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> I'm UBI-curious, but surely inflation would be inevitable if everyone suddenly had $x more disposable income per year?

This does not have to be the case if higher taxes decrease purchasing power for some.


This does not address the relative purchasing power change on the left of the bell curve.

The whole purpose of UBI is to increase the relative purchasing power on the left of the bell curve.

But inflation (sum total) is a moot point if total supply of dollars for total demand stays the same. Prices might temporarily increase for staples, such as shelter and food, but that should incentivize sellers in the economy to supply more staples, and fewer luxury goods.

The additional supply will eventually bring prices down, but end result is more people have more of the basics.


I don't think that line of reasoning has worked our particularly well for shelter.

Just because supply of shelter in certain locales has not kept up with demand for that specific locale, and/or is affected by numerous legalities regarding things like eviction and zoning codes and fire codes and animals, does not mean invalid the theory of higher prices incentivizing sellers to increase supply.

I compare my $41.5k Model Y with a Rav4/Highlander.

The Rav4 costs the same, but has far worse performance, technology, and ongoing maintenance costs.

The Highlander is slightly better, but costs $10k to $20k more, and still has far worse performance, technology, and ongoing maintenance costs.

Plus, I avoided spending hours at a dealership, and I must know at least a couple dozen Tesla owners that report no issues in the previous 5 to 10 years.

I thought I would miss Carplay, but it’s a non issue. Toyota wanted $15 to $25 per month for remote start, I pay Tesla $0 per month for remote start and remote climate control.


I’ve been using AirPods on audio and video calls for many years now, and I notice no latency. Same with my bluetooth mouse.

Try using them to play a twitchy game and you'll notice.

I’m curious why Meta would benefit. Meta seems wholly unnecessary, the verification can be done at the OS level, completely in the hands of Apple/Alphabet and maybe Microsoft.

If anything, Meta’s utility would seem to shrink if the OS handles proof of being a real person.


Regulatory capture through a higher barrier to entry. Any social media platform that wants to compete with Meta's portfolio will now also need to have an age-verification system in place (which is guaranteed to introduce higher costs). Meta can likely afford to eat the costs here as a tradeoff for the higher impact on smaller players.

It also gives them more information on users as a bonus. Further, verification with a real ID is also a quite effective barrier against excessive bots.


I would think the barrier to entry gets lower because Apple/Alphabet handle age verification, and they let apps/websites use that verification.

Look beyond the CA law, states have already passed laws that put the liability on app and website developers to ensure users aren't kids, there's no passing the buck to Apple or Google.

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/12/congresss-crusade-age-...


Meta's entire business model lives on ad deals that are not on the frontend. They are in the data business and this campaign is to get access to more data without an option to opt out. Who takes the data doesn't really matter.

Meta get to impose verified ID on everyone and link it to their advertisers, AND kill competing networks.

because upstart competitors cant afford the verification process / lobbying efforts next instagram wont be bought out, it cant even begin to exist

Liability and they probably want whatever blob of bits they use to identify you from the OS.

1. It deflects any obligation that would have landed on Meta itself to do age verification (which is what the regulators have long asked for). 2. It gives Instagram/Facebook/Messenger the ability to deliver the right ads to the right audience. It's free targeting data.

Typically, the “it” in the phrase “got away with it” refers to an action that broke the rules.

“Got off” would be more appropriate

"got off" implies he was guilty but got away with it. I'd say "vindicated" or "absolved" fit the bill here.

Participating in a market is work, the only way a market (or life in general) works is if you hold your counterparties accountable.

> I don't want a "free market" solution where I need to switch providers every 6 months because some rich dude is being a dick.

Nature does not have a mandate that good quality services and products be available at low prices at all times. The rich dude being a “dick” was a tired vet owner who wanted to sell their equity, just like anyone else who sells their SP500 shares or their house.

The only thing that can be done is encourage government policies to ensure more sellers exist.


Nature doesn't have a mandate for anything. It's up to us to shape the world we want to have as a society

Because they are supposed to possess minimum levels of intelligence found in homo sapiens, which includes not believing anything a salesperson says.

Also, their whole job is dealing with people who constantly lie to them.


There are two things occurring here.

Police get raises and recognition for closing cases. In general they don't care if you're guilty or not, that's someone else's problem. Same with the detective, same with the DA. The more cases they close they 'tougher they are on crime'.

The next thing occurring is

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_says_no

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_says_no


If you have a broken system whose injustice is checked only by the limitations of the human elements, and you start replacing those human elements and powerscaling them, you have an unlimited downside.


Some police departments seem to actively reject candidates that have higher scores on IQ tests. Not that I think IQ test scores and actual intelligence are related but it clearly shows their intended target candidate group.

https://abcnews.com/US/court-oks-barring-high-iqs-cops/story...


This came up a few weeks ago. I don't think it's true. This lawsuit from 26 years ago is the only example anybody has come up with. Among the problems with this claim:

* Nobody can find a police department that administers any kind of general cognitive test.

* There are large states with statewide written police aptitude tests that are imperfect but correlated to general cognitive ability, and maximizing scores on that test is the universal correct strategy.

* It's a luridly stupid policy and most municipalities aren't luridly stupid.

I think this happened like, once or twice, in one or two of the 20,000 police departments across the United States, many of which are like one goober and his sidekick (no offense to them; just, you live in gooberville, you're a goober), and now it's an Internet meme that police departments specifically hire for midwittery. Nah.


In different states, police use cognitive aptitude tests such as the Wonderlic -- https://jobdescriptionandresumeexamples.com/10-important-fac... -- https://www.practice4me.com/lst-police-exam/ -- these are not strictly 'IQ' tests, but they're very similar.

The Wonderlic might as well be an IQ test (I'm using the term "general cognitive test").

The LST isn't; it's a domain-specific occupational exam.

If you find a place that (1) uses the Wonderlic and (2) has recently (like, not all the way back in 2000) claimed there was a high-end cut-off for applicants, you'll have disproven my claim. I don't think giving general cognitive tests to prospective police officers is common; this is why there are things like the LST, the PELLETB, and the POST.


You're over-selling the minimum level of intelligence in homo sapiens.

What you're stating is your wishful thinking. Don't get me wrong. I'd also like what you say to be true. It very much is not. Quite the opposite, which is why salespeople "work".

The amount of AI bullshit Senior+ level developers just paste to me as truth is astonishing.


Almost all taxpayer funded pension funds are already underfunded. It makes no difference if the funding decreases or increases, the government employee will still get their benefit. The government would have to go through bankruptcy to get the benefit amount reduced.

Best way to get clicks without publishing something of substance is to publish something wrong. If the article was titled "The internet killed bank teller jobs", then people would think "duh" and no one would click on it.

The person in the article provided proof in the form of a mortgage statement, which should establish that they pay tax to the district. Where they spend their time outside of school hours seems irrelevant.

Document fraud is both incredibly easy and pervasive. There’s a mentality of “I jumped through the hoop, now you can’t get me.”

They aren’t taking blood tests or staking out your homes (I don’t think…)


>Document fraud is both incredibly easy and pervasive.

the school does not contest the legitimacy of the documents.

the school even says "[...] you are the owner on record of a house in our district boundaries"


Sounds like the license plate readers basically are stalking out homes though.

They provided a mortgage statement. The district employee can trivially verify that by firing up the GIS system.

So you go to the county’s website and look up the address and see who owns it. Or even homes.com

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