“Vampire Capitalists” – Using this term now, thanks!

The water thing is not overblown if you consider that data centers will only use potable water and will not be able to use treated water. Per just one of many studies:

Large data centers can consume up to 5 million gallons per day, equivalent to the water use of a town populated by 10,000 to 50,000 people.

With climate change and the exacerbation of droughts around the world, this puts any source of fresh surface or groundwater at risk of drying up.

Only 3% of Earth’s water is freshwater, and only 0.5% of all water is accessible and safe for human consumption.

This is a growing environmental justice issue (and data centers encourage further energy poverty that I haven’t even addressed, much less the increasing ratio of usage for industry vs residential), and to ignore that we as humans cannot replenish or increase freshwater supplies with any meaningful scale to support life, this becomes a dire issue.

I for one would much rather have water and affordable energy for communities.

Commenting to keep track of this.

Was going to say something similar about the clusterfuck part. That sounds like an absolute logistical nightmare for any small dev team that’s already stretched thin.

Hear hear. They’re fallible, make trash decisions, and bleed like the rest of us. It’s time we recognize them only as the scourge they are.

I’m very meh on the AWD as someone in the north. Not needed, but a/c is definitely helpful!

This is the way.

We might not have them as you see them today, but there is building science that is centuries old that works with the environment to have architectural solutions that don’t even rely on electricity to retain heat or cool a space. There’s also the more modern passive house design. As someone born and raised in a hot climate like you mentioned, had we created a built environment like this instead of crippling ourselves to use fossil fuels and refrigerants with high global warming potential, we wouldn’t be where we are today. I agree that a/c changed the world. That change could have been a much more positive one had we taken a more practical approach!

Same. I stopped using non-Beehaw social media at the end of last year and haven’t looked back. I barely respond to texts as well. My social battery is pretty weak these days and I can only take so much irl interaction.

Ooh this is really insightful for someone who knows little about the details of tracking and browsing on the Internet. Thanks!

The industry’s lobby is so pervasive that any regulation will be fought, no matter how small. I don’t know what it’s going to take to face the numerous harms that we have to address when it comes to cars and driving, but if the industry and regulators won’t care about human health and environmental harms, it’s just going to keep being bad.

Hilariously, I have about the same number saved. It’s all kinds of places that I’ve been, want to go to, or just want to keep saved as reference, from all over the world. They just kinda built up over the years and I’m thankful for this thread because I want to make the switch.

Such a good blog post. It covers so much important information in an entertainingly snarky tone.

The fact that so many international companies have decided to side with a major aggressor during this terrible event in history is one of the most awful things I didn’t expect to witness. We all know that big business and money shapes world politics, but damn… This is straight up horrible. It could be any of us for any reason moving forward.

There is a procedure in place for granting permits to industry like this in every state. In New York, for example, when a potential site is selected, the business must apply for the permit to build and goes through a process of reviewing environmental and human harms in the area based on their operations. They are also required to notify residents and hold public participation events to ensure residents can ask questions about the development. “Good neighbor laws” are sorely needed in Texas, but the state would never allow that cause there’s no money to be made in protecting the people and the planet.

Same, and so many others I know share this sentiment. We’re working on it by advocating for a just, equitable, and overall better world. Keep spreading this message!

Exactly all of this.

Do. Not. Trust. The. Police.

Agreed. In essence, the cost of doing business is ensuring your supply chain is lawful and morally sound. This lack of respect for humanity as a practice runs rampant because capitalism calls for nothing less than infinite growth and ever increasing profit. Imo, if you can’t afford to do business humanely, you shouldn’t be allowed to be in business.

I drove one of these recently as a rental, and told my partner that they were tracking our every move to send to our insurance company. Didn’t believe me, so thank you for this article! I’ll always feel like I’m being watched and recorded in new cars. I don’t even like having personal conversations in them for fear of a potential active mic somewhere…