Michael Downey 🚩 @downey@floss.social

Soon, this will all be gone. Thanks, capitalism.

The cognitive dissonance of so many groups claiming to help reduce the environmental impact of tech is really astounding.

One who is serious does not host "unique in-person events" as part of an effort to de-carbonize.

Nope.

Finally pulled down the upgraded @thunderbird from debian unstable. Very nice; congrats to the team.

🌌 What looks much like craggy mountains on a moonlit evening is the edge of a young, star-forming region NGC 3324 in the Carina #Nebula. Captured by the #NASA James #Webb #Space #Telescope, this image reveals previously obscured areas of star birth.

Called the Cosmic Cliffs, the region is the edge of a gigantic, gaseous cavity within NGC 3324, 7,600 light-years away.

Check out all today's first images from #JWST: https://www.nasa.gov/webbfirstimages

🌌 Stephan’s Quintet is the largest image to date from the #NASA James #Webb #Space #Telescope, covering about one-fifth of the Moon’s diameter.

Sparkling clusters of millions of young stars and starburst regions of fresh star birth grace the image. Sweeping tails of gas, dust and stars are being pulled from several of the galaxies due to gravitational interactions.

Webb captures huge shock waves as one of the galaxies, NGC 7318B, smashes through the cluster.

More: https://www.nasa.gov/webbfirstimages

🌌 Stellar Death: Planetary #Nebula NGC 3132

Some stars save the best for last.

The dimmer star at the center of this scene has been sending out rings of gas and dust for thousands of years in all directions, and #NASA James Webb #Space #Telescope #JWST has revealed for the first time that this star is cloaked in dust.

It is approximately 2,500 light-years away.

More images at: https://www.nasa.gov/webbfirstimages

🌬️ Made a new small desktop #CorsiRosenthalBox for summer. Perfect size for a small room or office. 10-inch square MERV-13 filters and a small box fan. And of course, duct tape.

#COVID #COVIDisAirborne

🇺🇸 🇺🇸 🇺🇸

⚠️ Graphic Photo Warning ⚠️

If you have trouble looking at this photograph (posted below) of a man murdered today in #HighlandPark, then you should do something about #gunViolence in #America.

Not a fan of gratuitous violence, but the family of this man wanted the world to see what is wrong in the #UnitedStates, & the research of Milgram et al. suggest the closer we know the suffering, the more moved we are to action.

Original source from a former US federal prosecutor: https://twitter.com/renato_mariotti/status/1544047614739488770

🇺🇸 #IndependenceDay #July4th

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-highland-park-shooting-fourth-of-july-parade-20220704-ai4yuthlqfac7ljmv5zj2tiybe-story.html

💩🧹 I don't know how I've gone this long without hearing about Brandolini's law, but today I learned.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandolini%27s_law

💡 Remember, you can still get #COVID outdoors. A handy weekend guide to help protect yourself.

https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2022/07/01/1109444481/coronavirus-faq-can-i-get-covid-outdoors-with-printable-poster-on-how-to-cut-ris

#OpenSource and #tech conferences, 2022 #COVID edition.

#COVIDisntOver #TestingMatters #MaskingWorks

There is a direct line between the 1940s control room for the Voice of America radio station* and today's US policies of protecting today's tech giants and their business models.

If it doesn't pop into your mind with an "aha" moment, read up on the VOA's history.

* Note the lack of microphone.

💡 Seems like a good time to once again recall that many users aren't aware of (or don't know how to use) the filter setting to temporarily or permanently mute/hide problematic content from various timelines and searches in #Mastodon.

#MastoAdmin

https://docs.joinmastodon.org/user/moderating/#filters

"With every drop of my blood I defy their law, and I despise them. I am appealing to you, to the common people; I care nothing about the #SupremeCourt, corporation lawyers every one of them. The Supreme Court is not the court of last resort; the people are."

-- Eugene Debs

#SCOTUS

🇺🇸 Michelle #Obama letter on today's announcement by the #US Supreme Court overturning legal #abortion in the #Roe decision:

"I am heartbroken today."

Pro-tip for #conference vendors & sponsors in the #US:

A social media pic of your booth staff w/smiling unmasked faces does not make me want to drop by during the next break.

A free infection with #COVID, with a chance of long-term injury/disability, is just not the compelling free swag you may think it is.

#CovidIsNotOver #WearAMask #OSsummit