Sometimes I worry over how invasive everything is now. Other times I laugh about how stupid it is. I mean, some company somewhere piling through my garbage for info? OH NO! They'll find out I go through a lot of guitar strings and own cats! That's a lot of wasted resources trying to sort out shit anybody that's ever walked through my front door would know in two seconds.

The main problem as I see it is that the business world is just as obsessed with AI as the current graduating classes. So, in reality, it's entirely possible that a whole bunch of us mid-timers to old-timers will be let go for being too competent and not agreeing with the hallucinated AI regurgitation train as management positions are filled by newly minted MBAs and such who are all about that sweet AI, no check workflow.

Trump was a Clinton guy prior to his 2016 run. They were all running in the same circles.

Based on history, they like arguing more than they like intelligent discourse. Which is a pity, because there are times they seem to display actual intelligence, as you said. But it devolves pretty quickly when they see an attack angle and they can't let that attack angle go, even if they are 100% in the wrong.

They'll use the Apple Maps we didn't ask for to justify the always on cell connection we didn't ask for so they can use it for subscription seat warmers, air conditioning, and heater. Come on, do you even corporation?

Combine the corporatized nomination process with the scare tactic of anyone not firmly aligned with business interests being unelectable due to some *ism used as a bugaboo, and it's nearly impossible to get someone over the line. Hell, the Democratic party will outright prevent primary procedure if they decide the votes aren't going the way the establishment players want.

What's sad is that even if the Democrats get as much power as possible, they'll use it to piss themselves into doing nothing in the name of healing the country or some bullshit. And with no consequences, it'll just be one more election before the pendulum swings back this direction. We need consequences for the outright lawbreaking, constitution ignoring ignoramuses in charge now, but I don't see it happening with our current round of available politicians.

Starbucks doesn't overcook. They just start with charcoal. I sense zero coffee beans in any of their products when I'm forced to drink it because someone thought they were being helpful by buying us all Starbucks bilgewater.

It's more than just beans though. You can buy the nicest beans in the world, but if you grind them wrong for your brew method, leave too many fines in the brewer, allow it to steep too long, or too short, over extract, under extract, etc. There's a million ways to make coffee taste like complete shit, and very few ways to get it to taste good on its own. Most people aren't going to take the time to learn how to do it right, they'll just toss in some sugar and cream and go.

This message brought to you buy a guy who has experimented with water type, water additives, blackwater extract, cold brew, pour over, drip maker, percolator, moka pot, hand grinders, electric grinders, burr grinders, various temperature brew-points, steel mesh filters, various types of paper filters ..........

We don't have a parliament. We have a congress. That has worked tirelessly over the last fifty plus years to prove that they are so ineffective at doing anything at all that it's just easier to go around them and wait for the courts to step in to decide if it's OK after the fact. And once that started happening, the courts were subverted by the guys with the jackboots so that they didn't make "the wrong decisions," so, essentially, thuggish government officials have no checks and balances.

The current federal excuse is that anyone that disagrees with the authorities on any level is to be labeled a terrorist. I'm assuming once these start mowing people down, all of those people will be labeled terrorists too. It does tend to shut down the critical thinking of anyone who might otherwise protest, with the added benefit that protesters are now also seen as domestic terrorists. HOORAY! WE'RE FINALLY ALL TERRORISTS!

Hey! We can solve our problems, or we can make more profit. Guess which is more important?

I've honestly taken to purchasing extras of my physical players once I know they are quality and stashing the spare in a cool, dry place. Most of these last me a good long time, and there's no reason at all that one stored properly will break just sitting there. Don't ever attach them to the network, so they can't get over-the-wire update that intentionally break compatibility with various formats, and you should be set for at least a couple decades or more.

Have you not seen a hearing aid and the batteries they take in thirty years? Those things have been impossibly small for the last decade and a half.

Now you've done it. Expect a lot of responses from morons that think you need to swim with AirPods in, and that gaskets can't be made small.