Does Anyone Use their Phone without a SIM Card?
This is something I've been thinking about for a while. I've decided to get a Pixel with GrapheneOS as my next phone and I'm trying to decide the pros and cons of putting a SIM card in it. Convenience vs privacy, public wifi with a VPN vs using phone data, etc.
I can't get a SIM card where I live without ID and I'm looking to reduce being tracked as much as possible. Does anyone else do the same thing?
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13 years later, the bold and terrifying sci-fi game Routine is finally here
13 years later, the bold and terrifying sci-fi game Routine is finally here
The sci-fi horror game Routine is finally out now on Steam and Xbox, after more than a decade in development.Lewis Gordon (The Verge)
KDE Plasma black screen with white flashes problem
Video description: after trying to select volume control option at bottom right the screen turned black with white flashes.
This issue arises in two ways. First when booting the initial ASUS logo will show and then straight this black, flashing screen and second way it happens is when I try to select wifi, volume, network options present at bottom right area.
When this happens, pressing the power button also doesn't work, so I have to force power off the laptop by holding the power button for some seconds.
This doesn't happen every time i.e most of the times it boots correctly and most of the time trying to select options work as expected.
Operating System: Fedora Linux 43
KDE Plasma Version: 6.5.3
KDE Frameworks Version: 6.20.0
Qt Version: 6.10.1
Kernel Version: 6.17.8-300.fc43.x86_64 (64-bit)
Graphics Platform: Wayland
Processors: 8 × Intel® Core™ i5-8300H CPU @ 2.30GHz
Memory: 8 GiB of RAM (7.6 GiB usable)
Graphics Processor 1: Intel® UHD Graphics 630
Graphics Processor 2: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050
Manufacturer: ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC.
Product Name: TUF GAMING FX504GD_FX80GD
System Version: 1.0
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Thai military launches airstrikes on Cambodia as cross-border clashes erupt
Thai military launches airstrikes on Cambodia as cross-border clashes erupt
Both nations accuse each other of opening fire firstStaff Writer (Nikkei Asia)
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Selfies of Endangered Sumatran Tigers Expose a Robust Population
Selfies of Endangered Tigers Expose a Robust Population
Selfies of Endangered Sumatran Tigers Expose a Robust Population: Array of camera traps captures surprising images of tigers in the wild.Devin Reese (Nautilus)
Ceding the future to China
Ceding the future to China
Delivered as remarks to Brown University’s Watson School during its “China Chat” series, Chas Freeman reflects on China’s return to global prominence and the United States’ accelerating retreat from the international order it once led – and asks what…Pearls and Irritations
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We are in the midst of a Great Leap Backward or Cultural Revolution-style assault on the domestic institutions that made America great – the rule of law, freedom of speech, academic freedom and scientific excellence, federal partnerships with research universities, openness to foreigners and their ideas, policies based on evidence and expertise rather than fake news and unsubstantiated prejudice, and the prioritisation of objectivity over political correctness.
For the longest time US liberals used weasel words like opposing authoritarianism and supporting democracy to justify the US's foreign policy from sanctions to war crimes. "Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East surrounded by authoritarian Islamist regimes", "I don't hate the Chinese I hate the authoritarian CCP and I support Taiwan because it is a democracy". Never mind the claims being false, they were a good attempt at masking their national supremacism and cultural chauvinism. US conservatives have always been more honest about being racist and just hating Arabs, Muslims, Chinese and so on. So witnessing the US decay into fascism has been a guilty pleasure of mine. US liberals now will look really silly accusing others of what their government is guilty of, but I am sure they will find a way to spin it. They are already blaming Trump on Russia, Saudi Arabia and others. Denying the fact that Trump is the US at its rawest and truest form.
Texas AG Ken Paxton sues EPIC to stop Muslim housing project
The East Plano Islamic Center has pitched a residential development, formerly called EPIC City, with more than 1,000 residential units, a mosque, a K-12 faith-based school and retail shops outside of Dallas. The project drew numerous state investigations earlier this year — some for unclear reasons — including one from Paxton, who said in March he was looking into potential violations of consumer protection laws.
...
“The leaders behind EPIC City have engaged in a radical plot to destroy hundreds of acres of beautiful Texas land and line their own pockets,” Paxton said in a statement, vowing to stop the development. “I will relentlessly bring the full force of the law against anyone who thinks they can ignore the rules and hurt Texans.”
Texas AG Ken Paxton sues to stop Muslim housing project in North Texas
Paxton began investigating the East Plano Islamic Center in March for potential violations of consumer protection laws.Alejandro Serrano (The Texas Tribune)
Texas AG Ken Paxton sues EPIC to stop Muslim housing project
The East Plano Islamic Center has pitched a residential development, formerly called EPIC City, with more than 1,000 residential units, a mosque, a K-12 faith-based school and retail shops outside of Dallas. The project drew numerous state investigations earlier this year — some for unclear reasons — including one from Paxton, who said in March he was looking into potential violations of consumer protection laws.
...
“The leaders behind EPIC City have engaged in a radical plot to destroy hundreds of acres of beautiful Texas land and line their own pockets,” Paxton said in a statement, vowing to stop the development. “I will relentlessly bring the full force of the law against anyone who thinks they can ignore the rules and hurt Texans.”
Texas AG Ken Paxton sues to stop Muslim housing project in North Texas
Paxton began investigating the East Plano Islamic Center in March for potential violations of consumer protection laws.Alejandro Serrano (The Texas Tribune)
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Immigrants approved for citizenship ‘plucked out’ of line moments before pledging allegiance: report
Immigrants were moments away from pledging allegiance to the United States in Boston — the final step of the long process to becoming a U.S. citizen — when government officials pulled them out of line, according to a new report.
The scene unfolded at Boston’s Faneuil Hall on Thursday, Dec. 4, according to the report from WGBH, a National Public Radio member station.
As people who were already approved to be naturalized — having completed the lengthy U.S. citizenship process — lined up to pledge allegiance, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officials told them they could not continue due to their countries of origin, the outlet reported.
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Why fossil fuel influence in children's education is a democratic problem, not just a climate problem
Why fossil fuel influence in children's education is a democratic problem, not just a climate problem
Australia’s children deserve the truth about climate change. They deserve to learn science that is free from corporate spin, especially when it comes to industries driving the crisis that will shape the rest of their lives.thepoint.com.au
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Bulldozed, crushed and buried — fate of missing aid-seekers
cross-posted from: hexbear.net/post/6959949
cross-posted from: news.abolish.capital/post/1196…
What Skwawkbox-Canary and other independent news outlets, together with local journalists and international activists have been reporting for months, has finally made it into the ‘mainstream’ media. A CNN ‘investigation‘ ‘revealed’ that the Israeli military bulldozed some of the bodies of aid-seekers slaughtered at so-called ‘aid’ stations into unmarked Gaza mass graves. Others were simply left […]By Skwawkbox
From Canary via This RSS Feed.
A new Ohio marijuana law could mean legal risks for users
A new Ohio marijuana law could mean legal risks for users
The Ohio Senate is set to vote next week on legislation marijuana advocates call a "recriminalization."Jake Zuckerman (Signal Cleveland)
GP Abu Dhabi, l'analisi: Norris campione, ERA ORA! E grazie a un superbo Max
GP Abu Dhabi, l'analisi: Norris campione, ERA ORA! E grazie a un superbo Max
Pino Allievi analizza l'andamento del Gran Premio di Abu Dhabi, ultima gara del mondiale 2025 di Formula 1 che ha incoronato Lando NorrisPino Allievi (FormulaPassion.it)
Hegseth Defends Boat Bombings as New Details Further Undermine Administration's Justifications
cross-posted from: news.abolish.capital/post/1217…
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday defended the Trump administration's policy of bombing suspected drug-trafficking vessels even as new details further undermined the administration's stated justifications for the policy.
According to the Guardian, Hegseth told a gathering at the Ronald Reagan presidential library that the boat bombings, which so far have killed at least 87 people, are necessary to protect Americans from illegal drugs being shipped to the US.
"If you’re working for a designated terrorist organization and you bring drugs to this country in a boat, we will find you and we will sink you," Hegseth said. "Let there be no doubt about it."
However, leaked details about a classified briefing delivered to lawmakers last week by Adm. Frank Bradley about a September 2 boat strike cast new doubts on Hegseth's justifications.
CNN reported on Friday that Bradley told lawmakers that the boat taken out by the September 2 attack was not even headed toward the US, but was going "to link up with another, larger vessel that was bound for Suriname," a small nation in the northeast of South America.
While Bradley acknowledged that the boat was not heading toward the US, he told lawmakers that the strike on it was justified because the drugs it was carrying could have theoretically wound up in the US at some point.
Additionally, NBC News reported on Saturday that Bradley told lawmakers that Hegseth had ordered all 11 men who were on the boat targeted by the September 2 strike to be killed because "they were on an internal list of narco-terrorists who US intelligence and military officials determined could be lethally targeted."
This is relevant because the US military launched a second strike during the September 2 operation to kill two men who had survived the initial strike on their vessel, which many legal experts consider to be either a war crime or an act of murder under domestic law.
Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), the ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, watched video of the September 2 double-tap attack last week, and he described the footage as “one of the most troubling things I’ve seen in my time in public service.”
“Any American who sees the video that I saw will see its military attacking shipwrecked sailors,” Himes explained. “Now, there’s a whole set of contextual items that the admiral explained. Yes, they were carrying drugs. They were not in position to continue their mission in any way... People will someday see this video and they will see that that video shows, if you don’t have the broader context, an attack on shipwrecked sailors.”
While there has been much discussion about the legality of the September 2 double-tap strike in recent days, some critics have warned that fixating on this particular aspect of the administration's policy risks taking the focus off the illegality of the boat-bombing campaign as a whole.
Daphne Eviatar, director for security and human rights for Amnesty International USA, said on Friday that the entire boat-bombing campaign has been "illegal under both domestic and international law."
"All of them constitute murder because none of the victims, whether or not they were smuggling illegal narcotics, posed an imminent threat to life," she said. "Congress must take action now to stop the US military from murdering more people in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific."
From Common Dreams via This RSS Feed.
'All of Them Constitute Murder,' Amnesty Says of Trump Boat Bombings
"Congress must take action now to stop the US military from murdering more people in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific."brad-reed (Common Dreams)
In New Orleans and across U.S., anger over ICE raids sparks a 2nd American Revolution
Everyday folks are rising up to resist immigration raids with whistles, car chases, and noisy protests. Revolution is in the air.
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Billionaire Palantir Co-Founder Pushes Return of Public Hangings as Part of 'Masculine Leadership' Initiative
cross-posted from: news.abolish.capital/post/1218…
Venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale, a co-founder of data platform company Palantir, is calling for the return of public hangings as part of a broader push to restore what he describes as "masculine leadership" to the US.
In a statement posted on X Friday, Lonsdale said that he supported changing the so-called "three strikes" anti-crime law to ensure that anyone who is convicted of three violent crimes gets publicly executed, rather than simply sent to prison for life.
"If I’m in charge later, we won’t just have a three strikes law," he wrote. "We will quickly try and hang men after three violent crimes. And yes, we will do it in public to deter others."
Lonsdale then added that "our society needs balance," and said that "it's time to bring back masculine leadership to protect our most vulnerable."
Lonsdale's views on public hangings being necessary to restore "masculine leadership" drew swift criticism.
Gil Durán, a journalist who documents the increasingly authoritarian politics of Silicon Valley in his newsletter "The Nerd Reich," argued in a Saturday post that Lonsdale's call for public hangings showed that US tech elites are "entering a more dangerous and desperate phase of radicalization."
"For months, Peter Thiel guru Curtis Yarvin has been squawking about the need for more severe measures to cement Trump's authoritarian rule," Durán explained. "Peter Thiel is ranting about the Antichrist in a global tour. And now Lonsdale—a Thiel protégé—is fantasizing about a future in which he will have the power to unleash state violence at mass scale."
Taulby Edmondson, an adjunct professor of history, religion, and culture at Virginia Tech, wrote in a post on Bluesky that the rhetoric Lonsdale uses to justify the return of public hangings has even darker intonations than calls for state-backed violence.
"A point of nuance here: 'masculine leadership to protect our most vulnerable' is how lynch mobs are described, not state-sanctioned executions," he observed.
Theoretical physicist Sean Carroll argued that Lonsdale's remarks were symbolic of a kind of performative masculinity that has infected US culture.
"Immaturity masquerading as strength is the defining personal characteristic of our age," he wrote.
Tech entrepreneur Anil Dash warned Lonsdale that his call for public hangings could have unintended consequences for members of the Silicon Valley elite.
"Well, Joe, Mark Zuckerberg has sole control over Facebook, which directly enabled the Rohingya genocide," he wrote. "So let’s have the conversation."
And Columbia Journalism School professor Bill Grueskin noted that Lonsdale has been a major backer of the University of Austin, an unaccredited liberal arts college that has been pitched as an alternative to left-wing university education with the goal of preparing "thoughtful and ethical innovators, builders, leaders, public servants and citizens through open inquiry and civil discourse."
From Common Dreams via This RSS Feed.
Joe Lonsdale Calls For Public Hangings
Silicon Valley radicalization escalatesGil Duran (The Nerd Reich)
A new storm is brewing in South-East Asia. This time it's in the halls of power
ABC News
ABC News provides the latest news and headlines in Australia and around the world.Karishma Vyas (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
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RRF Caserta Sport. Calcio Serie C. Cerignola Casertana 1 a 1
Firefox Account
Maybe a silly question - but is it unwise to use Firefox for getting torrents, or saving any bookmarks in firefox? Is there benefit to using a private window (doubtful as I believe this only affects your device).
I know we generally can trust Firefox but they could turn quickly.
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🔥AGORA: Multidão ocupa o Rio de Janeiro contra o feminicídio 🔥
- YouTube
Profitez des vidéos et de la musique que vous aimez, mettez en ligne des contenus originaux, et partagez-les avec vos amis, vos proches et le monde entier.youtube.com
RRF Caserta. Sport. Basket Serie B. Juve Caserta 71 Imola 62
"Yes"
Where i used to work we had a lot of Chinese students in the city, with varying degrees of skill with English. No problem, English is my main but also not my first language. This story is from about 20 years ago.
A customer comes in for help with their computer. I ask my troubleshooting questions to triage the problem.
"My computer can't connect to the Internet"
OK what happens when you try?
"Nothing"
At home, at work?
"At home"
Have you checked all the connections?
"Yes"
Restarted everything? PC, router?
"Yes"
Have you contacted your ISP?
"Yes"
And?
"No problem"
OK do you see link lights on the network socket?
"Yes"
Is it just websites? Are you having problems with email, MSN messenger or Skype or any other chat clients?
"Yes"
(We are at this for a good 10 minutes but I'll skip the unnecessary bits)
Have you tried a new network cable?
"Yes"
OK bring it in, we can test it here for you.
"Oh but it works in Starbucks"
What? You mean its a laptop? Wireless?
"Yes"
And you connect wirelessly at home too?
"Yes"
But you said.. the cable, the link lights?
"Yes"
And then it hits me. Waves of memories wash over me. My Japanese father talking to clients, head bobbing up and down constantly nodding and bowing.
"Hai, hai, hai, haaaa, hai, hai, kashikomarimashita"
Yes. Yes. Yes. Oh yes. Yes. Yes. I understand.
Yes in japanese doesn't necessarily mean "correct". We say it to show we're listening and being attentive, following the conversation. Yes doesn't always mean "yes that's right", it can means "yes please continue". And now I assume its similar in Chinese too. Like in English you might say "aw yeah! Aw hell yeah!" while listening to a story.
Right. Forget everything we've just said and start from the beginning.
Can you see your SSID in the list at home?
"Yes"
(Fuck. Thats on me)
And what name is your SSID in the list when you connect at home?
"[ISP]-XYZ123"
OK good and...
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RRF Caserta. Cultura. La Prima storica al San Carlo il 6 dicembre 2025 della Medea di Cherubini
Sam Mraiche was investigated by Elections Alberta over alleged illegal political donations
archive.is/w03hg#selection-275…
The elections regulator’s director of compliance and enforcement said in an affidavit that Mr. Mraiche was being investigated in connection with an alleged straw donor scheme – an illegal practice in which an individual circumvents donation limits by providing money through others.“Mr. Mraiche is alleged to have given funds to other people for the purpose of having those people make contributions to a registered party,” Diane Brauer, the official, said. The alleged donations were made in the two months prior to the May, 2023, provincial election, according to her affidavit, which was filed in support of the contempt request.
Besides Mraiche joining the UCP's Smith in a hotel suite to watch provincial election results in May 2023, and the Edmonton Oilers hockey games with the notorious skybox photo, keep in mind that Mraiche has also allegedly been tied to McFee, Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis, and Dr. Jayan Nagendran.
thetyee.ca/News/2025/02/14/AHS…
thetyee.ca/News/2025/02/26/UCP…
Sam Mraiche was investigated by Elections Alberta over alleged illegal political donations
Regulator says Mraiche was being investigated this year in connection to an alleged straw donor schemeTom Cardoso (The Globe and Mail)
Sunday, December 7, 2025
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The Kyiv Independent [unofficial]
Over 25,000 members make our journalism possible. Can we count on you, too? Joining is easy and safe.
Olga Rudenko, editor-in-chief
of the Kyiv Independent
Russia’s war against Ukraine
A woman mourns among graves of Ukrainian servicemen at the Lychakiv cemetery on the Day of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in Lviv on Dec. 6, 2025. (Yuriy Dyachyshyn / AFP via Getty Images)
Explosions reported in Kremenchuk as Russia launches barrage of missiles, drones towards central Ukraine. Russian forces launched a large-scale attack on the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk overnight on Dec. 6, officials reported.
‘Happy Ukrainian Armed Forces Day’ — hackers deface website of Russian company delivering military goods, HUR source claims. The cyberattack took down over 700 computers and servers and deleted accounts of more than 1,000 Eltrans+ users, HUR claimed.
End to war ‘depends on Russia’s commitment to peace,’ Ukraine, US agree. Over the course of 2025, Ukraine has repeatedly agreed to ceasefire proposals put forward by the White House. Russia has refused to agree to a single one.
Zelensky reports ‘long and substantive call‘ with Witkoff, Kushner. “Ukraine is determined to keep working in good faith with the American side to genuinely achieve peace. We agreed on the next steps and formats for talks with the United States,” Zelensky wrote on Dec. 6.
Your contribution helps keep the Kyiv Independent going. Become a member today.
Ukraine will not accept any peace deal requiring territorial concessions, Syrskyi tells UK broadcaster. “There are no pauses, no delays in (Russia’s) operations. They keep pushing their troops forward to seize as much of our territory as possible under the cover of negotiations,” Syrskyi said.
Chornobyl protective shield ‘lost its primary safety functions’ after Russian drone strike, UN nuclear agency warns. Russia’s drone strike caused a fire that burned the outer cladding of the shelter.
G7, EU mull ban on Russian oil maritime services, but experts sceptical. If the ban goes through, Russia would likely have to expand its shadow fleet to transport crude oil instead.
Read our exclusives
Opinion: Ukraine’s lights still burn, even if not all the time
After three winters in Ukraine, I (and every Ukrainian) have become adept at dealing with the constant power cuts resulting from Russia’s relentless missile, bomb, and drone attacks.
Photo: Roman Pilipey / AFP via Getty Images
Learn more
Kyiv Independent event in New York to hold live stream, photo exhibition
The Kyiv Independent on Dec. 9 will host its first live event in New York City, an evening dedicated to storytelling, investigative journalism, and frontline storytelling.
Photo: The Kyiv Independent
Independent journalism is never easy, and it’s even harder in wartime
Yet we can do it without paywalls, billionaires, or compromise — because of our community.
Human costs of war
General Staff: Russia has lost 1,179,790 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. The number includes 1,180 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.
Why Ukraine rejects Russia’s 600,000 army cap demand
International response
Zelensky to visit London amid push for peace. Zelensky will also meet with the leaders of France and Germany in the British capital on Monday.
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Abu Shabab’s death signals the inevitable failure of Israel’s plan for Gaza
Throughout the war, Abu Shabab’s name was synonymous with collaboration with Israel. He was a key partner in Gaza in securing safe passage for Israeli troops, searching for Israeli captives, killing Palestinian resistance members, and, most infamously, looting aid trucks. Before he was killed, Abu Shabab was reportedly being considered for the position of governor of Rafah to be appointed by Israel.His death deals a massive blow to Israel’s efforts to establish a new Palestinian administration in Gaza that responds to its wishes and oppresses the Palestinians. It is yet another proof that the Palestinian people will never accept colonial rule.
Abu Shabab’s death signals the inevitable failure of Israel’s plan for Gaza
The Israeli efforts to establish Palestinian rule in Gaza loyal to the occupation are doomed.Said Alsaloul (Al Jazeera)
The pincer movement of authoritarianism: Europe is under pressure from Trump & Putin at a crossroads
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They once formed opposing poles of the political world order, but today the US and Russia speak almost the same language – especially when it comes to Europe.
The fact that the government of Donald Trump, of all people, speaks of censorship of free speech in Europe, while imposing draconian penalties on universities, firing employees who display rainbow flags, denigrating the free press as “enemies of the people,” calling female journalists who ask questions “pigsties,” and actively promoting disinformation technologies—this demonstrates the perfidy of the argument.
In a reversal of perpetrator and victim typical of modern authoritarian movements, the US is now blaming European governments for the poor relations with Russia
Full article in German: riffreporter.de/de/internation…
English version of full article in PDF version for download:
The pincer movement of authoritarianismDownload
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Zangengriff des Autoritarismus: Europa steht unter Druck von Trump und Putin am Scheideweg
Kommentar: Die USA sagen in ihrer neuen außenpolitischen Strategie der EU in ähnlicher Sprache den Kampf an wie Putins Russland. Doch noch immer schlafwandeln die europäischen Lenker, statt schnell und entschieden zu handeln.Christian Schwägerl (RiffReporter)
When Musk joined Trump, countries rolled out the red carpet for Starlink
On April 7, Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser of Bangladesh, sent Trump an urgent letter. He listed all the ways that his country was trying to comply with Trump’s agenda and asked him to delay tariffs. The note included a curious addition: “We have executed the necessary steps to launch Starlink in Bangladesh.”Since Starlink launched its first satellites in 2019, the internet provider owned by billionaire Elon Musk has attempted to expand into markets around the world, often facing regulatory red tape in doing so. But with Musk playing a high-profile role in Trump’s White House from January through May, Yunus and other leaders seemed to recognize that accommodating Starlink could be one means of appeasing the new administration.
The same day Yunus sent his letter, Starlink applied for a license with the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission. Three weeks after Yunus’ letter to Trump, the BTRC approved Starlink’s application. The service launched in Bangladesh the following month.
Bangladesh became the latest country around the world to expedite its regulatory approval process for satellite internet providers while Musk took part in Trump’s second administration. During the first five months of the year — as Musk assumed his lead role in the Department of Government Efficiency — Starlink announced it had become available in at least 13 countries, while its applications were approved in two more. In the six months since Musk broke ties with the administration, Starlink announced its entry into an additional 13 countries, totalling at least 26 countries in 2025.
In some cases, Starlink found quick success in countries it sought to enter for the first time. In others, Starlink’s applications had stalled for years until they were suddenly greenlit.
How Starlink benefited from Elon Musk’s Trump ties - Rest of World
The satellite internet service cut through red tape to enter new countries while Musk led DOGE.Kate Bubacz (Rest of World)
Is my apt bugged?
I've been trying the COSMIC store and it looks like it killed my apt somehow.
Apt says that there is a version mismatch between some libc6 packages, but I checked with dpkg and it all looks correct.
Apt says that I've a newer version of some packages but that is not true.
Is there any way to fix this?
EDIT: Fixed formatting
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I've been using Debian Unstable for about one year since I wanted Plasma 6 so bad. Even after Trixie came out I didn't switch back to Stable because it runs good and gets frequent updates.
The experience was actually quite smooth, better than what my friend has with Kubuntu, which for every distro update has a 50% chance of breaking
Doesn't matter.
The initial suggestion was of a ban in 2030 from 10 countries that already had plans of banning fossil fuels from 2030 or sooner.
The 2035 deadline was a compromise to allow the car manufacturers to get up to speed.
If they try to prolong that, some countries might just go back to their local legislation and ban the cars even sooner.
EU can potentially claim that such bans are against the free trade in EU and force it through, but they can never actually force anyone to buy the cars.
The decision of switching to EVs is entirely up to the local drivers, regardless of what arbitrary deadline the manufacturers try to lobby through EU.
Even in France and Germany, who produce fossil fuel cars, there are cities with environmental zones banning fossil fuel cars. Just as it today doesn't make any sense for people near Berlin to buy a diesel car that they can't drive in Berlin, every potential car buyer in all of EU are going to have to consider if they can even use or resell a fossil fuel car in their local area within the expected lifetime of a car.
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New haptic display technology creates 3D graphics you can see and feel
New haptic display technology creates 3D graphics you can see and feel
This technology could one day enable high-definition visual-haptic touch screens for automobiles, mobile computing or intelligent architectural walls.The Current
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Charlie Kirk, Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIV: Wikipedia’s most-read articles of 2025
Including two popes, the Prince of Darkness, and MrBeast.Wikipedia will mark its 25th anniversary on January 15, 2026. No one could have predicted 25 years ago that Wikipedia would grow into the backbone of knowledge on the internet it is today—powering search engines, voice assistants, and generative AI tools.
Today, nearly 250,000 volunteers generously give their time and energy to update Wikipedia, add citations, build consensus, and more. They keep knowledge human. In 2025, people spent an estimated 2.4 billion hours reading English Wikipedia articles, according to data from the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit that operates Wikipedia and other Wikimedia free knowledge projects. The top 20 most-read English Wikipedia articles of 2025 outlined below focus on politics, popular culture, and loss.
Announcing Wikipedia's most-read articles of 2025 – Wikimedia Foundation
New Wikipedia data shows the events, people, movies, and more that captured global attention in 2025.Wikimedia Foundation
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Judge hints Vizio TV buyers may have rights to source code licensed under GPL— Tentative ruling signals a potential win for SFC’s copyleft enforcement push
Judge hints Vizio TV buyers may have rights to source code licensed under GPL
: Tentative ruling signals a potential win for SFC’s copyleft enforcement pushThomas Claburn (The Register)
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Trains cancelled over fake bridge collapse image
Trains cancelled over fake bridge collapse image
Rail services were cancelled after a 'hoax' picture of a damaged bridge appeared on social mediaZoe Toase (BBC News)
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Technology reshared this.
A BBC journalist ran the image through an AI chatbot which identified key spots that may have been manipulated.
This is terrifying. Does the BBC not have anyone on the team that understands why this does not, and will never work?
AI creating jobs by requiring more human intervention for validation of previously reliable forms of information?
Okay cool, I'm here for it.
solrize
in reply to freedickpics • • •phanto
in reply to freedickpics • • •Em Adespoton
in reply to freedickpics • • •adarza
in reply to freedickpics • • •gtr
in reply to freedickpics • • •Obama's Wrath
in reply to freedickpics • • •jmp.chat/sim
Extremely useful if you are in North America regularly but not enough to justify a data plan. Still competitive with every single other pay-as-you-go plan in the states by at least 30% I have checked lol. The phone number service combined with it is useful because you get data-based phone calls from North America and Canada when you're abroad (you can hook it up to a bunch of other different services too check the site but I'm assuming based on the user base of this site) and it's super cheap, can maintain different numbers and track down who is getting you spam callers etc. Pay-as-you-go looks expensive but you'd be surprised how many services can be squeezed into a text-only minimal data kind of workflow. I can give you a list of apps that work well with under 1GB/month mobile data usage. You do kind of need either a model w a SD card slot or a chunky 512GB+ future ebrick Pixel model because using minimal data ends up using a lot of storage. Works best if you are usually on WiFi or have a hotspot (not sure if Calyx institute still exists but I used that a few years ago and it was very funny).
Anyways that's how you operate without a real data plan but both jmp and calyx are secretly T-Mobile but shhhhhh don't say it loudly
JMP Data Plan
jmp.chatbananabread
in reply to freedickpics • • •colournoun
in reply to bananabread • • •realitaetsverlust
in reply to colournoun • • •That isn't entirely true. While a phone without a SIM can still listen to broadcasts, it never registers as a subscriber because It's missing a IMSI. So no, without a SIM you are indeed invisible to carriers. It's a bit like screaming into the woods - someone might hear you if you do that, but if he doesn't scream back, you have no idea he's there.
The only exception to this if you're actively calling emergency services - in that case, your phone will attempt an emergency attach to any network it can find, which is the point where the carrier of that network could see your IMEI. However, apart from that, you are indeed completely invisible without a SIM card.
RodgeGrabTheCat 🇨🇦🏴☠️
in reply to freedickpics • • •eleitl
in reply to freedickpics • • •I only use the old phone for cellular telephony.
utopiah
in reply to freedickpics • • •That's a strange argument, why do you and lots of people replying here believe they are NOT tracked over WiFi which are themselves relying on ISPs?
If you don't trust your ISP why would you trust random ISPs more?
WhyJiffie
in reply to utopiah • • •agile_squirrel
in reply to utopiah • • •Auli
in reply to freedickpics • • •monovergent
in reply to freedickpics • • •If I had to go WiFi-only, there would probably be hours-long gaps when I am unreachable. So my compromise is to use a non-KYC data-only SIM. Even if VPN is left off, it routes traffic first to a datacenter far from my actual location, and there is no longer a route for unencrypted calls and SMS and the associated spam. I don't have a habit of streaming media on the go, so the data lasts quite a while and there isn't much of an urge to use public WiFi.
Doesn't fully eliminate the problem as IMEI is still sent and the cellular modem is still a rogue black box, but a step in the right direction. Knowing that the cellular modem can run whatever code with deep privileges as it wishes, I try to keep as little of my business on my phone as I can, with the bulk of my workflow centered around my laptop. Don't get me wrong, I don't think this automatically makes me immune, but I do think it's a neat little exercise. Perhaps one could abstract the problem of the modem by getting a separate wireless hotspot.
My friends and family have accepted that they either need to get Signal, XMPP, or Matrix or I will be largely unreachable. The only remaining need for SMS and GSM voice calls stems from work, which is all handled by my work phone that is powered down, or at least disconnected, once I leave for the day. It sucks that this is not the norm, but it looks like I am quite fortunate that my friends, family, and employer all tolerate this workflow.
Take a look at "IoT" SIM cards, they're a bit expensive and data-only, but might not be subject to the same KYC regulations.
HubertManne
in reply to freedickpics • • •agile_squirrel
in reply to freedickpics • • •sneaky
in reply to freedickpics • • •realitaetsverlust
in reply to freedickpics • • •Not having a SIM-Card in your phone is like having a tank without a main gun - it drives, but it can't really do what it's supposed to do. I don't think that it's a good idea. Also, not having a SIM-Card doesn't make you invisible - only airplane mode really does that. Without some kind of network connectivity, you have an expensive, glorified brick that can make photos, play games and lets you listen to offline music.
Also, I'm wondering what exactly you're trying to achive. Get a private OS like graphene, don't install any google services, have anti-tracking protection installed into the browser (or use a safe and sane browser by default) and you're good.
Not having a SIM doesn't do anything for you except hiding from your carrier, however, if your threat model involves you being worried by being tracked by your carrier (and by extension, the feds), you're in really hot water already and you're probably better off with detaching yourself from the modern world.
basic daydreams
in reply to freedickpics • • •swelter_spark
in reply to freedickpics • • •