Quite. I fear what this loss of empathy will mean for humanity.

I’ll bite and share my experience. There is absolutely an issue. I’ve had applications for bank accounts denied, two people on hiring committees tell me I don’t belong here, a grant application simply withdrawn, another (confirmed insider knowledge) threw any application despite a valid work permit with any hint of US on the application into the trash. I have so many people ask me why I’m here, how I’m here, when I’m leaving. In professional settings and social. My partner, a entrepreneur, for the first time ever is having government entities stonewall her and representatives tell her off when she does any paperwork. She was in tears one day as she called to get some advice on a regulation and was told her business didn’t deserve advice. People. Are. Cruel. There is very little empathy left, and honestly, I get it. It’s not right, but I understand.

I want to integrate but there is absolutely an informal unwelcome mat being put in front of the door to Europe, and Canada.

I won’t be responding to posts as I am likely to get brigaded and trolled for writing the above. Americans wanting to get to safety, leave gun violence and fascism behind, and build a better world, are simply not welcome or have many barriers in place that didn’t exist before.

As a US researcher (social sciences) who left, I warned my EU colleagues not to go to our big conferences. They were floored. Many thought it wasn’t that bad, but the selling point that worked is, “do you want to risk being on the wrong side of an unaccountable border agent who hates how you look?” A gulag, literally a fucking gulag in a foreign country, could await. Its not worth the risk.

However, context. What I dont appreciate about these articles is that they assume a broad ban on the US because of morals, ethics, national pride, or solidarity. Nope. It’s risk. Hubris and prestige of a career trump all other things. That simple. These same researchers still go to Hungary and Turkey. Its really discouraging to me as a critical theorist.

“You’d think military officials would be delighted to find a contractor that isn’t trying to stiff them raw.”

That elicited a sensible chuckle.

Highway Companion.

Its not Tom Petty’s finest. Noted. But that doesn’t matter for me. I was going through alot at the time. I came back from tour 2 in Afghanistan, was struggling to cope with what I’d been through and just lost. I would get in my wrangler, take the doors and top off, and just drive. For hours. The album had released for about a year but times were so messesld up for me that I missed releases or concerts for most music I used to listen to. I was just checked out from the things I loved. So one day when I saw this at the PX I grabbed it. It just hit me at the right time.

It was the only thing I’d play on those drives. Things got better for me and this was the album that was part of that experience. First to recognizing the ills I’d been a part of. Then to healing and buddhism. To trying to be a better human, accepting my past, and building a now that was beyond my self. 20 years later, I still use this when I’m needing to reconnect with the world and myself. Now it’s while I am biking or walking, but its the mood and the lack of a destination that make the setting. It really and truly lived up to its name for me, a highway companion on l the freeway that is my life.

You know, this makes sense. You are right.

This was wonderful to read; thank you for taking the time to respond, share, and show empathy. I’ve been told about fellowship programs as well, and am looking for fits for me. Pertaining to US veterans status, yes, some states, even some companies, offer preferences. I’m trying very hard to make it outside the US right now, but, am going to need to expand into US based remote roles.

Its tough but doable, given time and commitment.

I’m not a sudo apt master. I don’t know shit about terminal or making Linux do stuff beyond wanting to point and click. Yes, it can run a sea worthy version of Photoshop.

Let me break it down. I use a program called Lutris, installed from the software manager. Its technically a game launcher to collect all your games in one convenient area, letting me launch steam, gog, etc from one library. I install plenty of windows programs and obscure ones if I need them for my research. MaxQDA, SPSS for instance.

There are few, if any, normal day-to-day use cases where Windows is better. Gaming, thanks to Proton, is not a problem. Drivers? Got those too. But what about x software? There’s a less bloated FOSS or low cost version out there.

Just go for it.

The issue I have with the responses are that forking or running lite browsers is not a solution but a work around. A work around that requires vigilance in the rapidly changing tech space. Most people can’t do that. It won’t result in systematic change that we need to stop enshitification. I’m not downplaying your work and a counter movement, far from it, but its simply not enough without more resources to stop the deluge of nonsense.

I dont have answers, and there are too many challenges to count to list here. From politics to how business schools teach. So we are stuck with a domineering overlord with both the resources to make it all look simple and fluid and to make the work of innovators increasingly difficult.

Directness is appreciated. As an aside, it is absolutely mind blowing how far and fast Project 2025 swept through society. Higher ed is the obvious example but everything from nonprofits to your local farmers market. In about a year, people of all walks of life except the wealthiest simply hit hard. It is, indeed, a challenging world.

Yeah. I’d even say we went beyond late stage capitalism. We are now on the cusp of a feudalistic society more akin to the corporate dominance in Blade Runner or Eve Online, maybe The Expanse, then anything resembling capitalism. Corporations are more powerful than nation states, many people are indentured to their workplace via healthcare needs or non competes, etc. So there’s that. This is an entirely new thread though so I’ll stop it there. TL;DR - This shit sucks.

Kevin, if thats even a real person at this point in media, is just pushing stories and discourse aligned with corporate speak. Let’s consider it less stupid and more complicit, which I argue, is even worse.

I bought an older Samsung and only use it for doom scrolling, 2FA, and podcasts. Its fine stripped down to nothingness. My next purchase, once the cracks from me dropping it spread, will be an older Pixel so I can run GraphineOS. I’m hopeful that like my Linux experience, it’ll extend the devices life given my use case. Like buying old laptops and kicking windows to the curb in favor of Linux buys you tons of time and product life.

I am not an economist. I am not an expert on anything consumer. It is, however, plainly obvious that companies are trying to squeeze blood from a stone at this point. They can’t make money anymore with pay to own and innovation like they used to for a variety of reasons. From greed to enshitification. If you look at it with a different view, everyone is poorer because they are greedy, they’ve ruined everyone’s lives but must make numbers go up. So they find new and terrifying ways of screwing you over for diminishing returns. Like this. Relying on turnover sales and nothing else.

Im going to start physical mailings and cold emails. I’m over this job market, its AI/ATS nonsense, and the people who think its OK.

I have yes. It’s a hefty sub fee IMO.

Thanks for the suggestions and info everyone. I have some testing to do!

Tree fiddy is the only price I’m willing to pay.

I’m not quite sure how to jump into this, so here we go.

I’ve found myself unable to get new work but am in a position that I know my job is gone in 3 months. Academic, no funding.

I’ve been using Claude to parse through job postings and help me tailor a CV or resume. I never, if at all, even get a rejection email. I’m sad to say but leaving academia is going to likely be a survival issue. The prospect of having to get passed AI screeners is insane to me. AI is ruining so much in ordinary everyday life so rapidly that I’m frankly shocked…and I did climate disaster research so I’m hard to shock.

I tried it in BG3 and just nopped out. I just can’t do it. Neutral at worst for me.