses must be liquid, and that may well be enough to enjoy that part of the story. But being British, I've no real idea what it is, what it's like, or how people use it. A glossary might tell me, giving me a deeper understanding of the word and its place in the story.

it was a lot easier on vinyl. There was no need for separate ...

2026-07-18T14:51:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…kg7p
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it was a lot easier on vinyl.

There was no need for separate tracks to actually be separate - you could have 20 minutes of continuous sound, while the cover listed six tracks. When CDs came along, so did displaying the track number, which then had to match what the cover said. So there had to be a distinct start to each track. They got cleverer with it over time.

there were so many fun things that they did with vinyl that got ...

2026-07-18T07:25:18Z

In reply to nevent1q…z3ks
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there were so many fun things that they did with vinyl that got lost.

Gatefold album covers with amazing art. Picture discs. Tracks that merged into each other without any audible break. Multiple / random versions on the same disc (via double or even triple spiral). Concept albums where people really thought about not just which tracks to include, but what order. Setting things to the wrong speed so even boring singles like Pipes of Peace were fun to listen to.

Digital music is so convenient that I rarely bother to listen to it. Vinyl takes up too much space to store or play. CD is a nice balance for me. But sometimes I do miss the quirky stuff.

do you recall how impressive Gladiator looked? IIRC, it won an ...

2026-07-15T22:08:16Z

In reply to nevent1q…jzpf
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do you recall how impressive Gladiator looked? IIRC, it won an Oscar for costume.

Do you know how they got enough leatherwork to clothe that many extras in stuff that looked good enough in the wide / distant shots? They went to the LARP community and hired a whole bunch of makers to churn out leather armour. Exactly the sort of people who are now selling on Etsy.

(I know this because I happened to know one of the people hired)

so, they're basically Vulcan?

2026-07-06T06:35:13Z

In reply to nevent1q…wewj
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so, they're basically Vulcan?

UK Gov: children will not be allowed access to where we talk ...

2026-06-08T11:17:14Z

In reply to nevent1q…um5u
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UK Gov: children will not be allowed access to where we talk politics!

Also UK Gov: Why aren't young people engaging in politics?

ooh, I found a couple of new hashtags, too. Thanks!

2026-06-02T11:57:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…qc2w
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ooh, I found a couple of new hashtags, too. Thanks!

sometimes hashtags ebb and flow. Concepts like environmental ...

2026-06-02T07:54:53Z

In reply to nevent1q…a2u6
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sometimes hashtags ebb and flow. Concepts like environmental sustainability are quite normal, so aren't necessarily tagged. You may have to branch out what tags you're following.

It's a good idea to look at what other tags are in use on the posts you do see and appreciate, and follow some of them as well. For example some "sustainability" posts are also tagged "solarpunk" or they may have more specific tags like "activetransport".

Looking through the timelines of people who post and boost things you're interested in is another good way to find the sort of the you want.

that makes sense. We Brits are obsessed with "keeping up with ...

2026-05-31T09:49:39Z

In reply to nevent1q…yma2
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that makes sense. We Brits are obsessed with "keeping up with the Joneses."

It also makes sense of a phenomenon exemplified around Stoke-on-Trent. It's a weird place, made up of many small towns. Every time there is money spent on one town, there is an outcry that it isn't being spent on another. "Hanley always gets the funding," is a common refrain, as is, "you'd never see that in Burslem." And it doesn't seem to matter if Tunstall got the investment last year, there's still resentment that Bentilee is getting it this year. And all the rest of Staffordshire is richer, nicer, and clearly has more money spent on it.

No wonder we earn ourselves a pretty ugly reputation.

a report says, "for every £1 spent on employment support for ...

2026-05-28T07:12:45Z

In reply to nevent1q…p9zf
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a report says, "for every £1 spent on employment support for young people, around £25 was spent on benefits." To fix this do you:

A. Increase employment support, knowing the knock-on effects will reduce benefit spend.

B. Cut benefits, knowing it will allow the current decline in employment to continue and overall benefit spend to increase.

on the whole, I lean towards rehabilitation in favour of ...

2026-05-22T06:00:12Z

In reply to nevent1q…arxw
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on the whole, I lean towards rehabilitation in favour of incarceration. But this case feels off.

Where is the desire to avoid criminalising grannies with signs? Why have people having miscarriages had to fight so hard against the weight of the criminal justice system? Why are women harmed so regularly by police-turned-perpetrators? Why is police brutality so prevalent? Why are the prisons bursting at the seams?

The fact that this case has been dealt with so gently against that backdrop feels like a slap in the face. It doesn't feel like "rehabilitation above incarceration" so much as "boys matter more than girls."

I really do hope those boys can be rehabilitated and be better people in future. But will the girls be given as much support to rebuild their lives?

I wonder how quickly care plans would be agreed if the NHS billed ...

2026-05-20T05:58:27Z

In reply to nevent1q…ge9v
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I wonder how quickly care plans would be agreed if the NHS billed social care for excess nights in hospital?

It would prevent them both desperately trying to make each other bear the costs for as long as possible.

No doubt it would create a perverse incentive to assess people fit for discharge before they were, though. And the right fix is to tackle the scarcity of carers and everything they need. But it might go some way to joining up the counting and therefore the thinking.

I don't understand why steel matters enough to pour cash in ...

2026-05-12T05:52:32Z

In reply to nevent1q…4msg
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I don't understand why steel matters enough to pour cash in and re-re-re-nationalise, but other vital-to-industry sectors like water, energy, and public transit are left to rot.

yes, absolutely. Seatbelts, smoking, drink driving... Many ...

2026-04-21T06:17:09Z

In reply to nevent1q…g3q9
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yes, absolutely.

Seatbelts, smoking, drink driving... Many behaviours and attitudes have been changed for the better by regulation and public information. But we must get the right regulation in the right place and enforce it appropriately - people can only wear seatbelts if they're fitted as standard.

that makes a lot of sense. But none of the smoking related ...

2026-04-21T05:59:27Z

In reply to nevent1q…s9n9
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that makes a lot of sense.

But none of the smoking related measures have required all adult customers to hand over copies of their ID to shady, unregulated companies who cannot be trusted not to store, leak or sell it. The proposed age gating is not analogous to flashing a card at a human staff member who promptly forgets it entirely.

Now, if there were regulations limiting the addictive elements, filtering out actually harmful content, banning invasive advertising (of or on platforms), etc, then maybe we could reduce harms to everyone.

I've had similar thoughts in a desperate attempt to find a ...

2026-04-05T14:39:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…6eww
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I've had similar thoughts in a desperate attempt to find a silver lining to the awful situation and evil acts.

Unfortunately, I always end up wondering how much general environmental damage is being done by all the planes and explosions releasing enormous amounts of pollution. How much will this war accelerate global environmental collapse? Will any acceleration of green transition balance that?

In lieu of any answers, I have simply concluded that it is one more reason to do everything we can.

I'd ask the construction industry. They've gone from ...

2026-04-04T08:30:16Z

In reply to nevent1q…v7nm
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I'd ask the construction industry.

They've gone from having a reputation for street harassment to being a pretty reasonable employer of women. I don't really know what they've done, but it seems to have worked. Perhaps their path can be a model for other parts of society?

also 6% techbro, and also because some industries need to die. ...

2026-04-02T07:11:10Z

In reply to nevent1q…7z4f
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also 6% techbro, and also because some industries need to die.

The techbros and I disagree on how that should happen and what should replace them.

almost every job I've ever had required me to learn new ...

2026-04-01T09:03:53Z

In reply to nevent1q…8xv9
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almost every job I've ever had required me to learn new specialist software. It's just a standard facet of modern work.

So expecting people to learn things like LibreOffice or Vivaldi or whatever really isn't that big a deal. Moving to a user-friendly Linux isn't a bigger jump than moving between major versions of Windows.

The biggest barrier is fear and attitude.

I'm guess you're aware of the recent Medact briefing? ...

2026-03-22T13:05:42Z

In reply to nevent1q…s8hc
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I'm guess you're aware of the recent Medact briefing?

https://www.medact.org/2026/resources/briefings/briefing-palantir-fdp/

rob (npub10eu…78kz) @ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us has moved (npub12pw…zvxn)

I can't remember where I first heard it, but this article ...

2026-03-22T12:19:50Z

In reply to nevent1q…egl4
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I can't remember where I first heard it, but this article includes a quote from Greater Manchester that none of Palantir's products "... exceed the NHS Greater Manchester local capability."

https://democracyforsale.substack.com/p/palantirs-nhs-data-platform-rejected-hospitals

it offers solutions that appear to be working and workable. Top ...

2026-03-22T10:26:24Z

In reply to nevent1q…g2jq
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it offers solutions that *appear* to be working and workable.

Top management buying their marketing does not mean that front line users get anything useful or usable. There have been quite a few reports of trusts being unable to make it work, or just not implementing it at all because it offers them nothing useful.

everyone should be offered tea and biscuits. And I mean everyone. ...

2026-03-21T10:32:10Z

In reply to nevent1q…r0qm
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everyone should be offered tea and biscuits.

And I mean everyone. A nice cup of tea and a sit down can do wonders to restore one's calm and see the people you share it with as *people*.

I've had people buy me things with cheese in when I asked for ...

2026-03-11T09:58:21Z

In reply to nevent1q…vcvz
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I've had people buy me things with cheese in when I asked for "something vegan," also because they were in the same freezer.

In both of our examples the accident comes with bigger and scarier risks than accidentally eating a plant does.

if AI were more attuned to the needs of women and girls it ...

2026-03-08T10:57:29Z

In reply to nevent1q…fuzh
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if AI were more attuned to the needs of women and girls it wouldn't exist in its current form.

Everything about how generative AI has been built, trained, and forced into everything is founded on the idea that consent isn't important. Which is also fundamental to almost all the problems women and girls face in society.

the fundamental reason we're failing to tackle the obesity ...

2026-03-07T09:08:14Z

In reply to nevent1q…hdkf
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the fundamental reason we're failing to tackle the obesity crisis is that *obesity* is not the problem.

Obesity itself is a symptom of a whole host of so-called lifestyle choices that people realistically have little control over. Stress, lack of exercise, junk food, etc all contribute to obesity and to all the things obesity is blamed for. We cannot improve health by focusing on one symptom that is easy to measure, especially when it makes the entire conversation one of "personal responsibility." That's just a fancy way of saying victim blaming. We know that shame doesn't work, that 95% of diets fail longterm, and that yoyo dieting is more damaging to health than just staying fat.

People don't have sedentary lifestyles, they're stuck in deadend jobs that leave little time or energy for anything else.

People don't choose an unhealthy diet, they eat what they can afford and access to survive.

People don't take on stress for fun, they're living through a never ending omnicrisis.

So he's right that weight loss drugs aren't the answer, but he's still asking the wrong question!

gong farmers. Whether it's composted, or flushed, or used in ...

2026-02-23T13:58:53Z

In reply to nevent1q…9pcs
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gong farmers.

Whether it's composted, or flushed, or used in chemical processes, or whatever - someone needs to deal with the waste!

my autistic son is hoping to go this September. He's got ...

2026-02-20T18:44:34Z

In reply to nevent1q…q636
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my autistic son is hoping to go this September. He's got offers.

Do you have any tips?

there is (or was) a third option: muddling along. That option has ...

2026-02-20T11:45:21Z

In reply to nevent1q…huw5
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there is (or was) a third option: muddling along.

That option has effectively been neutralised by decades of pushing an agenda of conformity to being Good Service Workers.

Schools have become sausage factories, with laser-focus on exam results to the detriment of all else. They have harshly-enforced rules of conformity and control. Core subjects (science, maths, English) are valued far above arts, humanities, or vocational subjects. All assessment is all-or-nothing exams. Trade training has diminished. On-the-job training has all but vanished.

Meanwhile, factory jobs have evaporated. "And Sons" - style family businesses are few and far between. Offices are all open-plan. Everything is measured against metrics and Key Performance Indicators that have no flexibility for different skills or approaches. Funding for basically everything that supports families with whatever struggles has been cut to the bone. Job-for-life no longer exists, with many more people having to move away from their support circles for work.

It's all huge amounts of pressure on families - especially as many SEN conditions have a genetic element, so a struggling autistic kid is likely to have an (undiagnosed) struggling autistic parent. Many who may have just muddled along previously are now struggling, or even failing, to cope.

yes, it's exactly the same silo issue and false economies. ...

2026-02-20T10:34:58Z

In reply to nevent1q…r7xm
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yes, it's exactly the same silo issue and false economies.

One of the reasons SEN spending is so high is because of budget cuts in mainstream, making it less and less accommodating. More kids struggle more, so more parents fight tooth and nail for official support, which then costs more.

See also lack of social care spending costing the NHS a fortune. Or reducing support for disabled people to get accommodations at work leading to a bigger benefits bill. Or failure to invest in public transport meaning more money spent on building and repairing roads (and dealing with RTAs). And on. And on. And Ariston.

I really wish *someone* would just institute a rule where any public budget can be credited with (a percentage of?) money saved in other public budgets by sensible, holistic thinking in their spending!

moving to secondary school is already a cliff edge for SEN kids. ...

2026-02-20T07:30:39Z

In reply to nevent1q…0354
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moving to secondary school is already a cliff edge for SEN kids.

Firstly, you've got to find a secondary school that can provide appropriate support. Then you've got to get your kid into it. Then the fight starts.

Whatever support you managed to persuade the primary school to put in place evaporates overnight. Even with EHCP, you have to fight for everything to be put in place anew.

Without the legal documents to support you, you have to prove all over again that your child needs support. Between a "new start", huge pressure to conform (ie, pretend everything is fine, at enormous physical and psychological cost), and large pupil numbers with low engagement time, parents are frequently told there's "no evidence" of the child's needs. Then starts the often years-long evidence gathering process that could be done in a week if staff took parent concerns seriously.

And all this against a backdrop of vastly increased complexity and pressure on the child, from overwhelming crowds, to silent corridors, to busy timetables, to having a dozen teachers to please, to getting detention for forgetting a pen.

Really, it is a testament to the determination (and desperation) of parents that any children get any support at second school.

sounds like a good step towards mitigating a lot of current ...

2026-01-16T07:55:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…acus
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sounds like a good step towards mitigating a lot of current struggles, even if it doesn't address the underlying problems.

Families used to be encouraged to have savings to deal with unexpected expenses. But the squeeze of costs going up and wages stagnating makes that very difficult. The structure of UC being reduced if you're frugal enough to accumulate more than £6,000 really doesn't encourage saving. That figure hasn't increased for years, but the number of people subject to it is.

sounds about right. The NHS (like most organisations) suffers ...

2026-01-07T07:25:32Z

In reply to nevent1q…crsr
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sounds about right.

The NHS (like most organisations) suffers from "one size fits all" thinking. They have a default, standard way of doing things, and struggle to step outside that.

There are various accessibility schemes and such, but they tend to be bolt-on, rather than embedded. Which means implementation is patchy at best as it relies on additional equipment, resources, training, etc.

"...those spikes were at six years old, eight years old and ...

2026-01-02T07:40:19Z

In reply to nevent1q…efsr
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"...those spikes were at six years old, eight years old and then 12 years old."

Those spikes were shortly after transition into the next stage of education - Year 1, KS2/Juniors, secondary. That can't be a coincidence, surely?

What's going on there is probably a complex mix of fresh eyes seeing what's happening, reduced tolerance of acting out, and increased pressure on the child to perform and conform. Transitions to the next level of schooling will likely both exacerbate and highlight existing problems.

as a parent to teens (who also fall into other minority groups) I ...

2025-12-29T09:17:23Z

In reply to nevent1q…s6gd
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as a parent to teens (who also fall into other minority groups) I am getting increasingly tired of this government trying to control how I raise them.

I'm doing my best, with what I have, for the specific individuals in my care. The government haven't a clue what that actually looks like or why, but they keep trying to interfere and constrain. And they keep telling me it's for my children's welfare when I can see the blatant direct damage.

the other day I was reading a bit about Great British Railways. ...

2025-12-10T07:07:18Z

In reply to nevent1q…rpkl
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the other day I was reading a bit about Great British Railways.

It looks like they're transitioning from a disjointed, privatised mess, to a nationalised (but arms-length) integrated system within the space of a parliament. No doubt there will be delays and issues and accusations, but the overall direction of travel seems positive and a good pace.

So what makes railways so different from water, electricity, broadband, NHS, and a host of other beleaguered national infrastructures? I know that the structure of the rail privatisation (contracts on which extentions can be refused) helps, but that can't be the whole picture. Do the railways just lack the lobbyists?

I find this comment interesting: "As a society we seem to ...

2025-12-06T10:15:50Z

In reply to nevent1q…ssm4
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I find this comment interesting:

"As a society we seem to have forgotten that life can be tough - a broken heart or grief is painful and normal, and we have to learn to cope."

It's not wrong, as such. But how do people get through those difficult experiences when community is so very fractured? Far too many adults do not have good support networks - few friends, family far away, and too little time, money or headspace to process anything... If they don't have the support in their daily lives, they're going to seek it elsewhere.

it isn't. People are wrong. Nuclear energy doesn't meet ...

2025-12-02T21:55:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…mdfh
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it isn't. People are wrong.

Nuclear energy doesn't meet the basic criteria inherent in the word "renewable", because when it uses its input, that input gets used up, turning it into waste.

It is, however, low carbon, and low emission (at time of energy production). Some people think that makes it "green" and they don't understand that green and renewable are not synonyms.

from the perspective of a SEND parent, it feels very much like ...

2025-11-27T07:49:53Z

In reply to nevent1q…wqsu
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from the perspective of a SEND parent, it feels very much like the government wants to force all kids into the conformity of mainstream education, regardless of whether that's good for the children.

They're messing about with SEND support with, as you point out, no hint as to their actual vision for where they're going. At the same time, they're introducing new rules to make home education more difficult (and more rigid in its requirements), while home ed rates are going up because SEND kids are being failed by the rigidity of school. Against a background of PIP reforms that are basically attempts at backdoor cuts, this does not give me confidence in anything good coming from reforms around support of people with disabilities.

We've had a decade of the Tories pushing for more authoritarian schooling, with fines for absence, shifting all assessment to exams, and encouraging policies like phone bans and quiet corridors. This is another field in which the Labour promise of "change" is ringing hollow.

one of the things that bugs me about "legitimate ...

2025-11-22T08:19:13Z

In reply to nevent1q…xzds
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one of the things that bugs me about "legitimate concerns" is the implication that any concerns on the other side of the argument are somehow not legitimate.

thus pushing more people into the ridiculous scenario of ...

2025-11-15T09:13:40Z

In reply to nevent1q…n2nd
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thus pushing more people into the ridiculous scenario of simultaneously paying income tax and claiming UC, at an effective marginal rate of 64%

You earn an extra tenner, £2 is taken as tax. Then 55% of what's left is removed from the UC, which is another £4.40. So your actual cash that month is only £3.60 more than if you hadn't earned that tenner.

If I've done my sums right, an extra hour at minimum wage nets you a pathetic £4.40, which might not pay the bus fare home.

And then they wonder why people aren't interested in doing more work.

I've said for a while that more data doesn't mean better ...

2025-10-28T07:44:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…nvah
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I've said for a while that more data doesn't mean better results, it just means more work for overstretched and underfunded people and systems. That always leads to more mistakes.

when I was 14, I looked at my GCSEs and figured out that if I ...

2025-10-27T22:26:30Z

In reply to nevent1q…yx2t
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when I was 14, I looked at my GCSEs and figured out that if I coasted for two years, I'd probably get a similar set of results to what I could manage if I worked damned hard. So I coasted.

If I could figure out this input/output relationship and adjust my input accordingly at 14, I'm damned sure fully grown adults up and down the country can do the same re "work ethic" and pay.

It doesn't help that for some time, the only route to better salary is moving jobs - promotion just isn't a thing for most people, so there's no point working extra hard to get one.

there are so many people I could mention. But, you know, ...

2025-10-19T13:32:21Z

In reply to nevent1q…w6fh
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there are so many people I could mention. But, you know, that's why I follow them. So if anyone wants to look through that list, they're all awesome people.

One thing I love about the fediverse is the amount of tonic masculinity just everywhere. I'd like to mention several very different examples:

@ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us has moved (npub12pw…zvxn), for being clued-up, clever and kind.

[@ifixcoinops](https://retro.social/@ifixcoinops ), for evolving train-of-thought threads that are always a wild ride.

[@bright_helpings](https://mspsocial.net/@bright_helpings ), for humility, humanity, and general dad vibes.

I think a lot of people have been watching and waiting: who would ...

2025-10-19T09:43:53Z

In reply to nevent1q…yyuj
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I think a lot of people have been watching and waiting: who would be leading GPEW and how? What is this new Corbyn/Sultana thing going to be? What stance will either take on issues like trans rights and inequality?

We have very clear answers to all of those, now. And people are choosing strong, trans-positive, anticapitalist, people-first, Polanski-led Greens over the weak, unclear, utterly depressing shambles Your Party has been so far.

a natural consequence of spin and soundbites, making parties seem ...

2025-10-09T05:50:42Z

In reply to nevent1q…tx3g
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a natural consequence of spin and soundbites, making parties seem more like a product than a principle?

I get the impression that party membership is more volatile than ...

2025-10-09T05:41:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…dxuh
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I get the impression that party membership is more volatile than it used to be. I can't work out whether that's a good thing or not.

On the one hand, people making active decisions about their support for parties suggests a more engaged populous. On the other, perhaps reduced loyalty is because people feel generally let down. Maybe it's just a factor of online management making it easier to join or leave. My gut is telling me it's a mix of three.

weird how it has never worked yet also historically consistently ...

2025-10-01T07:10:54Z

In reply to nevent1q…88dr
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weird how it has never worked yet also historically consistently comes out near the top of any ranking against similar countries (less so over the last 5 - 10 years - a significantly smaller and more recent drop-off than you suggest). The attached chart is based on several data sources from 2011 - 2013 and shows the UK as overall 1st among 11 comparable countries.

Also strange how long waiting lists are given as evidence for how it can't work, when 15 years ago there were stringent targets that were routinely met in 95% of cases, including:

- max 4 hour wait in A&E

- max 2 weeks referal-to-treatment time for cancer

- max 2 days to get a GP appointment

Building databases to track these was my day job then, so RTT figures were very familiar. I also personally remember getting a same day GP appointment regularly when my teenage sons were little - a far cry from current experiences of maybe getting one in a couple of weeks.

It seems to me that perhaps it is not the NHS in concept that cannot work, but its current iteration. I'm not saying that's easy to fix, or that money alone would do it. But it's patently untrue that it cannot work, because it definitely has and was just 15 years ago.

my kids' primary school (in Stoke-on-Trent) had a library ...

2025-09-28T22:02:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…gspr
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my kids' primary school (in Stoke-on-Trent) had a library when the oldest started, then for reasons I've forgotten got rid of it. It might have been to do with needing to use the space as classroom. Several years later, they set up a new library, which is just a corner of the hall with a few bookshelves. Not very impressive, but better than nothing, and they did also start to run a whole bunch of schemes to encourage reading.

I'm glad you're doing a combined fundraiser. I can't ...

2025-09-20T18:14:29Z

In reply to nevent1q…h39v
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I'm glad you're doing a combined fundraiser. I can't spare enough to give a sensible amount to everyone on your list. Picking who does and doesn't get my few pounds was difficult. Donating to a shared pot was easy.

I wonder how much of the leniency is because, "oh, but ...

2025-09-19T06:06:06Z

In reply to nevent1q…gxsh
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I wonder how much of the leniency is because, "oh, but he's such a good doctor! We can't afford to lose him."

No, no he isn't. But a system close to collapse sure encourages that line of thought.

if your ultimate goal is actually to run the country for the ...

2025-09-07T14:16:09Z

In reply to nevent1q…leeu
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if your ultimate goal is actually to run the country for the benefit of the majority of people, yes.

The government have stated they aim to reduce the benefits bill. There are quick, easy ways to do that without penalising or stigmatising people. The fact that they're choosing not to do those things suggests to me that reducing the bill is not the point, regardless of whether it's a good or necessary thing to do.

I've said for a while that the quickest route to cutting the ...

2025-09-07T13:22:01Z

In reply to nevent1q…8gvl
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I've said for a while that the quickest route to cutting the benefits bill is increasing minimum wage.

Every extra pound paid in wages to low-income families is 60p less in UC.

she is (was) on the left compared to the rest of the cabinet. ...

2025-09-05T13:43:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…24pd
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she is (was) on the left compared to the rest of the cabinet. Granted, that's a taller than Ronnie Corbett competition.

there are a lot of good points made in this article, but I take ...

2025-09-03T06:55:28Z

In reply to nevent1q…vyy9
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there are a lot of good points made in this article, but I take issue with its framing.

It states that children suffer "a sharp and *lasting* decline in wellbeing," and then talks only about the transition, not the ongoing 5-7 years spent in secondary schools. This is not an issue of them needing help across the jump up from Y6 to Y7. This is an issue of secondary schools being a fundamentally damaging place to be.

Suggesting that people just need help to survive a toxic environment is focusing entirely in the wrong place. But what should we expect from a culture which believes genuine work grievances can be resolved by occasionally buying the staff pizza?

and the supposedly pro-work government want more AI in Britain. ...

2025-08-27T06:11:21Z

In reply to nevent1q…vmz5
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and the supposedly pro-work government want more AI in Britain.

If it's good at what people claim, then jobs will be lost. Labour tell us work is good, so this must be bad.

If it's bad at what people claim, it will be wasted investment and won't stimulate the sacred growth Labour currently worship. This will likely lead to businesses closing down and jobs being lost.

Either way, it looks like a bad thing to get too deep into. But FOMO and the near future of mates' bank balances matter far more than any stated aims.

reducing the standard work week has a knock-on effect for part ...

2025-08-26T23:11:17Z

In reply to nevent1q…gwg0
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reducing the standard work week has a knock-on effect for part time workers, though.

16/40 is different to 16/32. So anyone working two day weeks should either have their hours cut by 1/5 on the same pay, or have their salary etc recalculated from 40% to 50%.

(I once had to fight HR on this very point when they changed full time from 40 to 35. We all got the recalculation in the end.)

there is only one way to solve the issue of mass housing of ...

2025-08-21T06:39:00Z

In reply to nevent1q…g08v
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there is only one way to solve the issue of mass housing of asylum seekers: process their claims and clear the backlog.

But somehow that never seems to come into the conversation.

holiday lets are a whole big complication. Would they also be ...

2025-08-20T13:21:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…8v29
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holiday lets are a whole big complication. Would they also be considered house-hoarding?

On the one hand, they're more environmentally friendly than flying abroad, more practical than hotels if you have kids, dogs, or a large group, etc. But they push house prices up, block locals from living in them, and stand empty for weeks on end.

I think it's a different problem from home rental, but both need considered and rules written to encompass both.

there's always an assumption of "wasted" costs, like ...

2025-08-18T07:55:51Z

In reply to nevent1q…ld4j
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there's always an assumption of "wasted" costs, like people are twiddling their thumbs or doing work that doesn't need done. It's like red tape was dreamt up for no reason, and bureaucracy has no purpose. We've just forgotten what went wrong before.

I've seen many systems and organisations that do have waste, but it's never been as simple as too many people. It's almost always things like maintaining two systems because neither does everything necessary, or being too busy doing a thing to pass it on, or taking the long way round because the short way is blocked. There's also a lot of working around systems that were built to be sold to high-ups, rather than used by underlings, and a lot of avoiding processes that seem unnecessary just because they aren't understood.

You can't fix problems like that by cutting jobs.

that all tallies with my experience of living in a low-income ...

2025-08-05T08:55:47Z

In reply to nevent1q…u0zx
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that all tallies with my experience of living in a low-income area.

It is well known and very evident from the way people talk that the only people in the area with disposable income are pensioners. The combination of triple-locked reliable income, no dependents, and relatively low housing costs (often one-bedroom council housing - the only kind not bought out) make a clear difference. They plan holidays, have lunch out, talk about hobby supplies they've bought, etc.

Everyone else is always on the lookout for ways to afford the demanded gadgets, cheap food, and cheap or free things to keep the kids busy - especially if the kids get fed. There is a constant tension in the air and they often just don't talk directly about money, like they can make the problems not exist. If they do, it's always either pride in a bargain or self-deprecating comments about being rubbish with money.

there are laws, rights, systems and processes all set up to ...

2025-07-30T07:23:02Z

In reply to nevent1q…pcsn
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there are laws, rights, systems and processes all set up to provide him dignity in life. They have failed.

Why should we have any faith that laws, rights, systems and processes set up to provide dignity in death won't also fail? Or will that appointment also take a year to come through and be bounced between different waiting lists?

Which brings us right back to needing to properly support health and social care so they can properly support us.

this is exactly the kind of case that has me worried about ...

2025-07-30T07:03:14Z

In reply to nevent1q…xytj
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this is exactly the kind of case that has me worried about assisted dying.

I really feel for this poor guy and completely understand why he would rather slip away than continue living like that. But if he got actual, useful, caring support, maybe he would feel differently about ending it.

Nothing in this story suggests coercion, or encouragement to die, or anything like that. But he's still being pushed to it by the (in)actions of other people.

We need a right to *live*.

part of the problem is the pattern of rainfall. We do get more ...

2025-07-14T07:35:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…hkwt
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part of the problem is the pattern of rainfall.

We do get more rain, but it tends to come in fewer, more intense storms, instead of frequent drizzle. This doesn't top up reservoirs well, and it increases the chance of flash floods. This is also related to the overwhelm of drains and release of raw sewage. It's all made worse by the loss of peat bogs and forest, which slow the flow of rain so everything is dumped on low ground very quickly.

This by no means lets the water companies off the hook - these changing patterns have been evident for years and the water companies have avoided infrastructure investment instead of attempting to meet the challenge.

personally, I think the real problem is too many cases being ...

2025-07-09T08:08:02Z

In reply to nevent1q…yu5k
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personally, I think the real problem is too many cases being pushed into the justice system that should never be there.

Waving a placard or getting an abortion don't need prosecutions. Stealing food should never be necessary. PIP "fraud" doesn't need made an example of. Drug use needs treatment and support, not criminalisation.

You cut out all those cases that really aren't in the public interest, the workload across the whole system drops.

I know many families who have been through the battle for special ...

2025-07-07T07:38:37Z

In reply to nevent1q…9fqd
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I know many families who have been through the battle for special provision, and more who have pulled out of formal education entirely because of failure to provide suitable support.

Families have to put so much time and energy fighting for every tiny scrap of support. Every process takes literal years and frequently involves reviews, appeals, and tribunals. The support often just doesn't exist. By the time something suitable is found, the child is often so damaged by ongoing failures that it isn't suitable anymore.

Families are stretched to breaking point and don't have any fight left in them. In other words, they're excellent targets for government "savings".

I look forward to supporting Action for Palestine, Palestine ...

2025-07-03T09:43:05Z

In reply to nevent1q…6jls
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I look forward to supporting Action for Palestine, Palestine People's Front, People's Front of Palestine, Popular Front of Palestine any other organisation that opposes genocide.

agreed on all points. This also intersects with an increase in ...

2025-06-25T07:23:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…3863
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agreed on all points.

This also intersects with an increase in neurodivergent people claiming PIP. Work has become more stressful, less flexible (for the worker), and more constrained by conformity to narrow expectations. It has become especially difficult for neurodivergent people to sustain. While PIP is not an out-of-work benefit, losing earned income is a driver to review other options and can be the nudge needed to make it worth engaging with the assessment process.

Of course, more neurodivergent folk getting PIP is variously interpreted as over-diagnosis, bandwagoning, and a problem to put a stop to.

I caught a snippet of something on the radio yesterday. ...

2025-06-25T06:15:39Z

In reply to nevent1q…zm9r
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I caught a snippet of something on the radio yesterday. Apparently 1000 people a day are being awarded PIP, which is unsustainable.

That's probably true, as far as it goes. But nobody seems interested in why so many people need it, or what can be done to prevent so many people becoming disabled.

People are frequently disabled by car crashes. Good public transport would make our roads safer.

Covid continues to be a mass disabling event. Masks and air filters being common would significantly reduce this, as well as relieving pressure on the NHS.

Many people are left severely disabled by strokes. I understand acute treatment is getting better so more people are surviving, but there isn't enough rehabilitation work to help them recover well.

The difficulties in getting a GP appointment and the lengths of NHS waiting lists have been talked about a lot. How many people are on PIP just because they have to wait years for their life-changing treatment? How many are being left permanently disabled by delays in care? Not an easy problem to solve, but definitely another part of the picture.

There must be a whole bunch of ways acquired disability can be prevented, most of them with extra benefits to individuals and society. But that doesn't even seem to form part of the conversation.

the average caseload of social workers dealing with vulnerable ...

2025-06-24T10:57:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…m8nf
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the average caseload of social workers dealing with vulnerable children in Stoke-on-Trent has dropped from 22 to 17.3 in the past two years. That's roughly the same time span as reopening family hubs - not a coincidence, according to folks I know working in them. Early support without gatekeeping works.

https://www.stoke.gov.uk/news/article/1688/more_positive_news_on_vulnerable_children_as_social_worker_caseloads_lighten

please add alt text. This is directly relevant to people who will ...

2025-06-24T04:56:45Z

In reply to nevent1q…rmuk
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please add alt text. This is directly relevant to people who will be affected.

#alt4u

Text on a red background:

100 Labour MPs are opposing cuts for disabled people. What's wrong with the rest?

there is no transgender movement. Nobody is asking you to support ...

2025-06-23T14:08:13Z

In reply to nevent1q…cgqk
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there is no transgender movement. Nobody is asking you to support an abstract cause. There's just people who want to be allowed to be who they are.

Whether they've always known, or whether they've had a long period of self-discovery, they are who they are and we can accept it at face value. We don't need to know the trials they've been through to acknowledge where they are now. This is as true for gender as it is for any other aspect of who someone is.

Secondly, I've never seen, experienced, or even heard about a single significant problem caused by the fact trans folk exist. Every single time someone has pointed to something that might be, it has turned out to be because of transphobia, or because of something unrelated.

Finally, if there is broad expert consensus on something, I think you need to have a really good reason to disagree. There is broad expert consensus across psychologists, psychiatrists, endocrinologists, researchers, surgeons, and anybody who has spent time around trans people that trans women are women, trans men are men, and non-binary identities are real and valid. "I don't get it" is not a good argument against the weight of evidence they have gathered in papers, statistics and experience.

It's been shown over and over that trans people do far better in life when people just accept them for who they are. That alone should be enough for anyone. If it isn't, why not?

so this time round there will be a different set of problems, ...

2025-06-20T06:04:24Z

In reply to nevent1q…djrv
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so this time round there will be a different set of problems, that also conveniently funnel money to big business and fat cats at public expense with little regard for stated objectives?

I'm so confused. I'm trying to read up on what I'm ...

2025-06-19T09:39:00Z

In reply to nevent1q…tzlr
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I'm so confused.

I'm trying to read up on what I'm voting on, but the numbers don't add up.

The boss gets a salary of £1.1mn, old rules say she could get a bonus of up to 100%, proposed new rules would allow a bonus up to 150%. That's a bonus of £1.7mn, total possible remuneration £2.8mn.

Where does the £7mn figure come from?

I haven't had that email yet, but I'll watch out for it.

2025-06-17T08:08:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…nrj8
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I haven't had that email yet, but I'll watch out for it.

Nationwide is currently in the process of giving all its members ...

2025-06-17T06:30:27Z

In reply to nevent1q…gf38
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Nationwide is currently in the process of giving all its members £100 profit share.

And that's on top of the £50 from earlier in the year and the £100 from last year.

It always scores highly in green banking lists, customer service ratings, etc.

It's taking over other financial institutions (most recently Virgin Money) and appears to be improving them.

While £7mn is definitely an obscene and eyewatering size of bonus, they can at least back up their claim of being different, and do actually have something to say about performance to be rewarded. That, at least, is refreshing.

another example of how free market ideals don't apply when ...

2025-06-17T05:57:01Z

In reply to nevent1q…vvvr
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another example of how free market ideals don't apply when big business doesn't want them to.

I'm a little sad it was accidental. I thought "prevention ...

2025-06-14T09:59:05Z

In reply to nevent1q…9xlr
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I'm a little sad it was accidental.

I thought "prevention of spending" was both insightful and witty.

absolutely. I fully expect headroom will be close to zero, if not ...

2025-06-13T08:03:01Z

In reply to nevent1q…c8e7
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absolutely. I fully expect headroom will be close to zero, if not actually negative.

I was just wondering if anyone had put it together in black and white, in a digestible form.