Sure, I can agree that division of labor is crucial. But I work in a factory where what I suggest is somewhat of a reality. Cross training is a purposeful practice because it creates a more flexible/robust workforce. Jobs that are the worst to work are typically shared amongst a large number of people so that nobody has to do it all day, which promotes worker wellness and thereby efficiency. Ergonomic and safety concerns are addressed so that workers stay healthy and can work more efficiently.

The place I work is a B corp.

Your implied stance that people should only do one thing ever doesn’t make sense to me. For the more specialized roles at my facility that are potentially odious, they generally have a much easier workload, and they aren’t doing only that one task anywhere close to all day most days.

So let’s not say that people should give up on making factories places where workers can be happy. You can have efficient workers who know how to do more than one thing.

I think we are generally in agreement that standing in front of a blast furnace all day would suck pretty badly. But I am not sure such work must always be miserable. To be fair I have never worked with a blast furnace, but I don’t see why someone’s job should be to do the same thing every day for years on end. Management should switch up worker roles frequently, perhaps multiple times a day if the task is particularly odious. And if there are ergonomic or environmental reasons it isn’t tolerable or safe, those reasons should be addressed, such as providing better PPE or custom built tools.

Adding extra incentives is part of making factory work sustainable in the long run, but it’s going to take more than an extra $(insert number)/hour to make workers safe and happy. And I really don’t think we should give up on trying to make factory workers safe and happy.

Fair to point out that Trump and Lutnick suck bad and aren’t really going to do anything to help factory workers. I guess that point feels obvious to me so I gloss over it in my comments. When I read an article like this, my takeaway may not always be the author’s intended point.

I still resist the idea that it must always be better to “escape” the factory and work elsewhere.

You say you aren’t shitting on factory work. But you also seem to feel that the ability to exit the factory is fundamental to having a good life. I agree that people should be able to choose what field they work in, so no I don’t think that every person should feel locked in to factory work, but I do think that we should focus on how to make factory work appealing, unlike it is now.

We need to be talking about more than just worker protections (although that is where policy needs to start and I agree they are the foundation for any further progress). We need to talk about government recommendations for management practices, grants for labor research, and possibly incentives for progressive management styles. We need to make factories into places that people don’t want to escape.

And as consumers, we need to push for the reality we want to see. If we have the ability, we should do our best to support companies with better labor practices - for example, the B corp and the Well certifications require certain employee wellness minimums, so when buying mass produced goods, prioritize ones with a certification like that.

So then it would seem more productive to bash the Trump administration’s labor policies than to bash the idea that there should be factory workers. The take away from this article for me is not that it is crazy for people and their children (once grown) to work in factories, but that we need to advance the policies you point out to make that into a reality that is sustainable.

Alright folks, I agree that this dude is tone deaf. Buuut…

Coming from a factory worker - life in the factory doesn’t have to be as shitty as it currently is in my opinion. I see it as a failure of management that factory work is so soul sucking.

And as a society we rely on the efficiency that factory production brings - my understanding is that without factories, an economy is generally less able to support artists etc.

I feel like the core idea that many people will be working in factories isn’t necessarily bad…

This is awesome! Are these all from “I Kissed Dating Goodbye” or were there other sources for the text?

Brought to mind the song “Radio Silence” by Zella Day

I wonder what she ate…

Maybe locals were leaving out food for her? It sounds like they knew she was around and just couldn’t catch her.

Maybe RFK really is just meaning vaccines when he says “environmental contaminant,” but couldn’t he mean microplastics or PFAS or PCBs or any of the other extremely common, poorly understood (in terms of health effects) actual environmental contaminants?

This article takes a very narrow view of the topic in my opinion. The point is well taken that the recent increase in reported numbers does not represent a sudden spike, but there is a serious conversation to be had about the potential link between pollution and autism. From the article:

Zoe Gross, director of advocacy at the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, said some initial studies have suggested an association between autism and environmental factors such as pollution, but she was unaware of studies “demonstrating a causal link between the two.”

Demonstrating a causal link takes a lot of effort! Just because there isn’t a clear causal link doesn’t mean there isn’t an important association. And because some pollutants (like PFAS) are so widely distributed that they are in rainwater pretty much worldwide, you can’t find an “unpolluted” control group, so proving that they are causing health impacts is doubly difficult. The way RFK talks about it is dumb but the topic itself is worthy imo.

The sad thing about this is that probably for most of these folks this will only further confirm their views. Trump and his allies were pushing the idea that FEMA is corrupt and ineffective while Biden was still in office. The Trump admin will argue that this is FEMA’s fault, not Trump’s. His voters will eat it up.

The bees were on a different lower down roof from the main roof (which is the one that burned). The article notes that bee wax melts at 70C and they didn’t see any of that under the hives, so they know temperatures stayed below that. So the bees were likely only exposed to some smoke and maybe some slightly elevated temperatures.

Imo music discovery on Spotify is best done by pursuing playlists posted by musicians you like or just hopping by related artists/album features.

The article hits the nail on the head when they say to listen to human curated content - whether it be curated by yourself or someone else, it’s the best way to find something new/good.

If I were in your shoes, I would probably mention the change in tone/word choice to the lead on the project since you have a good relationship with them. Just mentioning that you noticed the change and aren’t sure about it doesn’t need to be combative, and I would be truly shocked if it cost you the job. Depending on your state it might even be illegal to fire you for something like that.

I personally would not take a stand or refuse to do the voiceover or anything like that. I would make it clear that I would do the voiceover using the script as it is written. I would think of it as providing feedback rather than making demands, which seems like it would be within the purview of a QA reviewer.

This way you can at the very least get more information about the situation - find out whether this was an intentional change. If so, it may be time to start making moves so you can eventually drop this company.

Have these all used the same candle or do you switch candles sometimes?

Would you ever use a candle that isn’t white?

Very cool. I wonder how durable these electrodes are once coated in nanowires.

Loomis said the decision on whether to compete this year or start over was never a discussion during the interview process. Their talks revolved around general philosophy and what Moore would be like as a coach. “Look, I’m in the mode of trying to win every game, whatever it takes to win every game… You’re just trying to win every game. And so that didn’t come up…”

Saints are in denial of the concept of a Superbowl “window” apparently. This feels like one of those “I’m not crazy, the rest of the world is” moments.

As I understand it: The long term vision is that by increasing the cost of imported goods, domestic goods will have an easier time being competitive. The short term vision is that tariffs can be used to bully other countries into doing things the U.S. wants.

I use songstitch.art

I recommend “Rookie” by Rookie.

Here is my last month:

Here is an excerpt from another source summarizing the requirement for integrated pest management:

"These plans address three levels of pest management. Level A is based on the expectation that a well-designed and healthy organic system will naturally have fewer pest problems. It focuses on pest and disease outbreak prevention practices such as cover crops, crop rotation and providing habitat for ladybugs and other beneficial insects.

If Level A practices are not sufficient, Level B focuses on the introduction of insect predators and parasites, mulching, grazing, mowing, solarization and other mechanical and physical practices.

If additional pest management is needed, Level C includes the use of natural and synthetic pesticides on the National List."

https://www.safefruitsandveggies.com/organic-regulations/#:~:text=Organic farmers are required to,-regulations/organic/handbook.

Also, the list you have linked is so so much less bad than the list of allowed chemicals for conventional farmers, which I can’t even find online… Best way I have found to view it is here: https://ordspub.epa.gov/ords/pesticides/f?p=CHEMICALSEARCH:46::::

Bottom line is that conventional pesticide use is much less transparent and less tightly regulated.

This is an oversimplification. It is true that organic farmers are permitted to use certain chemicals on their crops, but the allowed substances are very different in terms of ecological impact compared to conventional chemical treatments (conventional chemicals and their breakdown products generally persist in the environment much longer).

Organic farmers are also required to try to manage pests without chemicals first, steering the organic industry towards “integrated pest management” where very small amounts of pesticides are used in a highly targeted manner.

https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/news/blog/organic-101-allowed-and-prohibited-substances https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/ENTO/ENTO-384/ENTO-384.html