Do you feel like the winds of change are blowing today too?
POSTED BY: 6ixStringJack
UPDATED: Sunday, September 6, 2026 16:05
VIEWED: 185382
PAGE 55 of 479
Wow, COBOL??? That was the big thing when I was learning Fortran ... 50 years ago!!
If there are errors in the database bc of COBOL deficiencies, these are bright lads doing the looking. I'm sure they'll figure it out.
*****
That software should be rewritten. COBOL is still good software.
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal." - Henry Kissinger
AMERICANS SUPPORT AMERICA
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by 6ixStringJack:Quote:
Originally posted by second:
Many tipped workers don’t make enough money to be subject to income tax or pay very little. So excluding tips solely for income-tax purposes won’t provide tipped workers much in the way of a benefit. In other words, it’s an empty promise.
This paragraph was written by somebody who never worked a day in their life and has no idea how taxes work.
--------------------------------------------------
"I don't find this stuff amusing anymore." ~Paul Simon
Allow me to elaborate....
https://www.bls.gov/oes/2023/may/oes353031.htm
Median Waiter/Waitress yearly salary in 2023 with tips: $36,530
Standard Deduction in 2023: $13,850 if single, $27,700 if married/jointly.
Page 6 here: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-prior/i1040gi--2023.pdf
Federal tax is 10% on the first $11,000 above the deduction, and then 12% on every dime of that $36,530 above $24,850.
$11,000 @ 10% = $1,100
$11,680 @ 12% = $1,401.60
TOTAL FEDERAL TAX = $2,502
Federal minimum wage for servers is $2.13/hr., which means if they worked full time at 40 hours per week, their income from employer pay would only be $4,430.40 per year, which was well under the $13,850 standard deduction in 2023. Even if your employer was paying you $6.50 per hour before tips, you still would earn less than the standard deduction of 2023 with only $13,520 after working 40 hours per week, every week.
The VAST majority of states pay less than $6.50 per hour minimum to servers in 2025, with most of them going along with the federal minimum of $2.13:
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/state/minimum-wage/tipped
Only 15 states and DC pay more than $6.50 per hour minimum for servers:
Washington: $16.66
California: $16.50
Oregon: $14.70
Hawaii: $12.75
Nevada: $12.00
Alaska: $11.91
Arizona: $11.70
Colorado: $11.79
Montana: $10.50
DC: $10.00
Florida: $9.98
Minnesota: $9.25
Illinois: $9.00
New York (has some law where they need to be paid $15/hour, so if they don't get the tips up to that amount the owner needs to kick in the rest... otherwise $2.13 federal minimum).
Maine: $7.33
Missouri: $6.88
Massachusetts: $6.75
At this point I need to point out that only 33% of servers in the US actually get full time with benefits and 40 hours per week.
https://oysterlink.com/career/waitress/demographics/
But if you're living in a state where you're getting an obscene amount of money before you're even starting to count tips, you have the potential to be saving a hell of a lot out of this.
Let's take California for example.
I'm a part-time server getting screwed out of benefits and healthcare and I'm working a steady 30 hours per week in California as a waiter.
My take home pay before tips is going to be at least $25,470, which not only goes way beyond the standard deduction of $13,850 in 2023, but it also bumps me up past the 10% bracket into the 12% bracket which starts at $24,850 when you add the standard deduction back in. This now means that for every dollar I make in tips all year, I'm keeping 12 cents that I would have been pissing away to the Federal Government.
So if I made the $11,060 in tips that would get me to the $36,530 national server average, I'd be paying either $1,372.20 in Federal Taxes on these tips the way the laws are now, or I'd be able to pocket that $1,372.20 if Trump ends tax on tips.
And hey... if they were a really freaking great server and made $20,000 in tips that year, now they just saved $2,400 in Federal taxes. And I'm pretty sure despite how god awful expensive it must be to eat out in California if the servers make that kind of money, they're still getting good tips in California.
Meanwhile the guy in Indiana might have $8,000 or so in tips to earn before he starts getting a 10% tax on them, but if he's making less than that and working 40 hours per week for only $13,800 per year, than that p
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Wow, COBOL??? That was the big thing when I was learning Fortran ... 50 years ago!!
If there are errors in the database bc of COBOL deficiencies, these are bright lads doing the looking. I'm sure they'll figure it out.
*****
That software should be rewritten. COBOL is still good software.
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal." - Henry Kissinger
AMERICANS SUPPORT AMERICA
Things that were mostly legacy stuff that was only briefly mentioned in computer courses by the time I went to college.
I wonder how many missiles we've got secured by monochrome AS400 dumb terminals still.
--------------------------------------------------
"I don't find this stuff amusing anymore." ~Paul Simon
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Wow, COBOL??? That was the big thing when I was learning Fortran ... 50 years ago!!
If there are errors in the database bc of COBOL deficiencies, these are bright lads doing the looking. I'm sure they'll figure it out.
*****
What I meant was, the application should be rewritten and the database cleaned up. COBOL is still good software.
Quote:
A majority of the Computerworld readers who took part in our survey seem to concur with Stoodley: 64% of the respondents said that their organizations still use Cobol — more than any modern language except for Java/JavaScript and Visual Basic. That figure is actually slightly higher than the response rate to a similar question the last time we conducted a survey on Cobol use, back in 2006: In the previous survey, some 62% of the respondents said they still used Cobol.
-----------
"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal." - Henry Kissinger
AMERICANS SUPPORT AMERICA
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Yeah? I wasn't saying that COBOL is bad. Just that I don't think it's used or even taught that often anymore except for the fact that there are so many legacy machines that still require them, and even by 2025 it has never been a financially and/or logistically sound decision to take the time and labor to make a switch. Not to mention all the security and backup and privacy problems that can occur when you touch anything like this.
Let's just say that none of the youngin's on youtube making coding look cool today are using COBOL on any of their projects.
I'm still wondering when they're going to start talking about the whole Windows 10/11 situation brewing this year. Outside of some tech YouTube channels, I don't ever hear about it.
The staggering amount of e-waste that is about to be created by Microsoft should be front page news right now, and they should be hammered with that every day until they fix their new operating system to work with PCs that still have years of life left in them, or they are forced to continue at least doing security updates on Win10 for everyone without charging for them.
Oh...
I did just look and the situation has improved slightly. Nowhere near good enough though.
https://www.pcmag.com/news/want-to-stay-on-windows-10-after-2025-itll-
cost-you
It seems like now they're making the offer to extend security updates to anyone, and not just businesses. It looks like a one time fee of $30 per computer, but it's only for 1 year after which they will not even be doing security updates for businesses on Windows10 anymore.
Fortunately, I think there will be a surprisingly big 2nd hand market for these machines because of how cheap they will be. It might even be big enough to keep these things from dropping in price as low as they otherwise should, and it could even keep most if not all of them out of landfills.
I know I will be looking to buy more of them to go along with what I have currently, even if none of my current computers can make the jump. These things make for excellent video game machines, for instance. I've made some really cool things for family and friends out of my outdated tech before. But if I can pick up half a dozen laptops on the cheap, those make the best gifts just because of how little space they take up on somebody's entertainment system compared to a desktop computer with a mouse and keyboard attached. 
--------------------------------------------------
"I don't find this stuff amusing anymore." ~Paul Simon
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:The 80% don't want to pay taxes, neither FICA nor income tax on tips or anything else. The point that the 80% cannot understand is that will kill Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security. I know who that 80% is. So does Trump. Neither he nor I need those programs.
Originally posted by 6ixStringJack:
You morons keep taking the 20 side of every 80/20 issue and see where it gets you.
--------------------------------------------------
"I don't find this stuff amusing anymore." ~Paul Simon
Furthermore, Trump proposed funding the government with only tariffs, not with income tax. The 80% cannot understand that is a sales tax they pay. The 80% think it is a tax that foreigners pay. The top 1% will benefit when the 80% get what they want, but the 80% will be worse off, losing all their Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security.
Does the 80% understand? No. No. Never. That's why they waste years drinking and why they kill themselves with tobacco and food. Trump knows that perfectly well and so do I: Nobody thinks of themselves as stupid, and yet they are dumb.
The Art of Politics is to get dumb people to act smart, for example, convince them that slavery is bad even when they aren't chained slaves themselves. Or another example, convince them that Hitler needs to die even when they are not Jewish themselves. The same Art, in Trump's hands, can get them to act dumb. For example, Trump would ask voters: Why care about slavery? Why care what Hitler does in Europe? Why pay taxes that benefit someone who is not you?
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
If people want to understand Trump, they should read the 2006 book Snakes in Suits: When Psychopaths Go to Work (revised and updated in 2019).
Download from https://z-library.sk/book/28355141/d841a8/snakes-in-suits-revised-edit
ion.html
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:Today, anyone smart enough to use Windows, a very low bar indeed, can use desktop Linux.
Originally posted by 6ixStringJack:
I'm still wondering when they're going to start talking about the whole Windows 10/11 situation brewing this year. Outside of some tech YouTube channels, I don't ever hear about it.
The staggering amount of e-waste that is about to be created by Microsoft should be front page news right now, and they should be hammered with that every day until they fix their new operating system to work with PCs that still have years of life left in them, or they are forced to continue at least doing security updates on Win10 for everyone without charging for them.
Oh...
I did just look and the situation has improved slightly. Nowhere near good enough though.
https://www.pcmag.com/news/want-to-stay-on-windows-10-after-2025-itll-
cost-you
It seems like now they're making the offer to extend security updates to anyone, and not just businesses. It looks like a one time fee of $30 per computer, but it's only for 1 year after which they will not even be doing security updates for businesses on Windows10 anymore.
Fortunately, I think there will be a surprisingly big 2nd hand market for these machines because of how cheap they will be. It might even be big enough to keep these things from dropping in price as low as they otherwise should, and it could even keep most if not all of them out of landfills.
I know I will be looking to buy more of them to go along with what I have currently, even if none of my current computers can make the jump. These things make for excellent video game machines, for instance. I've made some really cool things for family and friends out of my outdated tech before. But if I can pick up half a dozen laptops on the cheap, those make the best gifts just because of how little space they take up on somebody's entertainment system compared to a desktop computer with a mouse and keyboard attached.
--------------------------------------------------
"I don't find this stuff amusing anymore." ~Paul Simon
Take, for example, my own favorite Linux desktop: Linux Mint. I've gotten people in their 70s who wouldn't know a shell command from Excel up and running on Mint without any trouble. https://www.linuxmint.com/
Still not convinced? Tell you what, go to your local junk shop and buy a cheap computer. Unlike Windows, Linux runs on pretty much anything. For instance, Mint only needs 2 GB of RAM (4 GB recommended), 20 GB of disk space (100 GB recommended), and a graphics card that handles 1024 x 768 resolution. In other words, any PC from the last 20 years or so should do just fine.
https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/28/windows_10_demise_linux/?td=kee
preading
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
“They’re Scared Shitless”: The Threat of Political Violence Informing Trump’s Grip on Congress
With the president smashing norm after norm, even lawmakers within his party have feared for their personal safety, and at least one has told confidants that it has swayed his decision-making.
By Gabriel Sherman | February 19, 2025
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/story/trump-congress-political-violenc
e
In the past week, Donald Trump has signaled a desire to rule like a strongman rather than a president constrained by constitutional norms. Last Friday, Trump’s vice president, JD Vance, scolded democratic NATO allies and met with the leader of Germany’s extreme-right AfD party. On Saturday, Trump declared on social media: “He who saves his Country does not violate any Law.”
Senate and House Republicans know Trump will orchestrate the running of a primary challenger backed by Elon Musk’s unlimited resources if a member defies him. But this is not the whole story of Republican subservience to the president. In private, Republicans talk about their fear that Trump might incite his MAGA followers to commit political violence against them if they don’t rubber-stamp his actions.
“They’re scared shitless about death threats and Gestapo-like stuff,” a former member of Trump’s first administration tells me.
According to one source with direct knowledge of the events, North Carolina senator Thom Tillis told people that the FBI warned him about “credible death threats” when he was considering voting against Pete Hegseth’s nomination for defense secretary. Tillis ultimately provided the crucial 50th vote to confirm the former Fox & Friends host to lead the Pentagon. According to the source, Tillis has said that if people want to understand Trump, they should read the 2006 book Snakes in Suits: When Psychopaths Go to Work. (When asked for comment for this story, a spokesperson for Tillis said it was false that the senator had recommended the book in that capacity. The FBI said it had no comment.) Download the 2019 revised and updated book from https://z-library.sk/book/28355141/d841a8/snakes-in-suits-revised-edit
ion.html
From the moment Trump descended his golden escalator in June 2015 to announce his first run for president, he injected menace into his political rhetoric. On the campaign trail he talked about wanting to punch protesters in the face. During his first term, he praised Montana’s then representative Greg Gianforte for physically attacking Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs in 2017. “Any guy that can do a body slam, he is my type!” Trump said. (Gianforte later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault and received a six-month deferred jail sentence.) When protests erupted after a Minneapolis police officer murdered George Floyd in 2020, Trump called protesters “thugs” and said: “When the looting starts, the shooting starts.” The phrase echoed a remark made in the 1960s by a Miami police chief associated with stoking racial tensions in the city (Trump claimed he wasn’t aware of its origins). In a September 2020 debate against Joe Biden, Trump refused to condemn white supremacist violence and told the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by.”
January 6 further catalyzed GOP fear of Trump-inspired violence. Romney told his biographer, McKay Coppins, that an undercurrent of anxiety thwarted Republican efforts to formally punish Trump for his role in inciting the riot. “One Republican congressman confided to Romney that he wanted to vote for Trump’s second impeachment, but chose not to out of fear for his family’s safety,” Coppins wrote in his book. “When one senator, a member of leadership, said he was leaning toward voting to convict, the others urged him to reconsider. You can’t do that, Romney recalled someone saying. Think of your personal safety, said another. Think of your children. The senator eventually decided they were right.”
Former Wyoming representative and prominent anti-Trump Republican Liz Cheney told CNN that House GOP members confided to her that they were “afraid for their own security — af
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
An Explosion of Lies
The Musk Administration chokes on the truth
By Paul Krugman | Feb 20, 2025
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/an-explosion-of-lies
On Monday a White House official made an extraordinary declaration. Elon Musk, he said, doesn’t run DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency. Why, he doesn’t even work there.
This was obviously a lie, since Donald Trump has repeatedly said that Musk does, in fact, run DOGE. The immediate purpose of the lie may have been to protect Musk from the consequences of a case brought by Democratic attorneys general against DOGE and Musk himself.
But the lie about Musk’s role in DOGE barely registered amid the explosion of lies emanating from Musk and Trump these days, ranging from the claim that Social Security is sending checks to tens of millions of dead people to the claim that Ukraine started a war that, as I hope everyone remembers, began with a Russian attempt to seize Kyiv.
Why the frantic lying? I suspect that it’s because Musk, Trump and their Congressional allies are flailing. I don’t think any past administration has ever failed so thoroughly in its first month.
About DOGE: Until last week DOGE’s efforts mainly came across as sinister — an effort to gain control of federal payments systems, along with the personal information of millions of Americans. That effort remains deeply sinister, and we shouldn’t forget about that menace even as we note just how shambolic the Musk team’s efforts have been on other fronts.
But it has been an extraordinary shambles.
Beginning late last week Trump officials, clearly operating on instructions from DOGE, laid off large numbers of “probationary” federal workers — that is, workers who have been hired relatively recently or, in some cases, have experienced a change in job status (often a promotion!) and as a result have fewer job protections than the rest of the federal work force.
As I wrote the other day, this was mainly austerity theater — an attempt to look strong and decisive, to create the appearance that DOGE was saving lots of money even though it wasn’t. And Musk’s people appear to have believed that these layoffs would have few visible consequences, that essential public services wouldn’t be much affected.
They were proved wrong almost immediately, indeed within hours after the layoffs began.
There has been a fair amount of coverage of the layoffs at the National Nuclear Security Agency, which officials somehow failed to realize helps secure our nuclear weapons. When they figured this out, they quickly tried to rehire some of those laid off, but had trouble reaching them because their government email accounts had already been suspended.
There has been less coverage of the firing, then attempted un-firing, of workers who help maintain the western power grid, or the layoffs of USDA employees working on bird flu, whom the administration is similarly trying to get back on the job.
All in all, what we’ve just witnessed is a stunning display of incompetence, dismissal of critical federal workers by people with no idea of what they do and why it matters. Musk and Trump have, of course, apologized and promised to do better in the future.
See, I made a joke.
What they have actually done is try to cover up the mess they made with desperate lies — and the lies themselves provide even more evidence that they have no idea what they’re doing.
DOGE quickly responded to the chaos created by the layoffs it orchestrated by claiming that it has already saved taxpayers $55 billion. But the purported specific savings it listed added up to only $16.6 billion — and half of that number reflected a typo, listing a canceled $8 million contract as $8 billion.
Think about the level of incompetence it takes to get a number crucial to your case wrong by a factor of a thousand.
Wait, it gets worse. On Monday Musk put up a series of posts on X claiming that the Social Security Administration has been wasting vast amounts of money, making pa
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME