Links - 26th October 2024 (3 - Star Wars)

Jamsheed Motafram on X - "Star Wars was always political since 1977. While the prequels went too far in the rabbit hole and the sequels didn’t give too much subtext, the originals found the perfect balance."
Left wingers like to claim that Star Wars has always been political, but there's a difference in how they do it now. Having political themes is different from putting politics front and centre and lecturing the audience within the product and scolding them outside it. It's telling that George lucas was criticised for the political allegory in episode 3 and it was already more subtle than the bs we have today. We can see how Tolkien criticised CS Lewis for being too obvious with the Christian allegory in the later Narnia books and how distasteful it was. Also if your product is good you can get away with more

Meme - Anakin: "You're not actually flying to Italy to find the exact field just for a cosplay, right?"
*Padme cosplay*
Anakin: "Right?"
*Padme cosplay*

Obi-Wan Kenobi Writer Reveals Original Plans For Scrapped Film Trilogy - "writer Stuart Beattie originally approached Lucasfilm with an idea for an entire movie trilogy. During an interview with YouTuber Star Wars Theory, Beattie revealed his core concept: Obi-Wan and Vader had to have met between Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith and the first Star Wars film, later retitled A New Hope. Dialogue in Return of the Jedi supports his theory – at one point, Vader tells Luke that Obi-Wan once thought he could be redeemed too, but this was never covered in the prequel trilogy. So when did Vader and Obi-Wan meet, and how did that affect his journey as a Jedi?  Unfortunately, after the relative failure of Solo: A Star Wars Story, Lucasfilm decided that movies focused on characters we know will survive aren’t workable. Once Disney+ arrived on the scene, only a year later, Lucasfilm pivoted its strategy towards creating live-action TV series. The bare bones of Beattie’s story treatment were used for the Obi-Wan Kenobi show instead. In Beattie’s original concept, Obi-Wan is in a much darker place than he appears to be in Obi-Wan Kenobi. Beattie argued that Obi-Wan would have been weighed down by his guilt, infecting his two most important relationships: his relationship with the Force and his relationship with Luke Skywalker. In this version of the story, Obi-Wan would not have kept a watchful eye on Luke from afar; instead, he moves in with the Lars family, training Luke from a young age. Then, when Luke is four years old, it’s clear that the training isn’t going well. Obi-Wan is frustrated, and he’s lost his connection with the Force. This story is about Obi-Wan learning that forcing someone, namely Luke, to connect with the Force is impossible. He needs to learn to trust himself and the Force once more – he has to let go, take a step back, and trust the Force to bring Luke back to him when the time is right. That’s where A New Hope comes in. Before Luke can be reunited with Old Ben, though, Obi-Wan has to face his demons. The plot finally kicks off when the Empire arrives on Tatooine. Clone Commander Cody has reconnected with Obi-Wan, and various hilarious shenanigans involving the Sarlacc pit occur, but the Empire discovers Obi-Wan is on Tatooine, and he is forced to flee. He ends up on a space station with refugees, all of whom are being held prisoner by a corrupt administrator. These refugees have their own connection to the Force – though they may not call it that, just as other Star Wars cultures have been known to give the Force a different name – and they teach Obi-Wan an important lesson about Luke’s destiny. Obi-Wan has a vision in which he sees himself confronting a dark figure on Mustafar. Though he surmises it must be Vader, it turns out to be 19-year-old Mark Hamill instead, and Obi-Wan realizes he’s pushing Luke down a dark path. Vader has tracked Obi-Wan down to the space station, and they are the last two figures there as it falls into a gas giant. They duel, Obi-Wan still slashes Vader’s mask and his eyes, and he says he believes there’s still good in him – everything in Beattie’s story leads up to that moment. In the end, Obi-Wan manages to escape. Interestingly, Reva is there, too (though she isn’t mentioned anywhere else in the interview), and claims to have killed him. Vader, angry that he wasn’t the one to kill Obi-Wan, kills her instead, and she dies with the knowledge that she saved Obi-Wan’s life. It’s an interesting glimpse at what could have been. Many viewers, myself included, have found issues with the final Obi-Wan Kenobi product, arguing that it was too slow, too focused on his relationship with Leia, and that it took too much from other Star Wars stories (the escape sequence at the Inquisitors’ Fortress is very reminiscent of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order’s climax). Obi-Wan’s dynamic with Luke in Beattie’s script is undeniably compelling, as is his fractured relationship with the Force."

Meme - "STAR WARS THE CLONE WARS SEASON 1-2
Ahsoka: BEING A YOUNG JEDI IS SO MUCH FUN!!!! I CANT WAIT TO DEFEAT ALL THOSE MEANIES!
Yoda: ON WACKY ADVENTURES WE WILL GO LOTS OF FUN WE WILL HAVE!
SEASON 3-7
Clone 1: O-OH GOD NO NO NO THAT CITY WE AIRBOMBED WASN'T A SEPARATIST BASE IT WAS FULL OF CIVILIANS OH GOD WHAT HAVE I DONE
Clone 2: WHO CARES? IT'S NOT A WARCRIME IF WE WIN"

Meme - "Star Wars: Revenge of the Jedi *Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker standing over Mickey Mouse on the floor with a lightsaber (killing Disney)*"

Meme - Darth Vader: "Obi Wan never told you what happened to your father."
Luke Skywalker: "He told me he was a whiny little bitch that cried about sand."
Vader:

YouTube Rejects Apparent Organized Cancel Campaign From Disney Star Wars Fans That Targeted Nerdrotic, Geeks + Gamers, And Ryan Kinel - "YouTuber rejected the apparent organized cancel campaign that was attempting to get the company to demonetize Gary Buechler aka Nerdrotic, Jeremy Griggs of Geeks + Gamers, and Ryan Kinel of RK Outpost over their criticism of The Acolyte, its cast, and Star Wars in general. Numerous individuals and Disney Star Wars sycophants participated in the cancel campaign with many of them sharing a letter to YouTube with their demands that aforementioned YouTubers and their channels be demonetized.  YouTuber Kyle Katarn participated in the campaign writing, “it’s time for you to be part of the solution Team YouTube. While you continue to allow these channels to be monetized, you are incentivizing hatred and racism.” Jarod The Dark Jedi, who runs The Nerd Academy YouTube channel, also posted, “The Fandom Menace has run rampant for far too long and now a flourishing cottage industry of thinly veiled bigotry has been able to thrive while making fandom spaces a cesspool of hatred. It’s time for Team YouTube to step up and enforce their TOS.” Mollie Damon, who co-hosts the Star Wars Explained YouTube channel, posted, “I’ve spoken at length about all this in the past but the only way things get better is if Team YouTube does something to discourage this kind of content – until then it will only get worse.” The Rewriting Ripley Pod account also posted, “A handful of YouTubers have jeopardized the safety of our community & the creatives we love for too long. The Star Wars fandom demands action. Team YouTube demonetize Nerdrotic, Ryan Kinel – RK Outpost, and Geeks + Gamers. Hate SHOULD NOT be a career path.”...   Following this organized cancel campaign, trial lawyer Robert Barnes indicated that Nerdrotic, Geeks + Gamers, and Ryan Kinel “have very good defamation claims against Mollie Damon & others. I hear they have good lawyers as friends.”...   The Rewriting Ripley Pod did not take YouTube’s response very well. It threatened, “Team YouTube, this is an admission that you have not reviewed our concerns, proven by saying ‘this video’ when there are 10+ videos in question. However, thank you for confirming your inability to take safety seriously. You & your advertisers will be hearing more from us soon.”"
This is the difference between left wing cancel culture and right wing alleged cancel culture - the right almost always just boycotts something instead of trying to destroy it for everyone else

StarWarsTheory on X - "Trying to deplatform anyone over not liking a form of media is the most vile disgusting act there is.   To coordinate an attack like this, taking the innocent and creative life's work of someone and twist it to slander them to YouTube, calling for demonitizatipn, so that they cannot pay for their life, their family's life they care for, their team's life and their team's family's...through a coordinated movement in bad faith is unbelievably evil.   I've fell silent for years. Today I speak. And if you come back with more, I have reserves that will devastate all of you.   God will handle it from here."
MasteroftheTDS on X - "As someone who’s been doxxed over opinions on TV shows and movies, I feel this. It’s not exactly the same thing they tried to do here, but the fact that doxxing and attempting to cancel people has become something people are comfortable doing is really sad. How did we get here?"

Meme - MasteroftheTDS @MasteroftheTDS: "Just archived this.   I would give you points for honesty, but the fact that you can admit it this with no shame is disgusting.   Seek mental help."
LastRoundGaming @LastRoundGaming: "I can admit I’m not a kind person, I just want Star Wars theory to die. The acolyte sucked, and I just like the idea of theory suffering simply because he comes off as a spoiled kid that would fake being a make a wish baby for the sake of attention. Just how I feel 🤷🏽‍♂️"
Damn toxic fans!

Meme - Qui-Gon Jinn: "I found the chosen one"
Obi-Wan Kenobi: "I trained the chosen one"
Padme:

Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "And on top of that, somehow TLJ also manages to be really clichéd. Like the moment those bombers lumbered on screen, I knew they were all going to die stupidly. Or Snoke's rant in the throne room - yeah, exact words people.  I don't know how it's possible to write something that's simultaneously constantly subverting clichés and yet is clichéd, but RJ managed it."
"If the problem with NASCAR is all the left turns so you keep making right turns instead you haven't changed much..."
Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "The Last Jedi felt like a Marvel movie, and not one of the okay ones. Every fucking scene felt that was written into a somewhat cliche trope, then, by the end of it, the writer decided to do the oposite thing that the cliche do. For exemple, the first Luke scene: the cliche would be he taking the saber and saying something like "this was my father's weapon", but TLJ made him do the unexpected, and he throws it away. The same happens in that idiotic scene with Paul, the "yo mama" one. The cliche would be him saying some heroic stuff, but then he says some bullshit.  This movie tries to do this thing, this subverting expectations shit at every scene, every time it goes in a cliche area, then it changes in the end of it, then it felt like a comedy movie, where everything is light and inconsequential. But this not being a comedy movie, as soon as you notice it does thins subverting shit, it becomes sooooo tiresome and soooooo dumb, that it loses you completely. The worst part of it, is that the movie do this all the time, but by the end of it, it still feels like a rehash of older movies. It still have the bad guys losing at the end, Shitty Character Rey is still the one, Luke is still a hero, Paul is still a good guy, Kylo is still dumb as fuck, and there's still hope, exactly like Empire Strikes Back. It's the same movie, but shitty, exactly like The Force Awakens is the shitty A New Hope."

Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "Memes aside, I enjoy the Nostalgia Critic's reviews, and he brought up something in a video regarding one of the 'Mary Poppins Returns' movie. He argued that the original movie is the definition of 'simple and deep', while the sequel, as well as every live-action Disney remake in recent years, is just 'shallow and complex' in comparison.  That feels like the best way of describing so many of these 'Star Wars' projects: shallow and complex.  Moving around a lot and saying a lot of words, but not actually saying anything interesting or worth looking into. It's all just constant 'stuff happening', with fight-scenes between boring characters and cameos from familiar faces they bullied / blackmailed into returning to the roles. Lots of stuff happening in theory, but in execution, none of it matters or means anything.  'Shallow and complex' is how I'd describe them. Acting like they're saying something clever, important or interesting, but in reality they're just awkwardly stacking wooden alphabet blocks on top of each other and insisting it's a Shakespearean sonnet."
"It's insulting the audience. Trying to pretend to be smart hoping the audience doesn't notice with all the fan service and stupid jokes. I've seen a lot of stupid movies but I've never seen a movie that thought I was stupid. And the fanbase that keeps insisting it's some sort of misunderstood masterpiece is even worse. It's like people who insist Rick and Morty is really deep and philosophical when really it just puts some real science/philosophy in every episode to make stupid people feel like they're smart for watching it."

Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "That's another one of those things that messes with our suspension of disbelief. As far as we know getting sucked into space is a death sentence, now it's not AND you can just pull yourself back into a damaged ship's bridge if you're a force user. Hmm, okay I guess."
Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "My experience was entirely different. A big chunk (and I mean big, maybe 70%ish) of the audience let out an audible giggle/laugh. And that's the thing, as far as we're concerned, getting sucked into space was a death sentence in Star Wars just like falling out a window was a death sentence for Windu. It really served no purpose other than to establish her as a force user which could've been done in a myriad different and more believable (for the film) way."
Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "It's a general rule that, if you're going to have someone demonstrate a power or ability that isn't something everybody has, you have to foreshadow it a little. In this way, people don't feel cheated.  So if you're going to play hopscotch against the Devil, you don't necessarily have to foreshadow hopscotch abilities. (Although it might help to foreshadow childhood games, childhood stuff, blah blah blah.)  But if you're going to play concert piano against the Devil, you have to foreshadow that the character can play piano, and probably that they are good at it. Heck, you can even foreshadow some kind of problem ahead of time, by having the person break a finger. That way, when the scene happens, you have the audience wondering how piano guy will beat the Devil with a broken finger!  In Leia's case, it would have been pretty easy to insert a couple Force psychokinesis moments, and maybe a difficulty too. Then the scene wouldn't have felt fake and dumb. It would still have looked fake and dumb, but at least it would have some backing."

Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "Is it sincerity?  The prequels for all their faults and bouts of humour played the main plot for all the seriousness it was worth and took itself completely seriously  Luke throwing the sabre over his shoulder is done in a jokey over the top way that’s almost meant to elicit a chuckl…….or Finn confronting his abuser and shaking his head about going “ I’m in charge…I’m in charge!” Where Han tells him to calm down  Gine with the wind is over the top and dramatic but is treated seriously and that’s why it works…if it was made now it would be winking at the audience"
Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "Not that I know of any such term, but I'd say TLJ was pretty tone-deaf. Everything about it is insincere. Other comments here have already elaborated on that, and their points are well worded. Tone-deaf however is what I think best suits the movie."

Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "The last jedi picked subverting expectations continuously. It was too much.  I think the fans felt let down. No one goes to a Star Wars film to be told what you love about star wars dosent matter, the characters you embraced don't matter, and the lore of the franchise doesn't matter. Once you take all that away, it really isn't Star Wars anymore.  The acolyte wasn't well written, and for the life of me, I can't figure out what they did with 180 million dollars. Where did that money go?"

Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - "Lack of Verisimilitude / appearance of being true or real within the context of a story
Plot-Driven vs. Character-Driven Narrative prioritizing the progression of events over the consistency of character behavior or world-building
Narrative Incoherence that lacks logical flow, internal consistency, or clear cause-and-effect relationships.
"Postmodern Disregard for Metanarrative"
Subversion for Subversion's Sake
"Diegetic Inconsistency""

Is there a technical term or trope for the problem with how Acolyte and Last Jedi are written? : r/saltierthancrait - ""Later everything seemed okay "  That same thing happened in TLJ after the Holdo maneuver. Not only did hyperspace ramming break 40ish years of canon, but we see the shrapnel from the impact shred basically the entire First Order fleet. And then in the next scene, they've somehow managed to pull themselves together enough to launch an invasion force that dwarfed the one on Hoth."
"Yeah I don't understand the entire Holdo sequence. The spread bothered me too. Like how much of the fleet did it take out? They definitely took out the big command ship. Where'd all the AT-ATs come from? And the bunker buster thing? That should be on the ship that got absolutely fucked by Holdo, right? But a random surviving ship had one? Or they were able to get all that stuff from the wreckage within minutes or an hour or 2? How come Rose is so much faster than Finn? How'd they make it back? It's all so broken. Visually it's an A+. Everything else, WTF? Can the Millennium Falcon fly like that in the atmosphere of a planet? What about Tie Fighters? Why didn't they appear on Hoth? Why Fighters and not Bombers? Also, WTF was up with the Crait speeder ship things, why are they dragging that thing? Visually it was cool, but there'd been no evidence of them ever being used because everything was white, does the sun bleach the red to white? It's a cool look, but the base is abandoned to the point where there's no streaks, but the ships all just work???  Shit. The more I think about it the worse it gets."

Anybody else feeling incredibly vindicated right now? : r/saltierthankrait - "The Acolyte bombed.  Outlaws is looking like a failure.  The Rey show is MIA.  Rian Johnson’s trilogy is MIA.  Almost everything in modern Star Wars is a failure.  Years and years of being told, as a fan, that the franchise was no longer for me, that my criticisms stemmed from racism/sexism, that I was a bigot, a phobe, a Nazi.  My criticisms were never about women in Star Wars. It just so happens that most of the women in Disney Star Wars are poorly written, and I’d address the same criticisms at the male characters they fucked up too. Luke, Obi Wan, Darth Vader, Boba Fett?? All destroyed.  All I’ve been saying, since the word go, is that I want the characters to be treated with respect, to have obstacles, to show some actual fucking growth, a reason to be invested.  Apparently that makes me every nasty thing under the sun. Because Disney’s tried so hard to push women, when they can’t write women that are appealing to anybody, except the women who write them.  Well, to those who pushed to have Star Wars the way it is now; how’s that going for you?  To be inundated with mediocre product after mediocre product. Flop after flop after flop. The brand is a laughing stock. You had an open world Star Wars game, something people have been clamouring for for decades and it sold like shit.  You can’t hide behind your activism anymore; this shit is not appealing to anybody. The numbers are loud and clear. We are not the minority.  We were right. You were wrong.  Hand the keys back to fans, to actual decent sci-fi writers. To people who care, and have the experience and skill to justify having millions of dollars and free range to one of the biggest IP’s in the world.  Keep them away from the activists, people like Leslye Headland, who felt that her experiences were more important than ours.  It’s time to admit you lost."

Just watched Solo and I'm convinced that Star Wars fans are tripping. : r/StarWars - "Solo is like 7 different movie concepts stitched together and each one on it's own is a fantastic.  Put together it's kind of disjointed and rushed, but there's still a lot to enjoy."
"my hot take is that Solo would have made a killer Disney+ show. it'd take advantage of that fragmentation you refer to, give each part a little more time to cook, and feel more natural jumping around."
"Ironic, since several Disney+ shows should have very clearly been reduced down to a 2:15 movie. You're absolutely right though."

Meme - Kathleen Kennedy: "I have a brilliant idea! Let's turn our back on the target demographic that made Star Wars really successful and switch to a niche audience that couldn't possibly give us the same amount of success."

Meme - Darth Vader: "THE ABILITY TO DESTROY A PLANET IS INSIGNIFICANT NEXT TO THE POWER OF THE FORCE"
Admiral Motti: "WHY DON'T YOU JUST DESTROY PLANETS WITH THE FORCE THEN"
*Admiral Motti and Darth Vader stare at each other*
*Admiral Motti floating in space while Darth Vader looks out*

Meme - "If someone wore this to a date in a dark room with a fireplace, yet had no intention of doing anything physical, you'd slaughter billions too. *Padme in dress with circlet*"

Fighting with Babies / Black History in Japan / Getting Away with Murder

Shaniqua Posting Delusions @DeIudedShaniqwa: "Black twitter is fighting with a 5 month old baby because she accidentally uttered the N word Imao"
Isabella Moody: "My daughter literally said the n-word. I'm so proud of her!"
"Ugly Baldhead ass"
"Girl fuck you and Megamind"
MAGA Influencer Brags About Daughter Slurring Black People - YouTube

🇯🇵 Colonel Otaku Gatekeeper 🇯🇵 @politicalawake: "What black history? Black people only make up 0.02% of the population in Japan!. The only history Japanese children should be celebrating is Japanese history"
"Ms. Krauth: Celebrating Black History in Japan. Article by Ryne Hisada, Editor-in-Chief. Illustration by Hana ito"
@neon_sky_2023: "Here is one"
"The 1995 Okinawa incident took place on September 4, 1995. when three U.S. servicemen, U.S. Navy Seaman Marcus Gill and US Marines Rodrico Harp and Kendrick Ledet, who were all serving at Camp Hansen on Okinawa, rented a van and kidnapped a 12-year-old Okinawan girl."

Dane @UltraDane: "Although 19 witnesses said he did it and he himself admitted it, the all Black jury just didn't believe Devon "meant" to "kiII" Ernest, only to steal his pickup, so he walks away a free man.  Our criminal justice system releases confessed murderers and spits in the face of decedent's families. Pretty hard to believe, but it's true."
"SOUTH CAROLINA JURY FIND BLACK MAN WHO CONFESSED TO KILLING WHITE MAN NOT GUILTY OF MURDER, SPEND LESS THAN 2 HRS IN DELIBERATIONS
Devon Dontray Dunham has been found not guilty of murder in the shooting death of unarmed former volunteer fire chief Ernest Martin Stevens, 77, despite his confession and 19 witnesses taking the stand against him. The shooting took place near Stevens' home in Hardeeville, South Carolina on Aug 10, 2017. According to Dunham's lawyer, an armed Dunham "wanted a ride" from Stevens and approached him while he was sitting in his Ford F-150 in a parking lot "but felt threatened" by him and saw him "reach for something" so he decided to unload all 8 rounds of his 9 mm handgun into Stevens' truck before running away."

Links - 26th October 2024 (2 [including 9/11])

Meme - Ian Miles Cheong @stillgray: "Structural steel doesn’t need to be at melting point in order to buckle. The argument that “jet fuel can’t melt steel beams” therefore 9/11 was an inside job is a tired one that requires only your ignorance."

Ian Miles Cheong on X - "Candace Owens has gone full 9/11 truther but she picked the most easily debunked theory to jump on, stating that Jews were warned to leave the Twin Towers hours prior to the attacks, insinuating that the Jews were therefore responsible for it.   What she doesn't tell you is that the warning given to Odigo employees did not mention the World Trade Center. The very first victim of the 9/11 attackers was Daniel Lewin, an Israeli Jew and hundreds of Jews died in the Twin Towers.  The employees who received this message were in the Herzliya, Israel. That's nowhere close to Manhattan. They did not mention this to their employer until after they heard reports of a terrorist attack in the United States on the news, after which they informed the company's management.  I've attached the report on the right.   10 seconds of research would tell you this. Let us just assume then that she has "done the research" as she claims and ignored all of this in order to push a narrative."

Drew Pavlou 🇦🇺🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼 on X - "The truth about 9/11.  On this day 23 years ago, Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda indiscriminately murdered 2,977 Americans in the worst terrorist attack in history.   Osama Bin Laden explained at length that he carried out the September 11 terrorist attacks to “revenge Palestinian blood” and punish the West for supporting “Jewish aggression.”   Given the inherently repulsive nature of this act of mass slaughter against innocents, apologists for jihadist terrorism must always obfuscate and lie about the ideological basis of this act of mass slaughter. This is the reason why these apologists constantly promote obscene and disgusting lies about 9/11 - blaming Jews, Mossad, Bush, Cheney, anybody but the actual jihadist terrorists who carried out the slaughter.   The truth is that the ideology that motivated Bin Laden and Al Qaeda was radical jihadist terrorism and he explained this at length on multiple occasions.  Bin Laden wrote in his “Letter to the American People” manifesto that he hated America for refusing to convert to Islam and for its supposed embrace of homosexuality, gambling, drugs and “sexual immorality.”   He argued in this manifesto that Jews controlled America and that all American civilians were therefore collectively guilty of “supporting Jewish aggression.” To Bin Laden, this meant that American civilians could therefore be killed at any moment anywhere.   He wrote: “You are the nation who, rather than ruling by the Shariah of Allah in its Constitution and Laws, choose to invent your own laws as you will and desire. You separate religion from your policies, contradicting the pure nature which affirms Absolute Authority to the Lord and your Creator.”  So this was the ideological basis for the slaughter. Lunatic anti-Semitic conspiracy theories mixed with hardline Islamic fundamentalism which seeks to eradicate religious and political pluralism in favour of Islamist supremacy everywhere.   Sadly there has still yet to be a serious reckoning with these utterly toxic and poisonous political ideas.   I say political because it is absolutely vital to clarify that political Islamism as represented by Bin Laden and Al Qaeda is a corruption of Islam as an actual religious faith. Islamism is an entirely seperate political ideology. But it is unfortunately a popular political ideology today.   At the height of Bin Laden’s popularity in the Arab world during the 2000s, he regularly polled 50% – 60% favourable ratings in surveys across the region. And as recently as June 2020, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan denounced his killing and called him a martyr.  For the sake of peace and harmony between the world’s religions, this horrific veneration of Bin Laden must end and all the sick conspiracy theories and lies designed to obfuscate the role jihadist terrorism played in murdering 2,977 innocents on September 11, 2001 must end.   That is the truth about 9/11."

Opinion: Muslim radicalization has increased, not decreased, since 9/11 - "After more than two decades we see the resurgence and rejuvenation of this terrorist ideology among a visible portion of Muslims. Is it because these Muslim populations don’t have political empowerment? The people of Gulf countries have zilch political rights, but they are largely happy and peaceful populations. Is it because of economic opportunities? Not sure. Because when we look at the recent behaviour of some Muslim people on our streets, where they are far better economically empowered than in the countries and societies they left behind, we see an ideologically charged crowd that doesn’t like any symbol of western values. The examples of many in the Arab/Muslim diaspora in the West and Arab citizens of the Gulf tell us that lack of democracy and social development are not triggering their restless and violent behaviour. Despite all these years of attempting to combat terrorism, the radicalization of Muslim populations has become worse, not less, since 9/11. Is it the Palestinian question that has triggered recent protesters? Again, no evidence. They don’t rise and protest human rights violations in their own home countries. Let’s put this question in another way. Would these protesters be happy if Palestinians got their state? Still no evidence. Because for most of them, the demand is for all the land “from river to the sea,” which means they want Jews and Israel gone. If Jews agreed to leave and Israel was no more, would attacks against the West and Jews in other parts of the world end? The answer is a big no. Here’s the problem. Due to regressive education systems in the Muslim world, many of their populations live in a perceived glorified past. Many are indoctrinated as being culturally and religiously superior to the West — meaning Christian and Jewish cultures. They want to bring everyone else down so they can maintain their supremacy. Fighting wars will not change this mindset. And democracy and social development will only work if someone wants them. Amid the rise of woke-ism and political correctness, many are almost forgetting that 9/11 ever happened. The gen Z generation has no recollection of this horrific event. The only thing the West can do is protect its communities and streets with strong law enforcement and promote Western values to immigrant communities."
The authors didn't get the memo that if you have strong law enforcement and promote Western values to immigrant communities, it will mean the terrorists will have won. We need to dedicate resources to crushing the "far right" instead

Meme - Egyptian Atheist @egy_atheist: "Muslims in English: The Mossad did 9/11.
Muslims in Arabic:"
"May God grant him paradise...."
"May God have mercy on you, heroic prince Muhammad Atta. It made the Americans taste a fracti... Read more See original (Translated by Google)"

A man who hopes to 'die with zero' says inheritances aren't the best way to pass wealth to your children - ""For any income group you look at, the age of 'inheritance receipt' peaks at around 60. That's a natural result of the fact that the most common life span is 80 and the most common age gap between parents and children is 20," Perkins writes, citing a report from the Federal Reserve. For most people, 60 isn't when that money would make the most impact. The average net worth in this age group, in households headed by someone aged 55 to 64, is over $1 million. People in this age group have already likely planned for retirement on their own, sent children to college, and even paid off a mortgage. For that reason, Perkins writes that the money could be better used earlier in life. Inheritances have largely, and perhaps unintentionally, become retirement funds for middle-class retirees above all else, Insider previously reported. "Inheritances used to go more toward mid-career, mid-life expenses like kids, and now they're likely going more toward concerns of people in their 50s, which is saving for retirement," Lincoln Plews, a research analyst at United Income from Capital One, previously told Insider. Perkins cites the example of one woman who struggled for years financially while raising her own children, only to receive an inheritance at 49 once her mother died. In an interview with one of Perkins' colleagues, this woman said, "It would have been more valuable a lot earlier." Those in their 50s and 60s have had years to start saving, investing, and probably have established a life for themselves. Meanwhile, younger generations, including millennials and Gen Z, face large amounts of student debt, a tough job market, and high housing prices. They're at a stage in their lives where an inheritance could not only allow them to build a life, but also free up money to start saving for their own retirement funds, or start a family of their own. Polling his Twitter followers, Perkins writes that over half of the 3,500 voters chose the ages 26 to 35 as the best age to receive an inheritance. That's the opposite of when people actually receive them in their 60s. By that point, the money is too late to use when it's needed, and doesn't have as much time to take advantage of compound interest and grow in the recipient's lifetime."

Communication revolution: WhatsApp to merge with other messengers - "Meta has been working for quite some time to make third-party chats available on WhatsApp and Messenger for EU users. The company is considered a ‘digital custodian’ under the EU Digital Markets Act. This means that it has to comply with the requirements for WhatsApp and Messenger to be compatible with third-party apps such as iMessage, Telegram, Google Messages, Signal, and others. It will have to overcome some obstacles, as other companies that want to integrate with WhatsApp and Messenger will need to use the same Signal protocol to ensure the privacy of messages. In a copy of the agreement that third-party apps must sign, Meta says it will make the Signal protocol available to partners upon request."

Canadians are wasting money, productivity with recent tax changes - "I always like looking at how complex Canada’s tax system is compared to other countries and what it costs citizens to comply. Some organizations that track this sort of thing put Canada towards the top of comparative complexity. One study concludes Canada has a medium level of complexity, but it is still slightly higher than the average of other Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries. A recent report by the Fraser Institute concludes that the total compliance cost associated with the filing of 2022 Canadian personal income returns was $4.2 billion, equivalent to 0.15 per cent of the gross domestic product. This obviously doesn’t include compliance costs for corporations and trusts. Another recent report estimates that tax complexity costs the United States economy US$546 billion annually — a staggering figure. Adam Smith, the Scottish economist and philosopher, laid out his four basic tenets of a sound taxation system in his 1776 landmark, The Wealth of Nations:
Equity: the taxation of persons should be proportional to their income;
Certainty: the system should be clear and transparent;
Convenience: the timing and system of payment should be convenient for taxpayers;
Economy: the costs to administer and collect taxes should be minimized...
John Oakey, vice-president of taxation at CPA Canada, put it aptly in a LinkedIn post last week when he said the “complicated rules to mitigate the impact of complicated rules do not do our tax system any favours.” Bang on. The solution, of course, is for our country to purposely engage in meaningful efforts to simplify our system and to introduce what economist Jack Mintz calls “big-bang tax reform to wake up the economy.”"

CBC 'can do better,' ombudsman says, after host cited for editorializing - "Host Ian Hanomansing has been cited for editorializing during a 2023 broadcast of the CBC Radio show Cross Country Checkup , according to Blacklock’s Reporter. The CBC’s ombudsman said Hanomansing strayed from being balanced when it came to a contentious issue and instead offered a “value judgment” when he said people “want more immigrants to come to Canada.”... Cross Country Checkup senior producer Richard Goddard defended the broadcast as unbiased."
CBC media bias is a right wing myth

The Weekly Wrap: The CBC went all in on identity politics. That will be its downfall - The Hub - "As the CBC faces growing scrutiny, including for a new round of executive bonuses in spite of major layoffs, its proponents continue to hang onto the argument that the public broadcaster is still needed to fill the gaps caused by the decline of local news across the country... even if one accepts that this is a case of genuine market failure, the CBC doesn’t really provide the type of news that most people ostensibly have in mind when they make such an argument. Public interest local journalism would in theory cover basic civic news like city hall, local sports, or community activities. The CBC’s provincial and local coverage is decidedly not focused on these topics. A case in point is an article published this week on the CBC Newfoundland webpage about a local trans man who unexpectedly gave birth to a baby. Whatever one thinks about the story it’s hard to argue that it reflects broad public interest journalism. The article itself indicates that the individual’s chance of conceiving a child was 1.8 percent. The nature of their experience—particularly in St. John’s—is even more atypical.   It’s highly niche content that is neither representative of the broad-based local experience nor informative of major national or international developments for a local audience.  It didn’t have to be this way. The decline in local news isn’t a new issue. It’s been a slowing-moving crisis. The CBC had plenty of time to reorient itself as a key part of the government’s response to these developments. But it has chosen not to. In a parallel universe, the public broadcaster could have reconfigured its staff and other resources beyond the 40 or so communities (which mostly comprise provincial capitals and key population centres) in which it’s currently present. It could have gone much further than last year’s addition of 14 journalistsin communities like Cranbrook, Lethbridge, and Kingston to establish itself as a major player in secondary and rural communities across the country. It could have dedicated a greater share of its local coverage to public interest journalism and away from its overemphasis on identity politics.  If the CBC had pursued these changes in the face of the decline of local news, it would have renewed its public broadcasting mission for today’s media environment and made it far more difficult for Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives to campaign on the pledge to defund it. Its failure to be responsive to the evolving local media landscape has undermined its strongest argument for continuing to exist.  There may be a role for public policy to support local journalism. That’s the subject of a worthy policy debate. But however one comes down on the question the CBC isn’t the answer. The CBC doesn’t do public interest local journalism anymore. It does identity politics. And that will ultimately be its downfall."

I’m proud that I’m not proud to be British - "across every metric measured, Britons’ pride in our country has gone down since 2013, according to a new National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) report. When asked whether they were “very proud” of Britain for a number of criteria, the 1,600 respondents from England, Scotland and Wales answered in the affirmative thus: 64 per cent for its history, down from 86 per cent a decade ago; 53 down from 69 per cent for the way democracy works; 44 down from 57 per cent for our economic achievements; 48 down from 59 per cent for Britain’s political influence; and 77 down from 84 per cent for its achievements in sport. The highest amount of and lowest decrease in pride was reserved for the realm of art and literature: 79 down from 80 per cent in 2013... It’s arguably no bad thing that Brits’ patriotism has reduced when confronted with the sins of the past – and goes hand-in-hand with our growing embrace of diversity."
We're still told that left wingers don't hate their countries
It's curious how diversity is linked to hating your country

Healthy childhood development through outdoor risky play: Navigating the balance with injury prevention - "Free play is essential for children’s development and for their physical, mental, and social health. Opportunities to engage in outdoor free play—and risky play in particular—have declined significantly in recent years, in part because safety measures have sought to prevent all play-related injuries rather than focusing on serious and fatal injuries. Risky play is defined by thrilling and exciting forms of free play that involve uncertainty of outcome and a possibility of physical injury. Proponents of risky play differentiate ‘risk’ from ‘hazard’ and seek to reframe perceived risk as an opportunity for situational evaluation and personal development. This statement weighs the burden of play-related injuries alongside the evidence in favour of risky play, including its benefits, risks, and nuances, which can vary depending on a child’s developmental stage, ability, and social and medical context. Approaches are offered to promote open, constructive discussions with families and organizations. Paediatricians are encouraged to think of outdoor risky play as one way to help prevent and manage common health problems such as obesity, anxiety, and behavioural issues."

Why do homes in the UK have separate hot and cold taps? - "We asked Kevin Wellman, chief executive officer of the Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering. "This tradition dates back to a time when hot and cold water were kept separate to prevent contamination through cross connection," he said. "Cold water came from a mains supply and was fit for drinking. Hot water would be serviced by a local storage cistern often situated in the loft. "This caused an imbalance of pressures which meant that if incorrect taps and valves were installed one stream of water could force its way across to the other." Water bylaws prevented hot and cold water being mixed because water that had been sitting in a tank in the loft was not deemed safe to drink, he said... "When mixer taps came into vogue there was still a requirement to make sure water didn't mix until it came out of the tap," he said...
Tourists may be puzzled as to why the British pull a string from the ceiling to turn on the light in the bathroom... "In the UK we follow British Standard Requirements for Electrical Installations. "These consider the bathroom to be an area of increased risk because the body could become immersed in water in the bath. "The body's resistance to electricity drops significantly when immersed or partially immersed in water."

Acute Effects of Brisk Walking on Sugary Snack Cravings in Overweight People, Affect and Responses to a Manipulated Stress Situation and to a Sugary Snack Cue: A Crossover Study - "Research has shown that acute exercise reduces urges for chocolate in normal weight people. This study aimed to examine the effects of an acute exercise bout on urges to consume sugary snacks, affect as well as ‘psychological and physiological responses’ to stress and a ‘sugary snack cue’, in overweight individuals. Following 3 days of chocolate-abstinence, 47 overweight, sugary snack consumers were assessed, in 2 randomly ordered conditions, in a within-subject design: 15-min brisk walk or passive control. Following each, participants completed 2 tasks: Stroop color–word interference task, and handling sugary snacks. Urges for sugary snacks, affective activation and valence were assessed. ANOVAs revealed significant condition x time interaction effects for: urges to consume sugary snacks, affective valence and activation. Obtained data show that exercise reduces urges for sugary snacks and attenuates urges in response to the stress situation and the cue in overweight people."

Objective quantification of the food proximity effect on grapes, chocolate and cracker consumption in a Swedish high school. A temporal analysis - "In the present study, food proximity, especially of chocolate, appears to be responsible for increased cumulative energy intake per participant when two independent groups of high school students were tested in identical naturalistic conditions. Additionally, the proximity of the food seems to affect the pattern of servings across time, causing increased frequency of servings for grapes and crackers and, in general, leading to “continuous” rather than “burst” serving patterns. Overall, these findings provide a more comprehensive description of the reported effects of food proximity on energy intake, compared to past studies. They also indicate the importance of controlling the accessibility of food in studies examining other external factors, such as social interactions (e.g., ), in respect to their effect on food intake. In the future, detailed temporal analysis might prove a powerful tool to analyse eating behaviour in naturalistic environments with continuous access to food for longer periods of time (e.g., an office environment [24], a kitchen environment, etc.), allowing the collection of more detailed information about the environmental effects on eating behaviour."

Increasing the Number of Chews before Swallowing Reduces Meal Size in Normal-Weight, Overweight, and Obese Adults

Tourists say they'll never return after anti-English hatred in Wales - "The group of seven English women, aged between 55 and 70, travelled from Lancashire on a four-day walking holiday to enjoy the natural beauty of Llanberis, but claim they were met with anti-English jibes in the street. They also said they were snubbed in pubs and restaurants and found it hard to get served. Amy Hurst, 56, from Clitheroe, who is a member of Women That Walk, a local group set up to encourage them to get out and about in nature, said they encountered 'astounding hatred for the English' at every turn. The mother-of-one said: 'The hatred for the English in North Wales is astounding, we will not be returning.'... When we first arrived there, we were walking down the street when one of us remarked on there being a funeral care place. 'A guy walking past overheard us and said: "It's free for the English!" It was a bit strange.' The following night, Ms Hurst claims the group entered a pub where a punter said: 'Let's not bother with these they're bloody English.'... Ms Hurst claims he group visited a restaurant the following day and everyone was served apart from them - though she admits it could have just been bad luck... On the group's final night, Ms Hurst claims the group visited a pub and when last orders were called a member of the group went to get drinks - only for the pub workers to turn all the lights out. She added: 'They clearly wanted us out as well. I've never had an experience which has made me feel like this before.'"

These 12 Places In Quebec Have The Best (& Strangest) Names - "The art of naming places in Quebec is an exercise in imagination. The Commission de toponymie has dropped its latest list of geographical oddities, confirming that when it comes to labelling locales, the province is unlikely to run out of creativity anytime soon. Each year, the commission sifts through around 1,500 newly officialized place names to pick the top dozen that stand out for their originality, evocative imagery, or cultural significance... Topping the 2024 list is "La Venise des Castors" (Beaver Venice), a name that celebrates the engineering skills of Canada's favourite tree-fellers. Found in the Capitale-Nationale region, the area features an intricate network of ponds and beaver dams that draw comparison to the iconic waterways of Venice, minus the gondolas, of course. Meanwhile, "3e rang du Vieux-Verbal" throws back to a time when establishing a road was a matter of verbal agreement, documented with the formality of a court proceeding. Among the other contenders, "Lac du Raidillon" (Steep Path Lake) suggests a challenging hike, while "Parc du Flottage" (Log Driving Park) pays homage to a time when rivers served as the highways for timber transport. Then there's "Parc du Plus-Petit-au-Plus-Grand" (From the Smallest to the Largest Park), a place that sounds like a Dr. Seuss book turned municipal project. "Rue du Minot-de-Pommes" (Apple Kernel Street) and "Rue du Train-de-Neige" (Snow Train Street) conjure images of quaint, apple-lined streets and locomotives plowing through winter wonderlands. "Sentier d'un Flâneur" (Stroller's Path) invites leisurely walks with a name that promises idyllic scenery and perhaps a chance encounter with a wandering poet. Among the other standout names this year are "Boisé de l'Ocarina" (Ocarina Woods) in Boucherville, hinting at a magical forest where the wind plays melodies through tree branches, and "Chemin Rupicole" in Potton, suggesting a pathway favoured by rock-dwelling birds. There's also "Trou des Campions" (Champions' Hole) and "Verrou du Malin" (The Evil Lock), names that seem to have been plucked from medieval legends or the pages of a fantasy epic."

Are wheelie suitcases banned from Dubrovnik? - "The City of Dubrovnik released a promotional animated video in June, as part of its Respect the City campaign, encouraging people to carry wheeled suitcases rather than drag them along the cobblestones. The video shows a prohibited sign over a wheeled suitcase and advises on the behavioral best practices for anyone visiting: don’t walk around without a top on, don’t ride a bike or electric scooter in the historic center and don’t climb on protected monuments. However, while those behaviors are discouraged, the tourism board has since released a statement to clarify that a ban on wheelie cases will not be introduced. And no fine will be levied to those who choose to roll their suitcases in Old Town."

You could be fined £400 for eating on this Italian beach - "Even consuming a sandwich or ice cream on the beach in Sant’Antioco in Sardinia, is banned, according to new council bylaws. The town’s Mayor Ignazio Locci stunned residents and tourists with his list of 23 prohibited beach activities. Among them is eating food of any kind, using stones to stabilise a sunshade and doing sport. The maximum penalty for eating is €500 (£430). Authorities said the food ban was to stop large gatherings that were sometimes disorderly and reduce litter... Last year tourists in Sorrento, on Italy’s Amalfi Coast, learnt they could no longer wear Speedos or bikinis on the town’s streets. Similar to the situation in Sant’Antioco, anyone flaunting the new rule could be hit by a €500 fine, said town officials at the time. The mayor of Sorrento Massimo Coppola banned the act to stop what he said was ’widespread indecorous behaviour’."

Major change to speed cameras puts millions of drivers on notice - "Point-to-point average speed cameras might soon keep track of all cars and not just heavy vehicles, leading to speeding fines and other penalties if a new trial proves successful. NSW Roads Minister John Graham announced the state would trial a six-month change along two highways soon at a media conference on Sunday. Point-to-point speed cameras, also known as average speed cameras, track the time it takes a vehicle to travel from one distance to another. Mr Graham said these cameras prevent motorists from momentarily slowing down as they would for a mobile traffic camera which only records a vehicle's speed at the time it passes by... 'NSW is the only jurisdiction in the world to use average speed cameras but restrict their use to heavy vehicles only,' Mr Graham said. 'In the context of a rising road toll, now is the time to trial these cameras for light vehicles and understand if we can keep more people safe on the road more of the time.' Mr Graham said NSW is behind other states and countries which already use point-to-point speed cameras on all vehicles."
Probably people who warned at the start that this might be extended to everyone were accused of spreading misinformation and of being ignorant (just like left wingers are trying to defend Kamala Harris's plan to tax unrealised capital gains)

Audible and Market Power

Gergely Orosz on X

How is it allowed that:

- Audible has 65% market share in the US for audibooks

- It offers 20% royalty share to authors if audibooks are sold non-exclusive (so, outside Audible as well). So for a $10 audiobook: Amazon takes $8, publisher gets $2!

Audible offers a 60% take rate (for a $10 audobook, Amazon keeps $6, publisher gets $4) when *exclusively* selling with Audible.

Thanks to its market monoploy, this means that it makes no real business sense for publishers to sell outside Audible.

Sounds anti-competitive

As contrast:

Amazon has a 40% take rate for e.g. physical goods sold on Amazon. (So for a $10 item sold: Amazon keeps $4, merchant gets $6).

For Kindle, it is 30% take rate for books under $10 (so Amazon keeps $3, publisher gets $7). For books over $10 it's 65% take rate (Amazon keeps $6.5, publisher gets $3.5)

In terms of what is required to distribute an audibook:

- Store metadata
- Store mp3 files
- Serve metadata + mp3 files, and maintain an app that plays these

Of course there are nuances, but not as many costs as when selling e.g. physical goods:

Small correction: when distributing outside of Audible, the royalty rate drops to 25%, not 20%

It's still a major penalty and a policy that helps Audible+Amazon maintain its monopolistic position across audibooks

Source: Amazon (ACX is Amazon)

 

Devon Eriksen on X

Because readers don't know, and writers don't refuse.   

So who's to stop them?

The free market works, but it works to the extent that market information is available to everyone.   

When I refused to do business with Audible, and talked about why to my audience, most Audible users in the crowd had no idea how little they pay authors. And most of them were appalled.

Many cancelled subscriptions.   

But, ultimately, appealing to people's better nature is a sideline. You need massive publicity, and many people don't care.   

The people who need to stop the robbery are the ones being robbed: the authors.

You will never see a Devon Eriksen novel on Audible. Not under any circumstances.

Not even if they offer me a special superstar deal, like they did for Brandon Sanderson, when he made initial noises about boycotting them.  

(The terms of said deal are secret.)

You see, readership is not a zero sum game. People who buy books, buy more books. The winning market move for authors is to increase the total number of readers.   

I am not in competition with other good science fiction authors. I am in cooperation with them. Buying someone else's SF increases the odds that a reader will buy mine.   

Which means it is BAD for me if Audible strangles new authors' careers in the cradle.

And make no mistake, that is what they are doing.   

"Novelist" is a brutally hard career to break into. Without a lot of publicity, it doesn't pay the bills, and when you are new and unknown, that publicity is hard to get.

Taking a double lion's share of what little money new authors get can make it impossible to continue.

The next Heinlein, the next Tolkien, may very well be out there, but he may have gone back to selling insurance because he couldn't make writing pay.

This is not just evil greed.   

It is stupid greed.     

It is greed past sense and reason, greed to the point where Audible is actually stealing from themselves.  

You see, the money, the real money, the big, the life-changing money, the create-a-dynasty money, the support-a-whole-industry money, in fiction writing, is all at the top.   

It's in the A-list. Sanderson, King, Herbert, Tolkien, Childs, and so on.

The whole point of trying to launch a writing career is that you are swinging for the fences. Shooting for that A-list.  Otherwise, you'd be better off sticking to engineering, or insurance sales.  

A-listers don't just get rich themselves. They support the whole industry.

The midlist usually does little more than break even, and unknowns and newbies don't make money at all.   Everyone who earns their bread off book sales needs new A-listers, or they have no job.   

So where do new A-listers come from?

They come from the midlist. Or from total obscurity.   

They come from, in other words, the ranks of those authors who can barely pay the bills. If they are lucky.

If you take so much from these people that they cannot afford to continue, then you are eating your seed corn.

Harvesting your seedlings.

Killing the golden egg factory for a dinner of roast goose.

And this is why I say I will never do business with Audible.   

Not merely because they wish to cheat me.   
Not merely because they are cheating everyone.   
Not merely because they are killing the industry.   

But because they can't stop.

Audible has most likely painted themselves into a corner, to the point where they cannot, literally cannot, simply change their minds, come around, and take 15% like any decent digital sales platform.   

They couldn't change even if they wanted to.

Why not?   

Because when companies have outrageous profit margins, or even outrageous amounts of investment dollars, they tend to find ways to spend that cash.

I saw this in Silicon Valley.  

They hire lots of useless people for silly roles, like "Diversity and Inclusion Officer". Chefs to provide free gourmet lunches. Masseuses.   

Hell, in some of the big tech firms I was at, people's secretaries had secretaries.

Once that outrageous money is being spent on stuff, that stuff becomes somebody's salary. Somebody who isn't gonna want to get laid off.   

And your employees don't want to give up their massages.

Of course, as I said previously, shrinking Audible's take would be likely to increase their overall revenue.   

But even if one could convince them of that, this transformation would require them to tighten their belts today, in the hopes of getting rich years from now.

The employees who enjoy high profit margins right now aren't going to be on board with that, especially not the ones who would lose their jobs.   

And they would create tremendous internal friction against any such change. Probably too much to overcome.

They would most likely unionize and loudly proclaim that Audible employees were being victimized and cruelly deprived of foot massages just so greedy authors could have luxuries like electricity and mortgage payments.

No, there are only two ways that Audible changes.  

1. If someone with vision and a thick skin buys the company and runs through it with an axe, like Elon Musk did to Twitter, turning it into something that doesn't suck.

2. Authors refuse to do business with Audible, and viable competition enters the market to do business with those authors.  

The only thing that can put pressure on Audible is viable competition.

If other companies begin eating Audible's market share by offering books that Audible can't, then Audible will be forced to bring its cut under control. Or it can simply die and be replaced by those other companies. Makes no difference to the authors.

Point is, only scenario #2 is a real possibility.   

Audible is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Amazon, and I don't see Bezos putting it up for sale, even if someone was buying.

No one is coming to help authors. We have to help ourselves. 

And that means being willing to walk away from the table. Even if we miss out on 65-80% of the market.

Because in any negotiation, you have no power at all if you're unwilling to walk away from the table. 

If you have no deal-breaker, then you'll take whatever is offered, even if it's 37 cents per audiobook sale, which is, according to my calculations, what I would actually get.

In practice, the hit from walking away from Audible may not be nearly so bad as authors think.   

Because just as Audible maximizing their cut doesn't necessarily maximize their revenue, authors maximizing our sales doesn't necessarily maximize our revenue.

Let's suppose Audible would give me a dollar per sale (yeah, right, sure, cue the flying pigs), just to make the math easier.   

And let's suppose that some other ebook platform takes 20%, allowing me to sell for $12.50 (far less than Audible charges) and make $10.

Now if I sell 100 books on Audible, I make $100.   

But if I lose 90% of my sales by walking away from Audible, I still make... $100.   

And I can charge less per book.    

Not only that, in the second scenario, there's still 90 people who have that book yet, and someday might.

Accepting a bad deal usually isn't good for you. That's why they call it a "bad deal".

The way forward against Audible is to educate readers, educate authors, spread market information so the free market can work the way it's supposed to.

I had hoped @BrandSanderson would lead this fight, with the power of his name and market share.

But it was not to be.

We simply have to embrace the suck and go on without him.   

It's up to us. 

Links - 26th October 2024 (1 - Hating Elon Musk)

Quintus 🏛️ on X - "Elon’s power lies not in his supposed inherited wealth nor his intelligence/work ethic/drive  He simply knows how to wrangle autistic engineers into doing what he wants better than any other living person on the planet   The baseline engineer is a very weak, frightful, and timid creature. This is why they chose engineering as a career path in the first place—it’s safe. They are deathly afraid of failure. They just want to not get yelled at, they don’t want the “bad thing” to be their “fault.” They are like sheep who get sick and die if they get stressed. If something they’re tasked with doing seems like it might fail, they will put all of their energy into crafting a rationale for why it’s impossible rather than actually making a good-faith effort at carrying out the task. They are masters of creating massive Rube Goldberg machines where the final output is an excuse.   Elon has no patience for this.  He sees through it. He is not a guy in a suit. The weakness of the suit guys is that they believe what the engineers tell them because the suit guys are ripping them off. They also don’t understand the natural sciences, so engineers have this power over them. “The naive autist who I’m ripping off can probably be trusted,” they think to themselves, not knowing any better.   But Elon is different. He speaks fluent autism. He questions their assumptions. He asks them to innovate on a solution, not just the excuse. “If this way is impossible, why not try it that way?” These simple framings cut through the autistic mind, which tends to hyperfocus and loop on figuring out how to solve an unsolvable puzzle rather than go out and find a more tractable puzzle.  It’s pure psychology.   Elon exists in the liminal space between autism and not autism, he is a cognitive diplomat of the highest order. That’s why he gets shit done. He is able to process crude unrefined autism into weaponized autism at a scale and efficiency that cannot matched by any other living human."

Democrats Cruelly Make Fun Of Autistic African-American Jumping For Joy | Babylon Bee - "While the guy springing up and down for joy was not available for comment, former president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump weighed in on the matter.  "It's very sad, very sad, but unfortunately in character for Democrats," Trump said. "Very sad. Not good. Racism is bad! We love our African-American autistic supporters very much. They're the best, believe me, everyone says so. No one has done more for the African-American community than me, folks. Or the autist community. Absolutely tremendous. The best, maybe ever."  At publishing time, the African-American autist had responded by buying the entire Democrat party and renaming it DemocratX to force it to support free speech."

Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson Says SpaceX Hasn't Done More Than NASA; Elon Musk Gives Epic Reply
SpaceX on X - "Commander @rookisaacman has egressed Dragon and is going through the first of three suit mobility tests that will test overall hand body control, vertical movement with Skywalker, and foot restraint"
Antonio García Martínez (agm.eth) on X - "The fact humans are returning to space exploration, paid for by putting up a network of internet satellites and technically feasible due to reusable rockets that magically land on their rear ends, has to be one of the greatest business and engineering feats ever. This is history."

Meme - Renson Seow: "Elon: accepts risk of bringing back astronauts after Boeing screwed up.
The media: says "different spacecraft" as they can't even bring themselves to say SpaceX."
"Biden: Billionaires like Elon Musk are ruining this country!
Harris: Yeah, we need to tax their unrealized gains, forcing them to sell their companies!
Biden: By the way Elon, can you help clean up Boeing's mess and bring these astronauts home safely?
Elon: Anything for my country"
ABC News: "BREAKING: The two astronauts who went up to the International Space Station on Boeing's Starliner will have to come home on a different spacecraft, NASA officials announced Saturday."
"And if anything unfortunate happens to the astronauts I bet the media will happily blame him."

Media Warns Community Notes May Make It Harder For Them To Lie | Babylon Bee - "Members of the mainstream media sounded the alarm about the Community Notes feature of X, formerly Twitter, which they say makes it harder for them to lie.  "It is the duty of journalists to report our truth, which sometimes doesn't match up with what many people would call 'reality,'" MSNBC's Rachel Maddow said on her program Thursday evening. "We often have to lie for the greater good, and X's Community Notes is making that much more difficult."  Several anchors and newspaper columnists echoed Maddow's sentiment, calling on X to pull Community Notes from the social media platform. "How am I supposed to make you think what I want you to think if I keep getting fact-checked? This isn't fair!" CNN's Anderson Cooper said, his eyes moist with tears.  Time magazine has reportedly delayed its upcoming issue, hoping to avoid blowback from Community Notes. The editorial staff, however, feared publishing only material approved by Community Notes and removing all lies would leave the entire magazine blank."

Melinda French Gates weighs in on the generosity of billionaires like Elon Musk and Peter Thiel: 'I would not call those men philanthropists' - "French Gates also told the Times that she found Musk's criticism of her political activism "silly."  When asked to elaborate, French Gates said she thought tech CEOs frequently gave advice on topics on which they weren't experts."
Ironic.

Edward Luce on X - "Can't say this enough; Elon Musk's menace to democracy is intolerable. He's using the largest & most influential platform in the democratic world to stoke racial conflict and civil breakdown - in his own posts & what X promotes. Democracies can no longer ignore this."
wanye on X - "Progressives had every single large platform, lost one, and they think it's intolerable"
Mike Spicer on X - "It’s because too many of their positions cannot stand up to scrutiny. The way to implement their goals is to silence those that point out flaws in their thinking. Good policy requires hearty debate and sharpening of ideas."
Cheese For Everyone! on X - "Similar vibes to SCOTUS — any institution they don’t control is irredeemably broken"

Elon Musk on X - "The same legacy media dingbats who lied repeatedly, claiming “X/Twitter is dying”, are now saying it’s the “largest & most influential platform” 🤣🤣🤣  The real crime here is that my sides hurt from laughing at the irony!  Listen Ed, if you want to refute something, it is easy to do on this platform, unlike the tripe you publish in your legacy paper."

Richard Hanania on X - "The Global Alliance for Responsible Media, a nonprofit pro-censorship organization, is shutting down in response to Elon Musk’s lawsuit against them."
Elon Musk’s X just sued a nonprofit advertising group out of existence

Sky News on X - "Tech billionaire Elon Musk has intervened in British politics once again by posting images of an offensive deleted tweet from a Labour MP. 🔗 Read more https://t.co/rN0Dx2A27K"
Fr Calvin Robinson on X - "@SkyNews Posting a tweet is now classed as “intervening in British politics”?"
Don Keith on X - "@SkyNews So you can post about politicians’ tweets but @elonmusk can’t?"
Weird. I thought only authoritarian countries accused foreigners of interfering in domestic politics

BBC Newsnight on X - ""[Elon] Musk is trying to pretend freedom of speech as some absolute right. It's never been an absolute right." Keir Starmer's biographer Tom Baldwin says there should be more regulation of social media #Newsnight"
Gad Saad on X - "What we are seeing is precisely why the West was such an anomaly in the history of mankind.  Specifically, the reflex to suppress speech with which the rulers/elite disagree is the default reflex, and we are seeing a return to it.  The West is facing the classic Herculean fork in the road.  Take the easy or hard road in defending free speech."

George on X - "BREAKING: The European Union just issued a letter to Elon Musk demanding that he censor Donald Trump in their upcoming interview. Threatening him with "legal obligations" if he fails to stop the "disinformation"  Europeans are interfering in American elections
"This notably means ensuring, on one hand, that freedom of expression and of information, including media freedom and pluralism, are effectively protected and, on the other hand, that all proportionate and effective mitigation measures are put in place regarding the amplification of harmful content in connection with relevant events, including live streaming. which, if unaddressed, might increase the risk profile of X and generate detrimental effects on civic discourse and public security. This is important against the background of recent examples of public unrest brought about by the amplification of content that promotes hatred, disorder, incitement to violence, or certain instances of disinformation.""

Meme - RAW EGG NATIONALIST @Babygravy9: "Today's headline from The Scotsman, courtesy of Scotland's former first minister Humza Yousaf. Preserving freedom of speech and thought for ordinary people makes Elon Musk "one of the most dangerous men on the planet." The battlelines have never been more clearly drawn."
"Musk one of most dangerous men on planet, says Yousaf. X owner using his vast wealth 'for some of the most wicked evil I've seen'"
Why do the left hate free speech so much?

As an ex-Twitter boss, I have a way to grab Elon Musk’s attention. If he keeps stirring unrest, get an arrest warrant | Bruce Daisley
He's upset the left doesn't get to control the narrative and stir unrest anymore
When the left controlled twitter, censorship was dangerous, of course

Twitter Shadow-Ban: Remembering the Journalists and Elected Dems Who Dismissed the Twitter Shadow-Banning - "For years, Twitter executives and journalists dismissed the shadow-banning complaints. Documents revealed by journalist Bari Weiss on Thursday proved the so-called “conspiracy theorists” were right all along"
Elon Musk Can’t Solve Twitter’s ‘Shadowbanning’ Problem - The Atlantic - "Since Elon Musk took over at Twitter, he has apparently spent a considerable amount of time “looking into” the personal complaints of individual users who suspect that they are not as visible on the platform as they should be."
One Musk hater accused him of hypocrisy for limiting visibility on hateful tweets, but Musk's original complaint was about lack of transparency on shadowbanning, so props to him for delivering!

Meme - Elon Musk @elonmusk: "When they keep telling you that you are threatening free speech for advocating for free speech
"Wait, you're serious?" *laughing Elon*
Liam McIntosh (He/Him) @Liam...: "Cisgender."
"Visibility limited: this Post may violate @ X's rules against Hateful Conduct. Learn more"
Weird. Even putting aside the free speech issue, left wingers used to claim that freedom of speech was not the same as freedom of reach. Turns out they didn't really believe that, and were just grasping at straws to hobble those they disagreed with

Meme - Richard Hanania @RichardHanania: ""Europe has free speech just like America, it just decides a lot more speech is not allowed."   This man is one of the most important researchers in the world in artificial intelligence. Reminder you can be brilliant in your field and a complete moron about ethics and politics."
Elon Musk: "A reminder that free speech in America is special and we need to do everything possible to preserve it"
Global Government Affairs: "Last night, Alexandre de Moraes threatened our legal representative in Brazil with arrest if we do not comply with his censorship orders. He did so in a secret order, which we share here t..."
Yann LeCun: "BS. The EU also has free speech. In fact, the only EU countries that violate free expression have far-right governments, like Hungary. The US and the EU have slightly different ideas about what speech is okay and what speech isn't."

Terry Newman: Brazil bans Twitter, Trudeau dreams of the same for Canada - "in Brazil, X (formerly Twitter) was banned after what appears to have been an Epic Rap Battle between Elon Musk and a Brazilian Supreme Court Justice. Alexandre de Moraes had ordered Musk to suspend over 100 accounts on his platform, calling his order a “ battle against misinformation, hate speech and attacks on democracy .” Musk refused, accusing Moraes of “censoring conservative voices online.” Notably, the accounts Moraes wanted suspended just happened to support Brazil’s former president, Jair Bolsonaro, with some questioning his loss in the last election. In retaliation, Moraes made Musk a subject of a Brazilian “fake news” investigation. The battle concluded with X’s legal representative fleeing Brazil to avoid arrest for not complying with secret censorship orders . His fleeing triggered a unanimous ruling in the courts to ban X entirely. Moraes threatened Brazilian citizens with fines of $8,900 per day if they even attempted to use a VPN to access X... Nigeria banned X after it removed threats of violence posted by, of all people, the country’s own president at the time, Muhammadu Buhari . India has threatened to detain or arrest employees of X if its legal demands were not met. Service has since been re-established in both countries, with Nigeria and India forcing the platform to have legal representatives in both countries. There is, of course, a non-zero chance they too will need to flee at some point. The Twitter Files uncovered so many levels of American government requesting information be taken down from Twitter that a formal system had to be created to manage such requests. The UK’s recently passed Online Safety Bill , yet to be implemented, will give media regulator Ofcom punitive powers and the ability to levy massive fines on platforms that fail to police and report hateful content to their satisfaction. To aid in this enterprise, a complainant can visit the easy-to-remember website www.report-it.org.uk and report hate under various categories, including disability, race, religion, sexual orientation, transgender, and others, provided a perpetrator is perceived to have been “hostile” in some way towards a person in one of these communities or the entire community itself. In fact, reporting others for possible hate crimes in the UK has never been easier, as the site “ Stop Hate UK ” has launched a handy app for your phone so you can report hate crimes on the go. Of all the countries hopping on the government regulation of the internet bandwagon, Canada might be the most devoted. The Liberal government’s Online Harms Act , Bill C-63, essentially sets up its own team of legal representatives , including a Digital Safety Ombudsman, a five person Commission, and a Digital Safety Office, all to ensure social media platforms comply with what they have decided is in the best interests of Canadian citizens. Platforms will have to hand over their Digital Safety Plans , detailing how they will mitigate Canadians’ risk of exposure to harmful online content, keeping us children safe. While the bill includes a number of provisions to protect actual children, and legislation of acts most Canadians would agree are heinous, like intimate content distributed without consent, it also includes acts that may be more difficult to assess, such as content that foments hatred. Under proposed amendments to the Canadian Human Rights Act, anyone can file a complaint against anyone else for posting allegedly hateful content. A committee will get to decide if what was posted fomented hatred, and issue fines of up to $50,000. Anyone who wants to be on such a committee probably shouldn’t be the person making those decisions. And the Liberal agenda of trying to control the internet goes well beyond “online harms.” It has also decided to micro-manage our content producers to ensure they meet obscure mandated cultural standards through the Online Streaming Act . Passed last year, the legislation requires various content producers to register, and then set out to ensure that content producers are filling Canadians’ web browsers with material they deem is “ varied and comprehensive, providing a balance of information, enlightenment and entertainment for people of all ages, interests and tastes” and reflecting “equal rights, the linguistic duality and multicultural and multiracial nature of Canadian society and the special place of Indigenous peoples and languages within that society.” Yes, Mom. As an indirect result of the Liberal government’s actions, specifically passing the Online News Act , Canadians have been unable to read news on Facebook or Instagram since August, 2023. The Liberals thought they could use the act to force Meta to pay news publishers for articles shared by Canadians on its feeds. Meta, seeing which way the wind was blowing with our increasingly bureaucratic government, refused. Brazil wanted to censor Twitter. Does Trudeau dream of the same? Given how enthusiastically he enjoys bogging down the internet in regulations, he’d probably relish the opportunity, if given the chance, to have more direct censorship powers."
Government censorship that's transparently politically motivated is good when it pushes the left wing agenda

Elected leaders worldwide call on Brazil to back off censorship as global elite call for more - "With U.S. authorities' silence on Brazil's Supreme Court upholding a nationwide ban on X and $9,000 fines for users who circumvent technical blocks – and the Democratic vice presidential nominee claiming the First Amendment doesn't protect "hate speech" or "misinformation" – foreign leaders elsewhere are stepping up to defend free speech in Latin America and globally.  Former U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss, three members of its House of Lords, Chilean presidential runner-up José Antonio Kast, current and former lawmakers from Mexico to South America and the European Parliament, five Republican state attorneys general and prominent journalists and academics joined an open letter organized by Alliance Defending Freedom International.  "This situation extends far beyond Brazil, serving as a striking example of a growing trend of censorship by government officials, who are becoming increasingly aggressive in suppressing speech they find objectionable," the 100-plus signatories told Brazil's Federal Senate and Chamber of Deputies. Brazil's actions "could set a dangerous precedent that quickly spreads." American and European elites, from philanthropist Bill Gates and former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich to Truss's predecessor Tony Blair, are increasingly speaking favorably of suppressing challenges to official government narratives, even preemptively.  Reich may have gone the furthest, laying out a six-point roadmap in the U.K Guardian to "rein in" X owner Elon Musk through economic boycotts, canceled government contracts and arrest for "disseminating lies and hate" wherever the Donald Trump-endorsing billionaire travels, approvingly citing France's arrest of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov. "I certainly see a position where the world's going to have to come together and agree to some rules around social media platforms," Blair told "Leading Britain's Conversation" last week when asked directly if the U.K. "may have to follow Brazil's lead" on punishing platforms for disinformation in light of the country's own recent protests against unchecked immigration.  As for "what the answer is and what the right system of regulation is, I'm not sure," but "there's got to be" something because "people can provoke, you know, hostility and hatred," Blair said.  "Fascists," Musk responded Thursday to new Australian legislation to fine platforms up to 5% of their global revenue for not preventing the spread of purported misinformation... Artificial intelligence is serving as both the justification for censorship and a tool for protecting the public from purported misinformation, as tracked by civil liberties group Reclaim the Net.  California lawmakers recently passed several AI-related bills, which Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has said he supports, including a ban on content "materially deceptive related to elections in California" that plausibly covers satirical memes.   Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg recently apologized for his platform censoring such content.   "We should have free speech, but you're inciting violence, if you're causing people not to take vaccines, where are those boundaries?" Gates asked rhetorically in a CNBC interview on his new Netflix series "What's Next?" A major vaccine funder, Gates himself spurred vaccine hesitancy by criticizing the lackluster performance of COVID-19 vaccines.   He speculated the U.S. could enforce "rules" through "some AI that encodes those rules, because you have billions of activity [sic] and if you catch it a day later, the harm is done." Reclaim the Net noted Gates didn't say who would enforce those rules.  Gates incorrectly stated U.S. legal precedent by claiming that "yelling 'fire' in a crowded theater" isn't protected by the First Amendment... Using the "pretext of combatting disinformation and fake news" – the latter not even defined in the country's law – Brazil has "targeted conservative voices for censorship" going back six years, including by blocking pro-life advocacy against the "pro-abortion" position of then-election candidate Lula da Silva in 2022, the letter says.   It cited a 2023 survey that found most Brazilians felt chilled by these actions, which include "criminal proceedings against individuals, journalists and influencers" for sharing opinions, claiming they violated Article 41 of the convention.   "The situation, severe and endemic in Brazil, has not even been included by the Rapporteur [for Freedom of Expression] and the Commission in their annual reports!" ADF International said.  Court actions violate Brazil's own constitution, Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the new open letter to Brazil's lawmakers says. "Freedom of expression is not negotiable, nor is it a privilege – it is the cornerstone of every democratic society."   Other signatories include Twitter Files journalist Michael Shellenberger, who exposed the efforts of Moraes to criminalize dissent and censor supporters of ex-President Jair Bolsonaro, former ACLU President Nadine Strossen and cofounder Melissa Chen of Ideas Beyond Borders, which translates and digitally distributes "vital, but often banned information" in authoritarian countries.  Current and former U.S. elected officials include Sam Brownback, the former GOP senator from Kansas and ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, and the Attorneys General for Missouri, Kansas, Louisiana, Utah and Tennessee. High-profile academics include Princeton's Robert George and Ayaan Hirsi Ali at Stanford's Hoover Institution."

Meme - James Kirkpatrick @VDAREJamesK: "Again, the biggest change in my lifetime is that within a decade, purely because Trump won, support for free speech went from universally accepted as a core democratic value to being a fringe, far-right position."
Byrne Hobart @ByrneHobart: "It’s pretty mind-blowing that a prominent American academic is willing to say this publicly. A disturbing shift in the Overton window. (I’m genuinely taken aback—have Reich’s colleagues/employer commented on this stuff?)"
"3. Regulators around the world should threaten Musk with arrest if he doesn't stop disseminating lies and hate on X.
Global regulators may be on the way to doing this, as evidenced by the 24 August arrest in France of Pavel Durov, who founded the online communications tool Telegram, which French authorities have found complicit in hate crimes and disinformation. Like Musk, Durov has styled himself as a free speech absolutist."

@amuse on X - "Last week Neil deGrasse Tyson, America’s top “science communicator”, repeated the latest Democrat talking point that @elonmusk’s space efforts aren’t impressive or viable. The left hates Elon almost as much as they hate success."

Megan McArdle on X - "Elon Musk's twitter is worse in some ways--I see a lot more spam and occasional bigotry. But the changes to the moderation policy, and the resulting exodus of the most censorious people to other platforms, have also made it exponentially harder to assemble a cancellation mob,"