Persistently Earnest
@spartanoverseas.bsky.social
Telemarker (no one cares ), (past my prime) runner
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
"Babybel, which makes those wax-covered cheese bites, is replacing the plastic wrapper around the cheese with paper overwraps . . . ultimately save 850 tons of plastic and 2,500 tons of carbon dioxide annually . . . one of their two factories in France produces 10 million cheese bites daily."
Say cheese: How Babybel is commercializing its plastic-to-paper makeover
Bel Group is spending millions to adapt its global production lines to handle the fiber substrate instead of biobased plastic, said the VP of research, innovation and development. But the signature re...
www.fooddive.com
November 26, 2025 at 11:20 AM
"Babybel, which makes those wax-covered cheese bites, is replacing the plastic wrapper around the cheese with paper overwraps . . . ultimately save 850 tons of plastic and 2,500 tons of carbon dioxide annually . . . one of their two factories in France produces 10 million cheese bites daily."
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
National parks have SO MANY people from other countries (since they get real vacations!)
And they spend a lot of money on hotels, food, souvenirs, etc.
This is unbelievably dumb, it will destroy entire tourist towns
And they spend a lot of money on hotels, food, souvenirs, etc.
This is unbelievably dumb, it will destroy entire tourist towns
November 26, 2025 at 3:13 AM
National parks have SO MANY people from other countries (since they get real vacations!)
And they spend a lot of money on hotels, food, souvenirs, etc.
This is unbelievably dumb, it will destroy entire tourist towns
And they spend a lot of money on hotels, food, souvenirs, etc.
This is unbelievably dumb, it will destroy entire tourist towns
Mildly concerning thought: Is it inherently obvious that China's LLMs will exceed the rest because they inherently have more training data?
The only thing that prevents this from being true is compute and time?
The fractured nature of the West & difference in data means its only a matter of time.
The only thing that prevents this from being true is compute and time?
The fractured nature of the West & difference in data means its only a matter of time.
November 26, 2025 at 1:43 AM
Mildly concerning thought: Is it inherently obvious that China's LLMs will exceed the rest because they inherently have more training data?
The only thing that prevents this from being true is compute and time?
The fractured nature of the West & difference in data means its only a matter of time.
The only thing that prevents this from being true is compute and time?
The fractured nature of the West & difference in data means its only a matter of time.
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
This 👇
My thoughts on the latest civ-mil fracas: "the American military cannot save us from the politicians we elect to high office...the proper role for our military is political inertness. However well-meaning, to encourage them to be otherwise is further pulling them into the political fray.”
www.aei.org
November 26, 2025 at 12:12 AM
This 👇
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
A roundtrip LAX-JFK flight in the late 60s was around $3K in today’s dollars. The people who wore suits on those flights were the people who regularly wore suits. Complaining about informally-dressed fliers is complaining that the wrong sorts of people are flying today.
November 25, 2025 at 4:38 PM
A roundtrip LAX-JFK flight in the late 60s was around $3K in today’s dollars. The people who wore suits on those flights were the people who regularly wore suits. Complaining about informally-dressed fliers is complaining that the wrong sorts of people are flying today.
Is anyone on either platform honestly surprised by this? Probably. *Sigh*
"Musk may have revealed that the platform he’s long called “the number 1 source of news on Earth” is really just a worthless, poisoned hall of mirrors."
www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
"Musk may have revealed that the platform he’s long called “the number 1 source of news on Earth” is really just a worthless, poisoned hall of mirrors."
www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
Elon Musk’s Worthless, Poisoned Hall of Mirrors
How X blew up its own platform with a new location feature
www.theatlantic.com
November 25, 2025 at 10:34 AM
Is anyone on either platform honestly surprised by this? Probably. *Sigh*
"Musk may have revealed that the platform he’s long called “the number 1 source of news on Earth” is really just a worthless, poisoned hall of mirrors."
www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
"Musk may have revealed that the platform he’s long called “the number 1 source of news on Earth” is really just a worthless, poisoned hall of mirrors."
www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
The Trump administration inherited an economy that the Economist called "the envy of the world" in a cover story a week before the election and easily could've coasted on that success (again) but instead they set it on fire.
November 24, 2025 at 1:38 PM
The Trump administration inherited an economy that the Economist called "the envy of the world" in a cover story a week before the election and easily could've coasted on that success (again) but instead they set it on fire.
Seems like a lesson we all could learn "early", when we consider how much we are pumping from aquifers.
Might not be early now but it doesn't have to be as late as "the aquifer is collapsing, leading to structures failing on the surface with no water for citizens"
Might not be early now but it doesn't have to be as late as "the aquifer is collapsing, leading to structures failing on the surface with no water for citizens"
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has proposed moving the capital from Tehran, a city of over 10 million people, due to the water crisis, overpopulation, and the threat of subsidence.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...
Iran must move its capital from Tehran, says president as water crisis worsens
Masoud Pezeshkian says subsidence is also ‘a disaster’ in city of 10 million, which consumes quarter of Iran’s water
www.theguardian.com
November 23, 2025 at 12:08 PM
Seems like a lesson we all could learn "early", when we consider how much we are pumping from aquifers.
Might not be early now but it doesn't have to be as late as "the aquifer is collapsing, leading to structures failing on the surface with no water for citizens"
Might not be early now but it doesn't have to be as late as "the aquifer is collapsing, leading to structures failing on the surface with no water for citizens"
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has proposed moving the capital from Tehran, a city of over 10 million people, due to the water crisis, overpopulation, and the threat of subsidence.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...
Iran must move its capital from Tehran, says president as water crisis worsens
Masoud Pezeshkian says subsidence is also ‘a disaster’ in city of 10 million, which consumes quarter of Iran’s water
www.theguardian.com
October 3, 2025 at 2:39 AM
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has proposed moving the capital from Tehran, a city of over 10 million people, due to the water crisis, overpopulation, and the threat of subsidence.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
The current mess in DC only signals to Beijing that the US lacks unity, organization, and strategic vision to handle an even larger conflict, as the Pacific region is likely to become. Bombing Iran after Israel's SEAD or running masculine army ads doesn’t compensate for it
November 23, 2025 at 3:45 AM
The current mess in DC only signals to Beijing that the US lacks unity, organization, and strategic vision to handle an even larger conflict, as the Pacific region is likely to become. Bombing Iran after Israel's SEAD or running masculine army ads doesn’t compensate for it
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
Kavanaugh stop. Smashed the kid’s car windows and arrested him. He told them he was a U.S. citizen. The officer replied “I don’t care.”
www.oregonlive.com/portland/202...
www.oregonlive.com/portland/202...
High school senior, a U.S. citizen, detained by ICE in Oregon
The 17-year-old was held more than five hours Friday in an ICE facility, his brother said.
www.oregonlive.com
November 23, 2025 at 12:34 AM
Kavanaugh stop. Smashed the kid’s car windows and arrested him. He told them he was a U.S. citizen. The officer replied “I don’t care.”
www.oregonlive.com/portland/202...
www.oregonlive.com/portland/202...
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
Whoops, The Onion has accidentally torn apart the Detroit Lions fanbase.
November 21, 2025 at 4:27 PM
Whoops, The Onion has accidentally torn apart the Detroit Lions fanbase.
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
Massive Study Debunks One of RFK Jr’s Biggest Claims about Fluoride in Tap Water www.scientificamerican.com/article/mass...
Massive Study Finds No Link Between Fluoride in Tap Water and Lower Child IQ
Researchers tracked thousands of Americans for decades, finding no links between ingesting recommended levels of fluoride and lower cognitive skills
www.scientificamerican.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:11 PM
Massive Study Debunks One of RFK Jr’s Biggest Claims about Fluoride in Tap Water www.scientificamerican.com/article/mass...
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
New way of saying a thing is unlawful just dropped
President Trump's efforts to send National Guard troops to U.S. cities have been repeatedly met with resistance in the courts — most recently, in Tennessee. n.pr/3LLFeoq
Trump's National Guard deployments face mounting legal pushback
President Trump's efforts to send National Guard troops to U.S. cities have been repeatedly met with resistance in the courts — most recently, in Tennessee.
n.pr
November 20, 2025 at 3:03 AM
New way of saying a thing is unlawful just dropped
Ya think?!? Same is almost certainly true for a huge volume of government jobs.
You get the government you pay for. Not the one you want.
Navy Secretary Says Shipbuilder Pay Needs to Be More Competitive - Business Insider share.google/KCMDGi4aaCXC...
You get the government you pay for. Not the one you want.
Navy Secretary Says Shipbuilder Pay Needs to Be More Competitive - Business Insider share.google/KCMDGi4aaCXC...
Navy secretary says it's hard to get workers to want to build warships if they get paid what they might make at Buc-ee's or Amazon
Phelan said it's hard to entice workers for hard jobs like welding when the pay is comparable to a job at a Buc-ees truck stop or a job at Amazon.
share.google
November 20, 2025 at 2:53 AM
Ya think?!? Same is almost certainly true for a huge volume of government jobs.
You get the government you pay for. Not the one you want.
Navy Secretary Says Shipbuilder Pay Needs to Be More Competitive - Business Insider share.google/KCMDGi4aaCXC...
You get the government you pay for. Not the one you want.
Navy Secretary Says Shipbuilder Pay Needs to Be More Competitive - Business Insider share.google/KCMDGi4aaCXC...
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
A thing I was taught over and over and over in journalism school was that following the money would almost always lead to the truth. Once we started following the politics and not the money, the truth reliably stayed hidden. I do not suggest this was an accident.
November 19, 2025 at 5:39 PM
A thing I was taught over and over and over in journalism school was that following the money would almost always lead to the truth. Once we started following the politics and not the money, the truth reliably stayed hidden. I do not suggest this was an accident.
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
John Oliver and Co did a great explanation of what public media does, and who exactly the funding recission actually hurts (Hint: it's not liberal elites.) Also very proud to see my old friend and former WBEZ reporter Lauren Chooljian featured for her amazing work.
youtu.be/yknMJOgy2pA?...
youtu.be/yknMJOgy2pA?...
Public Media: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
YouTube video by LastWeekTonight
youtu.be
November 19, 2025 at 5:59 PM
John Oliver and Co did a great explanation of what public media does, and who exactly the funding recission actually hurts (Hint: it's not liberal elites.) Also very proud to see my old friend and former WBEZ reporter Lauren Chooljian featured for her amazing work.
youtu.be/yknMJOgy2pA?...
youtu.be/yknMJOgy2pA?...
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
We would have to send the money back to the foreign countries that paid them. Oh, wait.
If Trump sends people $2,000 "tariff revenue" checks, which then helps the Supreme Court rule his IEEPA tariffs are illegal, does everyone have to send the money back?
Asking for 300 million or so friends...
Asking for 300 million or so friends...
November 19, 2025 at 12:39 PM
We would have to send the money back to the foreign countries that paid them. Oh, wait.
What's this? A principled statement from the editorial board @washingtonpost.com ?
Didn't think they did that any more.
"Things happen sometimes" is not an acceptable response to someone being slaughtered like a cow in an embassy and shipped out in boxes.
wapo.st/4a02JnI
Didn't think they did that any more.
"Things happen sometimes" is not an acceptable response to someone being slaughtered like a cow in an embassy and shipped out in boxes.
wapo.st/4a02JnI
November 19, 2025 at 12:11 PM
What's this? A principled statement from the editorial board @washingtonpost.com ?
Didn't think they did that any more.
"Things happen sometimes" is not an acceptable response to someone being slaughtered like a cow in an embassy and shipped out in boxes.
wapo.st/4a02JnI
Didn't think they did that any more.
"Things happen sometimes" is not an acceptable response to someone being slaughtered like a cow in an embassy and shipped out in boxes.
wapo.st/4a02JnI
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
Fun fact: the US sells more higher ed to China than soybeans
Trump's campaign to kill an industry where America runs a massive trade surplus is succeeding
New foreign student enrollment in the US fell 17% this fall www.washingtonpost.com/education/20...
November 17, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Fun fact: the US sells more higher ed to China than soybeans
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
Burns and his team have held advance screenings of "The American Revolution" across the country, including in DC. Kerger described GOP lawmakers who voted against PBS $$$ waiting in line to shake his hand:
November 17, 2025 at 12:21 AM
Burns and his team have held advance screenings of "The American Revolution" across the country, including in DC. Kerger described GOP lawmakers who voted against PBS $$$ waiting in line to shake his hand:
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
My mistake has been trying to explain what "fascism" is to people who don't care what it is.
So I'm going to try something else. Let's do this as a practical thought exercise.
If America *were* fascist *today* - what would you have to do differently in your daily life? /1
So I'm going to try something else. Let's do this as a practical thought exercise.
If America *were* fascist *today* - what would you have to do differently in your daily life? /1
November 16, 2025 at 3:12 AM
My mistake has been trying to explain what "fascism" is to people who don't care what it is.
So I'm going to try something else. Let's do this as a practical thought exercise.
If America *were* fascist *today* - what would you have to do differently in your daily life? /1
So I'm going to try something else. Let's do this as a practical thought exercise.
If America *were* fascist *today* - what would you have to do differently in your daily life? /1
Reposted by Persistently Earnest
![4-panel vertical comic. (1) 100 Years Ago [two people standing next to bicycle with small car nearby] PERSON 1: It’s too dangerous riding a bike with these cars around. I should get a car, too. (2) 50 Years Ago [two people between smaller car and bigger car] PERSON 2 with short hair: Small cars are less safe in collisions with larger vehicles, so I should get a bigger one. (3) Today [two people between big car and even bigger car] PERSON 1: Everyone has huge SUVs now. If I don’t get the biggest one, I’m putting my family at risk. (4) Soon [two people next to large armored car with spiked clubs attached] PERSON 2: If I don’t install more whirling spike clubs, I’ll be destroyed by all the other drivers who...](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:cz73r7iyiqn26upot4jtjdhk/bafkreiby6can6k76yzfmv2czxs4pu2l7zie7bqbrpswi7h3ifmiadkuqvu@jpeg)
This. So many ways this. At all ages.
Having a kid is the very best way to make yourself feel dumb.
November 14, 2025 at 12:26 PM
This. So many ways this. At all ages.