m0xEE @m0xee@librem.one

@amerika
It's not unique to software development — people are being treated the same way: as mass-produced goods. And from the point of cost-efficiency it might even make sense: skilled specialist doesn't cost cheap, they don't grow on trees and they might have their own opinion that you at least have to take it into account. Replacing him/her with five less skilled on the surface might cost more, but it's easier to find them and if they happen to not play along, you can easily replace each of them with another — just like the old one. Under this angle, investing into tools that would make these guys even more cost-efficient (cheaper) makes perfect sense.
Most left wing movements don't seem to realise that unions and other such tools don't really fix that — they are still being treated as replaceable cog wheels, it's just now every box of these cog wheels would come with extra conditions. Some even go and work for the likes of Google — with the intent of improving it (attempts at futile as with girls from "I can fix her" memes), eventually they become parts the system themselves — but with all money made in the process it's not too shabby anymore, admitting that you were wrong or that you have given up on the other hand — still hard. That is how a lot of people become more conservative I think: no important realisation happens, just a posteriori rationalisation that they aren't bad people.
Most people are fine with mass-produced goods on personal level: indeed, why sharpen your tools — when you can always get a replacement? And with all this progress happening, that something probably got even better since your got your last one. Then they start wondering why are they being treated like cattle by the likes of Microsoft, or Lenovo, or Apple? Because you are still buying that shit! You have choice — go get something from a smaller company and pay with money out of your wallet and with your time by contributing, to be treated differently. But no… Again, mass-produced thing being immediately cheaper doesn't defeat the shortcomings that might become evident later.
Again, most don't even think about it: "The system isn't broken, it just doesn't work they way I want it to — because it's unaware of the issue, just give me the button to let it know, gimme-gimme-gimme!"
I've always been lucky to be surrounded with the people who were into DIY or handmade stuff, but I have never valued it until I realised there might be longer term consequences of this, much less obvious than immediate cost-efficiency. Dealing with mass-produced goods ruins the sense of ownership and treating yourself as a replaceable cog wheel ruins the sense of autonomy — uncle Ted was exactly right about that. That's what struck me the most when I've been re-reading Industrial Society during COVID lock downs.
A lot of people can't imagine existing outside of the system and some of them got completely unable accomplishing even the most basic things on their own. That had severe consequences for the mental health of the society.
As for multitasking and having shorter attention span, if I was into that I could probably come up with a good conspiracy that it's being done on purpose — but I just don't believe that someone clever first came up with this and then was able to carry it out so immaculately — people are too incompetent for this. I think it's just a natural order of things and it became a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Actually, not having to multitask nowadays is rather a privilege, dealing with all the information and stream of microscopic events happening at an extremely rapid pace might make you paranoid and eventually will drive you to insanity. To protect your mental health you have to give up some of the control, "slide" — but of course it gets exploited and with giving up control you often get sold things that might be outright harmful to you. In addition to that, not willing to play along, even if you are just asking to give you time to think, is often treated as aggressive behaviour by the society. Sadly, not many are able to stand their ground when peer pressure comes into play — and doing so if often even discouraged. This is wrong!
Not playing along is okay: be it the "popular" crowd or the less popular. Some manual labour every now and then isn't boring and lame — it feels refreshing and when you see the result, it feels good. Making your own things and repairing old ones instead of buying new and shiny is great — and it has more to do with preserving nature than using the water you've boiled eggs in to make coffee 😏
Maybe I was just lacking perspective earlier, but to me it looks like there is progress here — on Fedi and on Gemini there are a lot of people like that. But maybe I'm just becoming one of those survivalist dudes, who dig their own bunkers, myself and I have found my crowd 🤪

@kirby @Hyperhidrosis @m0xee

@threat @dcc @0 @ins0mniak
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1/ Two more incidents have been reported of Russians being fined or denounced for association with the colours of blue and yellow – Ukraine's national colours. They include a journalist who was denounced for being photographed in a yellow jacket against a blue sky. ⬇️

Thank you for your sacrifice, Martyr Helicopter.

Could/Would you use this keyboard with these keycaps?