Many animals can coexist with many other animals; can humans coexist with other humans?

think it’s fair to say that I can adapt and work with almost anybody. Not everybody, definitely no absolutism here. Regardless of beliefs or nationality, for example, I’ve managed to work with fundamentally different people both personally and professionally. I realise that not everyone can do this, and there are many reasons this can be difficult.

There are still people I cannot have a calm and constructive conversation with, but that typically boils down not to culture but to basic things like nonsensical core. For example, people who judge people based on what car they drive are typically toxic people; people whose whole life is based on reality [sic] TV shows are hard to converse with, even if they’re not obnoxious. It’s just shallow and boring.

It’s probably important for people to assess whether they can get along with many other groups of people. And if not, why not?

Years ago I kept track of excess deaths in the UK. Maybe that has improved, maybe not. I no longer keep track of it; it has been years since I last checked. I moved on. I do other things.

The gym shut down in 2020 and a year later we altogether stopped going there (after 20 years in that gym, for me at least) despite it still being open. Life has changed so much not due to the pandemic per se but factors that changed at that time.

Speaking of heat, there have been attempts by aggressive Americans to “put my feet to the fire” to distract from the fact there’s Microsoft corruption, bribes given to US officials, and an arrest for strangling women. In one case, there’s also a spouse accusing the husband of kidnapping, torture and rape.

Apparently I, for merely talking about it, am the “real problem”.

SLAPP in a nutshell:

his morning I was astounded to discover, and only because I was vigilant enough, that the integrity of my bicycle was no more. The front wheel was jittering a little bit just when I was about to embark and set off (and after inflating the tyres). Upon closer inspection a part of the mechanism (see above) was totally missing – it had been stolen, it could not possibly fall off without me noticing it and without a hell of a long-winded effort of tampering, unscrewing, etc.

Who stole it and why? I don’t know. I probably will never know.

If I didn’t check carefully enough and simply rode off, there would be a real chance of an unforeseen accident or high-speed fall (basically a wheel falling off completely due to no stern support). I read about such things online a decade ago; sabotage like this is sometimes done intentionally.

If someone stole it to make or save money, then this person has total disregard for the safety of other people. If this was meant to hurt me, I would never be able to prove it.

The search for a replacement part continues (whatever it is called).

think technology is a good thing, but it depends which.

Some weeks ago I chatted with the man who came to check our electric+gas readings. It was a nice chat and a nice lad/pal. He explained that in some of his visits he encounters tampered-with meters, typically in homes that break other laws (e.g. growing weed indoors).

Thankfully we never had such meters installed. It was never obligatory (they were pushy) and our resistance paid off.

When it comes to water, however, it’s not the same. They can do anything they wish outside the home and beyond the fences. So about a month ago they forewarned everybody – by leaflet at the doors – that they’d take out the “old” (mechanical) water meters and replace them with “smart” (digital) ones.

It seems like today, belatedly, they finally did that.

Some “smart” water meters save work for the measurer, they say it is more tamper-proof, but those things can also store info (personal data) on how much water is used WHEN. So that’s a spying opportunity.

We don’t get to give water treatment (“United Utilities” in our case) firms any input on this matter, so the outlet is my blog.

T was 15 years ago when I first met Rianne. It was at a birthday party of a friend of hers and a friend of mine. We started chatting randomly and soon figured out we had a lot in common, including our Computer Science background.

A lot of time has passed since then and I do my best to be a good husband. This coming Saturday we’ll do something special but modest.

I should note that the reason Microsofters try to put me and my wife in prison [1-3] is because I did the right thing and protected my wife, whereas the Microsofters would just strangle women or worse.

Some people, instead of trying to become better human beings, try to become better sociopaths.

_____

1. Matthew J. Garrett Has Just Sent a Threat to Put My Wife and I in Prison Because His Own Spouse Says He’s a Rapist
2. Threats From ‘Former’ Red Hat (Now IBM) Staff While IBM’s Likely Accounting Fraud Attracts Public Scrutiny
3. Put Criminals in Prison, Not People Who Report the Crimes

We are exposing serious corruption every week and maintain 100% source/leaker/whistleblower protection record after 20 years

esterday we published post/page #14684 in “New Techrights”, 42 days after this year’s first (#13769). That’s 915 new ones in 42 days or almost 22 per day, on average (it would be 7952 for the whole year or 365 days at this pace). That’s in spite of me writing many more original articles in the sister site. Not everyone is happy about this. The hired guns of the Microsofters, who admit third parties pay for their litigation against me and against my wife, are trying to put me in prison, as noted in:

• Matthew J. Garrett Has Just Sent a Threat to Put My Wife and I in
  Prison Because His Own Spouse Says He’s a Rapist
• Threats From ‘Former’ Red Hat (Now IBM) Staff While IBM’s Likely
  Accounting Fraud Attracts Public Scrutiny
• Put Criminals in Prison, Not People Who Report the Crimes

I cannot stress strongly enough how absurd this is. Thankfully we have NGOs and politicians involved.

The hired guns in London are eager to turn the UK into another China. On behalf of despicable Americans and against the locals.

omeone recently asked me about devoting money to Software Freedom causes so as to focus on what is right, what one is “meant” to do as it is better devoting one’s capacity/potential/knowledge/energy/experience/recognition to maximise public good. It makes perfect sense because life is finite and money does not go into one’s grave. It is meant to be used for something, not to be hoarded. Hoarding is in human’s nature and it is a weakness, nothing to be boastful about.

I am thankful and truly grateful for the fact that my life is rewarding and satisfying, with few exceptions here and there (not every moment is perfect). Vices and online additions are not necessary. Compared to peers and relatives, my life is good, it’s better than theirs. I am happier, freer (as in free will), healthier, and richer (except in monetary terms) than them. Some people I know became slaves to (or of) money – to the point of being willing to work from every morning until every night (maybe 60-80 hours a week) to make someone else or some large company richer. They seem to fail to grasp that those salaries are merely a form of compensation for them compromising their best years (of one’s life), plus abandoning the prospect/potential for self-determination while dragging down both physical and mental health (of most staff, most of the time). It’s a fast-corroding, slowly-progressing experience (corrosion is silent, not sudden) that over time shortens people’s lives. In my 40s I can still do a fullstack circuit” at the gym like I did my in 20s. I have hardly lost muscle mass/weight, only relative strength, and my stamina probably improved owing to regular jogging.

Ultra-capitalists dislike such ideas because they rely on intellectual people becoming their de facto slaves and brown-nosing management for pay increases and better job titles (the latter are merely symbolic rewards, a fake “status” nobody objectively cares about).

Safety and mental comfort (calm, zen) cannot be taken for granted either, more so in world full of conflicts and scarcities. To love and be loved is easier said than done, but that too is attainable. One must actively pursue it, not follow herds.

love birds.

Birds are lovely, adorable animals. They’re enjoyable to feed or even just to look at. Birdwatching isn’t just some reactional activity of old generations (elderly people); anyone out there should be able to enjoy that and it doesn’t cost anything. Today we watched a wren hiding in the trees and singing. Later another bird walked towards our door, so we treated it while it was carefully watching no other bird noticed (or competed for the seeds).

But we don’t really want the birds inside the home, not just for sanitary reasons or damages. We seldom let them indoors, sometimes for shelter from horrible weather, sometimes by accident, and sometimes not (neither). The Sick Bird walked into our home once and it was – for a change – with full consent because she was vulnerable.

Birds are in general not domesticated and it would be cruel to put any kind of bird inside a cage. It’s not in their nature and massive cages in zoos are still cages. We need more wildlife, not zoos. As for pets, it depends on the animal.

“Hello Roy Schestowitz,” told me Pest Control today regarding an item I discussed with them yesterday [2, 1]. “Please reply to the MCC Neighbourhood Compliance North Team who sent you this letter if you wish to make comments. You have blanked out the sender details.”

I replied: “They told me to contact you.”

At the moment they seem to be playing ping-pong regarding an important matter in our area. Several of us in the street are looking after wildlife and clarity is needed.

This ping-pong routine is beginning to remind me of what they did half a decade ago [1, 2, 3]. Both sides tell you to talk to “the other side” as if the goal is to waste your time.