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sbdude said:

blastdoor said:

foregoneconclusion said:

Laying off hundreds of thousands of federal workers + gutting regulatory control + tariffs on major trading partners + yet another giant tax cut for the rich/corporations = another economic crash. It's just a matter of how soon it happens. It's also what the billionaire class is hoping for. 

https://theweek.com/articles/460179/charts-how-rich-won-great-recession

They should be careful what they wish for. The Great Depression resulted in FDR, and his policies essentially saved capitalism in the west, even though he is reviled by many in the billionaire class (and those who serve them). But it could have resulted in a more revolutionary outcome (as in French or Russian), which might not be so good for the billionaires. A lot of people across the political spectrum (but not in the top 1%) see Mangione as a hero, or are at least sympathetic to him. An economic collapse would supercharge that kind of sentiment. Musk might need a droid army to protect him at that point. 

Yes, and let's not forget FDR was a vegetable for many of those years, too. Just like this room's favorite president, it would seem.

dewme said:

For those who subscribe to the theory that everyone must be classified and placed into a schema that neglects human individuality and life experiences, I would be classified as a boomer, a late-boomer to be more precise. I prefer to say that individuals born at any point in time and place are shaped by their need to survive in the environment and during the period of time and the environment in which they live. The hard skills and soft skills individuals need to develop to get by, make a living, and be productive contributors to their family, their community, and society at large are always changing. It’s a very individual thing, not something that fits the “slot everyone into predefined classification buckets” model. I can rebuild a carburetor and operate and maintain an iPhone. Why? Because I had to learn those things and many more things to get by.  

When you really think about it, many of the things that are most corrosive to past and present human societies is rooted in the propensity to strip individuals of their uniqueness and individuality. The wild card of course is that some individuals are always curious, highly adaptable, and continue to seek out and acquire knowledge and learn new skill throughout their lives and through personal life experiences and necessity. The wild card factor is independent of when or where you were born or what broad category or classification bucket you’re slotted into when your individuality is stripped away. 

How does this relate in any way to the products that Apple creates? It’s all about me as an individual flipping the script and viewing purchase decisions through a “pull” model rather than the conventional marketing “push” model. Even though product marketing is heavily focused on “pushing” certain products into certain categories and demographics of consumers, i.e., targeted marketing, I believe it is much more productive and satisfying for me as an individual to view Apple’s (and all other manufacturers’) portfolio of products from a “pull” perspective and ignore the marketing hype. Apple presents a variety of choices from which to choose and I “pull” out the one that best fits my individual needs when all of my factors for selection are considered. 

It’s perfectly fine and probably very smart that Apple puts a ton of effort into understanding their customers and putting together bundles of features in product variations at price points that they believe will appeal to certain categories of buyers they’ve created. If they are very good at this, they will get a lot of “pulls” and sell a lot of products. As an individual I don’t want to lose my “pull power,” i.e., choice, and I’m concerned that Apple’s (and others) desire to “push” things that they’ve invested millions and possibly billions into creating, like Apple Intelligence, is going to limit my ability to choose what I need rather than what Apple wants me to have. So no, I don’t see the iPhone 16e as a boomer phone or a phone targeted to cash strapped individuals. I see it only as another buying option in Apple’s portfolio of iPhones. It stands on its own and it will sink or swim depending solely on what it has to offer to prospective buyers looking to “pull” the trigger on a purchase decision.

prismo said:

Have you considered that a large target audience for this phone are people with pacemakers? And that Apple needs a phone on the market that will not cause pacemakers to stop working?

teaearlegreyhot said:

That the US Congress should object to the UK spy request is a total crock.  Pot & kettle.  They did nothing when an immigrant oligarch with no legislative authority seized the personal info on every US taxpayer.

DronePilotOne said:

A question for all you naysayers.  Just what country do you think has kept and continues to keep this Gulf militarily protected and safe for those of us who live, boat, fish, and play on the beaches of THE GULF OF AMERICA?  When I was a young lad there was a bumper sticker that read "AMERICA Love it or Leave it!"  So to be honest this should be speaking to some of you in the either. 

And if it had been changed to the gulf of APPLE or some other ridiculous name (that we could not post) Apple Inc. would have changed it that night!  If you are an American you are also FREE TO HIT THE BRICKS.  I bet you would be back within 6 months.