Karmi's Musings & Tech

News Highlights for 3/3/2025

• Social Security has never missed a payment. DOGE actions threaten ‘interruption of benefits,’ ex-agency head says

• Elon Musk Calls Social Security a Ponzi Scheme as He Destroys the U.S. Government 

• Car Prices Poised for $12,000 Surge on Trump’s New Tariffs

• Trump pauses all US military aid to Ukraine days after Oval Office blowup with Zelensky as he issues shock ultimatum

ChatGPT – What is the history of fires in California?

Modern California is about how to start fires—thru bad environment practices.

Indigenous Fire Practices (Pre-European Settlement)

• Indigenous peoples of California, such as the Miwok, Chumash, and Yurok, used fire as a tool for thousands of years.

• They practiced controlled burns to clear underbrush, promote the growth of useful plants, maintain grasslands, and reduce the risk of large-scale wildfires.

• These practices created a balanced fire regime that helped sustain ecosystems and reduced fuel loads.

ChatGPT – more details

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@Techno_Fog *BODY SLAMS* Vivek Ramaswamy: H-1B fallout

Not a wrestling fan, but I think Techno Fog just body-slammed Vivek Ramaswamy with some impressive wordsmithing!?!

Vivek Ramaswamy had an excellent (I thought) post up the other day on X (formerly Twitter) on the H-1B issue. Then @Techno_Fog came out with counter response:

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T-Mobile Starlink satellite service – Beat the Dead Spots!

T-Mobile Starlink satellite service is the main reason I moved from Verizon to T-Mobile. Verizon used to work great here (7-miles north of Old Town, FL) – but then they moved to 4G and service here became a dead spot. Used the old $20 Walmart flip-phones for Verizon, and when my 3G one went out early this year—all they had were 4G phones. Have fiber internet so the WiFi-calling worked.

Just registered as a T-Mobile Starlink beta tester—to test ‘satellite-powered text messaging’.

When I read about T-Mobile Starlink satellite service earlier this year, I checked out the phones they said would be compatible with the service, and moved my phone number to a T-Mobile account and got a “free” Galaxy A14 5G for the two-year contract. However, for the beta test – even tho the ‘Galaxy A14 5G supports 5G networks and various frequency bands, its compatibility with T-Mobile’s Starlink service during the beta phase would depend on whether it is included among the “optimized devices.”’ They don’t have a list of phones out for beta testing yet, plus limited spots for testers, so will wait ‘n see…

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