Dieter van Baarle
@dietervb.bsky.social
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Great data analysis of what would US would be like if it were just an average country in its cohort of wealthy democracies, e.g. “the nation that would exist if our democracy functioned to serve the public rather than protect the already powerful”. [kottke.org]
The America That Could Be
The main point of Adam Bonica’s post The Wall Looks Permanent Until It Falls is about the optimism of this moment: that the US could be ripe for a Berlin Wall-falling moment that opens the door for a better future. I’m n
kottke.org
January 13, 2026 at 6:12 PM
Great data analysis of what would US would be like if it were just an average country in its cohort of wealthy democracies, e.g. “the nation that would exist if our democracy functioned to serve the public rather than protect the already powerful”. [kottke.org]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
This is so good from Cory Doctorow on all the tricks Amazon uses to get both consumers to pay more, and how businesses on the platform end up paying it 45-51 cents on every dollar.
Plus he rightly calls for regulatory change, not just individual consumer action
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Plus he rightly calls for regulatory change, not just individual consumer action
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Way past its prime: how did Amazon get so rubbish?
Sick of scrolling through junk results, AI-generated ads and links to lookalike products? The author and activist behind the term ‘enshittification’ explains what’s gone wrong with the internet – and ...
www.theguardian.com
October 5, 2025 at 8:19 AM
This is so good from Cory Doctorow on all the tricks Amazon uses to get both consumers to pay more, and how businesses on the platform end up paying it 45-51 cents on every dollar.
Plus he rightly calls for regulatory change, not just individual consumer action
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Plus he rightly calls for regulatory change, not just individual consumer action
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Tim Berners-Lee: “I gave the world wide web away for free because I thought that it would only work if it worked for everyone. Today, I believe that to be truer than ever.” [theguardian.com]
Why I gave the world wide web away for free | Tim Berners-Lee
My vision was based on sharing, not exploitation – and here’s why it’s still worth fighting for
www.theguardian.com
October 6, 2025 at 2:52 PM
Tim Berners-Lee: “I gave the world wide web away for free because I thought that it would only work if it worked for everyone. Today, I believe that to be truer than ever.” [theguardian.com]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
No, "the world's taste for soya" isn't to blame: most people won't taste any soya, but the meat, dairy, eggs and fish produced very inefficiently with the soya as feed.
@georgemonbiot.bsky.social often says: "If you want to eat less soya [to help save the Amazon], eat soya!" shorturl.at/bOvl1
@georgemonbiot.bsky.social often says: "If you want to eat less soya [to help save the Amazon], eat soya!" shorturl.at/bOvl1
How the world’s taste for soya is eating Brazil’s Amazon
How the world’s taste for soya is eating Brazil’s Amazon
Cultivation of the crop has made a few wealthy but at a huge cost to untouched forest as it spreads across vast areas of former wilderness
www.theguardian.com
September 29, 2025 at 11:53 AM
No, "the world's taste for soya" isn't to blame: most people won't taste any soya, but the meat, dairy, eggs and fish produced very inefficiently with the soya as feed.
@georgemonbiot.bsky.social often says: "If you want to eat less soya [to help save the Amazon], eat soya!" shorturl.at/bOvl1
@georgemonbiot.bsky.social often says: "If you want to eat less soya [to help save the Amazon], eat soya!" shorturl.at/bOvl1
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Thomas Deininger uses plastic waste to create sculptures,or should I say,works of Genius!!!!!!
August 23, 2025 at 4:41 AM
Thomas Deininger uses plastic waste to create sculptures,or should I say,works of Genius!!!!!!
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Heerlijk technisch verhaal: een hacker heeft een ransomware-aanval van de beruchte cybercriminele groep Akira ontmanteld zonder te betalen.
Hoe? Door de encryptie van de ransomware te kraken met 16 grafische kaarten van Nvidia.
tinyhack.com/2025/03/13/d...
Hoe? Door de encryptie van de ransomware te kraken met 16 grafische kaarten van Nvidia.
tinyhack.com/2025/03/13/d...
March 18, 2025 at 9:33 AM
Heerlijk technisch verhaal: een hacker heeft een ransomware-aanval van de beruchte cybercriminele groep Akira ontmanteld zonder te betalen.
Hoe? Door de encryptie van de ransomware te kraken met 16 grafische kaarten van Nvidia.
tinyhack.com/2025/03/13/d...
Hoe? Door de encryptie van de ransomware te kraken met 16 grafische kaarten van Nvidia.
tinyhack.com/2025/03/13/d...
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
I think every designer should write a love letter to a font at least once in their lifetime.
This is mine: A 150-year-old font you have likely never heard of, and one you probably saw earlier today.
aresluna.org/the-hardest-...
This is mine: A 150-year-old font you have likely never heard of, and one you probably saw earlier today.
aresluna.org/the-hardest-...
The hardest working font in Manhattan
A story of a 150-year-old font you have never heard of – and one you probably saw earlier today.
aresluna.org
February 14, 2025 at 9:35 PM
I think every designer should write a love letter to a font at least once in their lifetime.
This is mine: A 150-year-old font you have likely never heard of, and one you probably saw earlier today.
aresluna.org/the-hardest-...
This is mine: A 150-year-old font you have likely never heard of, and one you probably saw earlier today.
aresluna.org/the-hardest-...
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
This is about Hitler & Germany: “a [democratic] country…handed absolute power over to someone who could never claim a majority in an actual election and whom the entire conservative political class regarded as a chaotic clown…” (Sound familiar tho?) [kottke.org]
The Power of Chaos
The events of the last few weeks reminded me of this succinct summary of Timothy Ryback’s book, Takeover: Hitler’s Final Rise to Power fron Adam Gopnik in the New Yorker:
Ryback details, week by week, day by day, and so
kottke.org
February 10, 2025 at 3:40 PM
This is about Hitler & Germany: “a [democratic] country…handed absolute power over to someone who could never claim a majority in an actual election and whom the entire conservative political class regarded as a chaotic clown…” (Sound familiar tho?) [kottke.org]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Description of what's happening at the White House as if it was an other country the US was reporting upon. Well sourced and does nothing to easy my fears that US democracy is in peril.
www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/musk-s-jun...
www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/musk-s-jun...
Musk's Junta Establishes Him as Head of Government
Imagining how we'd cover overseas what's happening to the U.S. right now
www.doomsdayscenario.co
February 2, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Description of what's happening at the White House as if it was an other country the US was reporting upon. Well sourced and does nothing to easy my fears that US democracy is in peril.
www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/musk-s-jun...
www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/musk-s-jun...
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
How Hitler Dismantled a Democracy in 53 Days. “In one of the most astonishing political transformations in the history of democracy, Hitler set about destroying a constitutional republic through constitutional means.” [theatlantic.com]
How Hitler Dismantled a Democracy in 53 Days
He used the constitution to shatter the constitution.
www.theatlantic.com
January 23, 2025 at 2:56 PM
How Hitler Dismantled a Democracy in 53 Days. “In one of the most astonishing political transformations in the history of democracy, Hitler set about destroying a constitutional republic through constitutional means.” [theatlantic.com]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Film director David Lynch has died at the age of 78. RIP, Lynch was a real one. “It’s a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies all the way.” [theguardian.com]
David Lynch, Twin Peaks and Muholland Drive director, dies aged 78
Film-maker who specialised in surreal, noir style mysteries made a string of influential, critically acclaimed works including Wild at Heart and Eraserhead
www.theguardian.com
January 16, 2025 at 6:56 PM
Film director David Lynch has died at the age of 78. RIP, Lynch was a real one. “It’s a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies all the way.” [theguardian.com]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Apple TV+ is going to be free this weekend for non-subscribers. You can stream Silo, Severance, Ted Lasso, Slow Horses, For All Mankind, etc. to your heart’s content. [apple.com]
Enjoy Apple TV+ for free the first weekend of 2025
Apple TV+ is ringing in the New Year by offering an all-access pass to customers all around the world.
www.apple.com
January 2, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Apple TV+ is going to be free this weekend for non-subscribers. You can stream Silo, Severance, Ted Lasso, Slow Horses, For All Mankind, etc. to your heart’s content. [apple.com]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Election Grief Is Real. Here’s How to Cope. “You need to be patient with yourself if you’re feeling angry, sad, grieving right now. That’s a normal reaction to a surprising outcome and an outcome that…is going backward and not forward.” [scientificamerican.com]
Election Grief Is Real. Here’s How to Cope
Understanding the psychology of ambiguous loss can help people struggling with grief and depression in the wake of the 2024 election results
www.scientificamerican.com
November 7, 2024 at 7:12 PM
Election Grief Is Real. Here’s How to Cope. “You need to be patient with yourself if you’re feeling angry, sad, grieving right now. That’s a normal reaction to a surprising outcome and an outcome that…is going backward and not forward.” [scientificamerican.com]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
I'm old enough to remember when a computer didn't automatically connect to the internet, it used to make a screaming noise. We should have listened.
August 28, 2024 at 6:42 AM
I'm old enough to remember when a computer didn't automatically connect to the internet, it used to make a screaming noise. We should have listened.
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Hoooooollllyyy shit! It’s a brand new episode of Every Frame a Painting!! The first one in *eight years*. The seminal YouTube series returns with a video about the sustained two-shot. [kottke.org]
🚨 New Every Frame a Painting!! 🚨
I just got back from the XOXO Festival and one of things that happened was that Taylor Ramos and Tony Zhou showed their new short film The Second and their first new Every Frame A Painting video essay in eight years!! An
kottke.org
August 26, 2024 at 4:48 PM
Hoooooollllyyy shit! It’s a brand new episode of Every Frame a Painting!! The first one in *eight years*. The seminal YouTube series returns with a video about the sustained two-shot. [kottke.org]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
Knolling (verb): the practice of organizing objects in parallel or at 90° angles. Always. Be. Knolling. [kottke.org]
Always. Be. Knolling.
You’ve probably seen instances of knolling without knowing there was a word for it. Knolling at the Apple Store:
Knolling the contents of your bag:
Knolling a recipe for a book:
Knolling the parts of a machine:
kottke.org
August 12, 2024 at 10:32 PM
Knolling (verb): the practice of organizing objects in parallel or at 90° angles. Always. Be. Knolling. [kottke.org]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
I saw this quote the other day and haven’t stopped thinking about it since: “Dystopian fiction is when you take things that happen in real life to marginalized populations and apply them to people with privilege.” [twitter.com]
March 8, 2024 at 4:52 PM
I saw this quote the other day and haven’t stopped thinking about it since: “Dystopian fiction is when you take things that happen in real life to marginalized populations and apply them to people with privilege.” [twitter.com]
Reposted by Dieter van Baarle
New puzzle game from the NY Times: Strands. It’s a theme-based word search. I like the wrinkle that finding non-theme words earns you hints. [nytimes.com]
March 4, 2024 at 6:36 PM
New puzzle game from the NY Times: Strands. It’s a theme-based word search. I like the wrinkle that finding non-theme words earns you hints. [nytimes.com]