postpawl (u/postpawl)

postpawl commented on A low power 1U Raspberry Pi cluster server for inexpensive colocation (2021) github.com/pawl/raspberry... · Posted by u/LorenDB

postpawl · a month ago

Project author here. This project is 4 years old at this point, and now it probably makes more sense to use Mac minis or mini pcs. I also wouldn’t rely on cheap colocation for anything security sensitive or critical. They gave my same block of IPs to another customer at some point and there were issues with IP conflicts (eventually got resolved).

It lasted for about 3 years and the colocation company went bankrupt and got bought by another company, so they returned the hardware. I’m surprised a technical failure didn’t kill it.

postpawl commented on BYD Bets on Budget EV Boom with Atto 1 Debut in Indonesia jakartaglobe.id/business/... · Posted by u/breve

nickff · a month ago

The US automakers built an oligopoly when foreign competitors were technologically behind, and they developed a burdensome cost-structure based on expensive labor and multi-layered supply chains. To compete, they would need to vertically integrate (which would be very capital intensive, and is discouraged by the tax code), and cut their (unionized) Union labor costs.

postpawl · a month ago

GM announced a $10 billion stock buyback in November 2023, literally weeks after claiming they couldn't afford worker raises during the UAW strike that cost them $1.1 billion. Since 2015, GM has authorized $37.7 billion in total buybacks while their new UAW contract costs $9.3 billion over four years. When you can find $10 billion for buybacks immediately after settling a strike, the problem isn't "expensive labor". It's management that chose financial engineering over building competitive manufacturing capabilities.

postpawl commented on Final report on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 in-flight exit door plug separation ntsb.gov:443/investigatio... · Posted by u/starkparker

frumplestlatz · a month ago

The cost of government subsidies isn’t in just the subsidies or the administrative overhead alone. It’s in training people to rely on the government, in effectively subsidizing employers that pay less than a living wage, etc.

postpawl · a month ago

You're right that Medicaid subsidizes employers who pay poverty wages rely on taxpayers to provide healthcare for their workers instead of paying living wages themselves. But the solution isn't to eliminate Medicaid and leave workers with nothing. The solution is to raise the minimum wage or have universal healthcare so employers actually have to provide real benefits.

Most Medicaid recipients already work. They're not choosing dependency, they're working jobs that don't pay enough to afford healthcare. Taking away their healthcare doesn't suddenly make employers pay more, it just leaves workers desperate, which is exactly what those employers want.

You're essentially arguing we should eliminate the safety net that keeps our low-wage economy functioning. That would either force employers to pay living wages (unlikely) or create mass suffering among workers (more likely). Which outcome are you hoping for? Because right now it sounds like you'd rather have sick, desperate workers than challenge the employers who created this system.

postpawl commented on Final report on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 in-flight exit door plug separation ntsb.gov:443/investigatio... · Posted by u/starkparker

frumplestlatz · a month ago

The reporting requirements don’t seem particularly onerous.

It’s on those individuals to not “fall through the cracks” if they truly need our money to fund their healthcare — I don’t see the problem.

postpawl · a month ago

What's the point of making requirements even stricter if they cost more to administer than they save and don't increase employment? The Congressional Budget Office estimates 5.2 million people would lose coverage by 2034, with savings primarily coming from eligible people losing coverage due to paperwork barriers rather than increased employment.[1]

The new bill allows states to verify monthly instead of every three months, so people lose coverage faster. Even working people get tripped up because 43% of workers would fail to meet 80 hours in at least one month due to variable schedules common in low-wage jobs.[2] People with multiple jobs have to submit paystubs from each employer monthly. Seasonal workers and food service workers are especially vulnerable because their hours swing wildly due to factors beyond their control.

[1] https://ccf.georgetown.edu/2025/05/27/medicaid-and-chip-cuts...

[2] https://www.cbpp.org/research/health/medicaid-work-requireme...

postpawl commented on Final report on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 in-flight exit door plug separation ntsb.gov:443/investigatio... · Posted by u/starkparker

frumplestlatz · a month ago

The cuts seem to be about defunding work around climate change.

postpawl · a month ago

You're right that a lot of the NOAA cuts target climate research specifically. But think about who benefits from attacking climate science. Oil companies and existing wealth structures that profit from fossil fuels. Climate research threatens those business models, so gutting it protects those interests.

The cuts go way beyond climate though. They're cutting 107,000 federal jobs across agencies while defense spending increases 13%. Framing this as ideological makes it sound like an abstract battle of ideas, but it's not abstract at all. Real people are losing health insurance, real hospitals are closing, real communities are losing weather warnings. Meanwhile wealthy people get tax cuts and connected companies get business opportunities. It's about material interests, not ideology.

postpawl commented on Final report on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 in-flight exit door plug separation ntsb.gov:443/investigatio... · Posted by u/starkparker

xp84 · a month ago

Why can't people without disabilities or dependents work 20 hours a week?

postpawl · a month ago

It's not about whether they can work 20 hours. Most already do. Arkansas found 95% of people either met the requirements or qualified for exemptions, but 18,000+ still lost coverage due to the paperwork maze.

The requirements are designed to create barriers through bureaucracy. You have to report every month through a specific online portal, track your hours precisely, navigate exemption processes. Miss one monthly filing deadline and you lose healthcare. It's the most socially acceptable way to kick people off coverage without saying "we don't want poor people to have healthcare."

And it's not just work requirements. The bill also adds income verification twice a year instead of once, more asset checks, and cuts the actual funding. Each new hoop is another chance for eligible people to fall through the cracks. The goal is reducing enrollment through administrative friction, not promoting work.

postpawl commented on Final report on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 in-flight exit door plug separation ntsb.gov:443/investigatio... · Posted by u/starkparker

frumplestlatz · a month ago

Call it “ideological” instead of “culture” if you prefer. The goal is the same — defund the opposition.

postpawl · a month ago

Why frame it as ideological though? That doesn't explain which agencies get protected and which get cut. The NTSB stays funded because rich people fly on planes too. But Medicaid gets cut because wealthy people don't need it.

Look at weather service cuts. They're gutting the National Weather Service while Trump's appointees have ties to companies like AccuWeather and Satellogic that would profit from privatizing weather data.

It's about class interests. Agencies that serve everyone or that rich people depend on stay funded. Programs that only help poor people get cut, or get privatized to benefit specific wealthy interests. Make the wealthy better off through tax cuts and new business opportunities, make poor people worse off through service cuts.

postpawl commented on Final report on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 in-flight exit door plug separation ntsb.gov:443/investigatio... · Posted by u/starkparker

xp84 · a month ago

Can you point out what aspects of the bill relating to Medicaid are most concerning? I don't just mean the DNC talking points, but rather specific provisions. When I read through the actual provisions[1] they are far less scary than what I hear being used as DNC fundraising fodder. For instance, I can't just show up in the UK without any legal status and automatically have all free healthcare from the NHS[2]. But the provisions removing federal tax money support to provide free healthcare to the undocumented is one of the things being pointed to by opponents of the bill as being especially evil. If you feel that way, why is the US the only country that ought to do that?

[1] https://www.kff.org/tracking-the-medicaid-provisions-in-the-...

[2] https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/visiting-or-moving-to-englan...

postpawl · a month ago

The work requirements force people to file paperwork proving 80 hours of work monthly, and Arkansas showed this paperwork maze caused 18,000+ people to lose coverage even though 95% already met the requirements or qualified for exemptions. Arkansas spent $26.1 million just on administration with no increase in employment, and Georgia has spent over $40 million with 80% going to bureaucracy, not healthcare.

For rural hospitals, the bill cuts $58 billion in Medicaid funding over 10 years but only provides a $25 billion rural fund that covers less than half the losses. This puts 300+ rural hospitals at immediate risk of closure since they're already operating on thin margins.

For elderly people, the bill blocks nursing home staffing rules until 2034 and freezes home equity limits at $1 million permanently, plus adds more verification requirements.

The evidence shows these aren't about efficiency. They're about creating barriers that cost more money to administer than they save, while cutting care for people who already qualify.

postpawl commented on Final report on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 in-flight exit door plug separation ntsb.gov:443/investigatio... · Posted by u/starkparker

frumplestlatz · a month ago

The current aims of the executive branch are neither casual nor random, and I doubt the NTSB is in their crosshairs.

The goals are both obvious and specific; it’s a culture war being fought at the funding level.

postpawl · a month ago

A culture war on poor people who need Medicaid? That doesn’t seem like class war to you?