...but how do they work?

"Fun" fact: Those two things are connected! Without the repeal of the Fairness Doctrine by Reagan's FCC in 1987, the group called Citizens United would likely not have been able to form in 1988, as they would have been required to provide opposing viewpoints when they expressed their terrible views on national tv or radio networks.

Additional fun fact: Rush Limbaugh's nationally syndicated radio show (which began in 1988) also would not have been possible without the repeal of the fairness doctrine.

Really beat the devil out of him

"My name is KENNETH, ACKTUALLY, and you NEED A TICKET to see Spiderman"

Not seeing ads for GEICO on your car's dashboard doesn't mean that Toyota isn't gathering as much data as they can about you via the platform they built and then selling that information to GEICO.

As well as information about who you are, Toyota can also collect your “driving behavior.” This includes information such as your “acceleration and speed, steering, and braking functionality, and travel direction.” It may also gather your in-vehicle preferences, favorite locations saved on its systems, and images gathered by external cameras or sensors.

Some models of Toyota can also scan your face for face recognition when you enter one of its vehicles.

Source

Pouring one out for the homies without affordable health care

Several things keep Americans from moving to Europe.

First, immigration laws of the country one is moving to. If one is not able to get a passport from an EU or EEA county based on ancestry, you basically need to be sponsored for a work visa by a company in the country you want to move to, which can be quite difficult. And even then, you have to be employed in that country for long enough to qualify for permanent residency, then citizenship, which can take up to 7 or 8 years in some countries.

If one is lucky enough to have parents or grandparents who emigrated to the US from a European country and can claim citizenship based on that, it's a lot of work to get all of the paperwork together and verified and accepted by that government's consulate (at least it is for Germany, but German bureaucracy is ... special).

Second, the US is one of the only countries in the world that double taxes its citizens. If someone was born in the United States, they will have to file taxes reporting income to the US government every single year until they die, and PAY taxes to the US government on any income over a certain amount every year until they die, regardless of the source of that income, and regardless of the fact that taxes on the same income need to be paid to the host country.

While I have zero respect for the snivelling shitgibbon name Boris Johnson, he was born in New York and had to renounce his US citizenship to escape the IRS. You also have to PAY the US government $2350 (in cash) for the privilege of giving up your citizenship, which is also...unique.

Sometimes there are tax treaties that can take most of the sting out of the double taxation issue (Norway's is decent for US citizens), but it depends on the country.

Finally, it just never occurs to many Americans that leaving is even a possibility.

hisses protectively from atop a musty hoard of green USB to ps/2 adapters

Wizard: I'm too drunk to walk...or fly...

Bard: I've got it. Rubs a small jello cube with a cloth

DM: A slightly moist skateboard appears.

Party: What the hell is that?

DM: That's what happens when you gleam the cube.

Gitlab is pretty great!

I think we should call it "syrup"

"That's some sweet sway syrup", or "that gnome syrup is stallman af"

Just please don't use the crystals as deodorant (unless you have sideburns in the shape of stars)