markjgsmith

2024/01/02 #

• Physicaly assaulted again - I was physically assaulted again a few minutes ago. One of the motorbike gang stalkers drove up behind me and wacked me with a bat as they drove past. This is following several harrassnent incidents yesterday where I didn't react more than accepting the blame.

  They blame me for something, bully me, and even if I accept the bullying, they are still not happy, and blame me for being blamed.

  Shame on you vietnam. 2024 is definitely turning into the vietnamese year of shame. One year can turn into many. #

• I miss conversations - One of the things that really lacked for me in 2023 was conversations. I only had about a handfull of actual conversations during the entire year. In pretty much each case there were concequences, things I said got turned around and used against me within days. Talking to fellow foreigners is very much discouraged. I miss talking to people. #

• Vision Pro Pro's - Casey Liss and John Gruber discuss amoung other things Apple's soon to be released Vision Pro on the latest Talk Show episode. They mention two aspects of the device that I hadn't considered before.

  Some people wonder whether the price tag is too high. It's a high price for sure, but one group of people that will fork out the cash is business travellers. These folks spend extended amounts of time on planes and trains. If the device does turn out to offer a very immersive experience similar to being at the cinema, then why wouldn't they invest in improving those long travel days?

  The other aspect I hadn't considered is privacy. If the work that you do is sensitive and needs to be kept secret, then the Vision Pro is maybe the best device available because it totally cuts out the possibility of opportunistic shoulder surfers since the device is literally attached to your face. #

Today’s links:

• Vinyl is back for good and that’s exciting. Don’t let the greed of big labels ruin it - Recently people have been noticing the resurgence of vinyl records. John Harris' article goes into a bit more depth, looking at some of the dynamics at play between mainstream and independent labels, and the manufacturing realities in supply chains that seem currently to be predominently based in eastern european countries. I feel like a lot more could be written about this interesting topic. I would definitely read it. www.theguardian.com #

• Britain is stuck in a doom loop: the system is rigged against growth. That needs to change - Will Hutton paints quite a bleak picture of the UK's coorporate sector. Chronic under funding of companies, money going abroad and UK companies increasingly being bought by foreign investors at an alarming rate. It's a doom loop that results in lower pensions, which are normally aggregated and invested in business. Overall it results in even less investment in home grown ventures, which results in even less pensions, and the cycle continues. He makes the case that the state needs to intervene. www.theguardian.com #

• Transplanted to the US as a child, two accents seemed like a great idea. Until my first playdate - I too had a bit of a variable accent growing up between cultures. I'm suprised by how well the author remembers her experience. I for one do not remember hardly any of the details, to the extent my accent did change, it certainly wasn't something I was consciously doing. Of course you are going to change the words you use, otherwise people don't understand what you are saying. But it's not like you are staying up late studying and plotting coping strategies. Maybe I'm just thick. Strange article which rings true, but also feels very different to how it was, at least for me. www.theguardian.com #

• RA 917 - Purelink - “90-plus minutes of intricately textured downtempo, dub techno and even UK garage, all cut through with a floaty, almost drowsy quality, with plenty of exclusives and unreleased cuts”. I’m really into this mix. It’s about atmospheric, about ambience. Reminds me of some of the stuff I was listening to in the early oughts. Reminds me of being in Belgium. It takes a while to get going but once it does it’s very good and very chill. Also liked this description - “a bridger of worlds, sounds and tempos”. ra.co #