Yeah, I feel ya! I’m referring to its clean UI, ease of use, and lack of ads, as well as features like the wallet and payment system. They also have Facebook style posting, but it’s much nicer to see

My actual favorite chat app is Signal, for overall privacy and security. It helps that Signal also has a nice, intuitive UI and clean appearance, but it lacks some cool features.

Wechat was the first to implement so many things: message translation, voice message transcription (and translation), delete & edit, sending cash to friends (red packets in group chat is a fkn blast!)…

I tried going back to Slashdot and it’s just not the same

I love wechat compared to almost every other messaging app

Edge is tempting to try, and I specifically love its pdf markup capabilities. Much more intuitive than Firefox. But I don’t trust Microsoft with my browsing data

Wait-- for real???

If I grew up under der Stasi I would also be skeptical of so-called communism.

But it’s ultimately a failure on their part to imagine a better world and better model of governance than one which relies on secret police.

I know this Serbian guy who is totally fuckin libbed out because of stories his dad told him, no even any personal experience. As soon as you start talking about social programs, he starts spouting Reaganite nonsense

I love Sync. A beautiful app that served me for a full decade. But now, Sync charges way too much for a subscription and access to features that used to be free or came with a one-time purchase. And yes, it appears abandoned, so why would subscribe?

Sync also had a bunch of customizations that I had to do for each account. Very tedious and the settings menus and options themselves weren’t implemented as well as they could have been.

Voyager was exactly what I needed. It’s very close the Sync experience while also its own thing. I’m very happy with it. If only they’d change the logo

Irreally really like you Voyager. It’s inspired by Reddit Sync, the GOAT

The reason for the freight priority is because freight companies own the rails and contractually de-prioritize Amtrak

Ukraine would already have lost if not for NATO supplies

Actually that’s exactly what happened with Iraq. They are now on the side of Iran

Do smaller workouts in the morning. Get yourself into shape first. I was like you. Just even riding my bike one big ride a week and some very very short (1km round trip with a small hill) rides almost every day. It got me stronger and more able to handle the big rides. Now I get runner’s high after cycling. I also know my limits better

Naked Capitalism has a near-daily roundup of Iran War highlights, theories, and speculation grounded in actual reported news. The comment section is fantastic.

If something gets posted and it proves untrue or is wild speculation, it will either be corrected or labeled as such up front.

As for the comments section, Yves maintains a high level of quality

I also like the Al Jazeera minute-by-minute mobile site. It’s good to scroll through when I’m eating breakfast and then again before bed

The US government doesn’t care about children anywhere. From Sandy Hook to Gaza to Tehran.

The porn instances already do

But I hope it doesn’t ever get so niche as Reddit became

Why isn’t it? Kim has no quarterly earnings report he’s in thrall to, no need to make line go up in perpetuity, no banksters, no factory owners, no techbros, no lobbyists.

Under such conditions, it’s entirely possible for leadership to work on behalf of the public interest. Compare to the US, where popular support is completely ignored for industry lobbying and campaign cash. I’d venture to say that North Korea is already more democratic than the US, even IF it’s a brutal regime (it isn’t)

The only brutal and undemocratic regime on the peninsula is the ROK, which killed tens of thousands of its citizens in Jeju and Gwangju. Jeju was effectively covered up until the mass graves were found. And even they are more progressive and democratic than the US

A hereditary monarchy is still not an oligarchy 🤷

But anyway, you’re only talking about the head of state. They have an entire system running there

Yes-- there is no oligarchy in China and North Korea. Oligarchs on China are kept on a tight leash and will be killed for a getting out of line.

North Korea probably has no oligarchs as such

Compare to South Korea, which has a famously corrupt governance at all levels, with policies directly influenced by the chaebols (family-owned conglomerates, whose assets were originally awarded by the US for their willing collaboration with Japanese colonizers)

I think it’s rampant in white collar settings

But also, China (and east Asia) is arranged to facilitate and mitigate that a little bit. Like, multigenerational living arrangement ensures a household is in good order and removes the financial burden of housing affordability.

Iwworked there until 2022. All my coworkers were overworked without pity