Episode: 4012
Title: HPR4012: RE: show comments.
Source: https://hub.hackerpublicradio.org/ccdn.php?filename=/eps/hpr4012/hpr4012.mp3
Transcribed: 2025-10-25 18:36:44

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This is Hacker Public Radio episode 4,012 for Tuesday the 19th of December 2023.
Today's show is entitled Re Show Comments.
It is hosted by some guy on the internet and is about 21 minutes long.
It carries an explicit flag.
The summary is, Scotty replies to a comment or two.
Hello and welcome to another episode of Hacker Public Radio, I am your host, some guy on
the internet.
Today we're doing a reply show and we're going to be replying to a couple of comments
that I've received here recently.
Now I'll tell you why, we have a rule where if the comment is going to be longer than
like a paragraph or so, they ask that you do a show instead of a really long or multiple
comments to cover everything that you wanted to say.
So I figured this is a great opportunity to get a show out and address a few commenters.
So first up we're going to be looking at ShowHPR3972, links are going to be down in the
show notes.
It's a show I did on Thunderbird inbox filtering and we're going to be looking down here at
Frank.
Hello Frank and thank you for the comment.
Now I left a comment as well and I didn't want Frank to think I was being short with
him.
Alright I would read the comment out but I had a crash after Audacity did their little
update thing when you use the IPmage and Audacity.
If you have view updates selected in the preferences menu, they put this crazy long update list
that you cannot actually see the bottom of so that you can click out of it or whatever.
So you have to crash Audacity which took out a bunch of other crap and either way it'll
be posted soon but the just of it was I addressed it each of the points that Frank made and
it was very short because you know adhering to the rules that had to keep it kind of short.
But now I can actually take my time and explain a little bit more.
I want to start with thanking Frank.
Thank you for the comment.
And I also want to state that yes we do have rules here in the US about it.
I think it's called canned spam is the name of the rule of regulation law, whatever it's
called the handles commercial entities sending out spam.
There are a lot of entities that don't exactly follow the rules.
So for everyone you do find it will follow the rules and respect what you have to what
decisions you're making.
I'd like to think there's about maybe five or six more that are not following the rules.
And even if it's not that many it feels like it, you know by the amount of spam that
you receive.
Now another thing that happens even if a lot more do follow the rules when they sell your
contact information because I honestly believe whenever you do us a unsub from a newsletter
many of these companies use that as a way of just putting you on another list like this
is an active email address not not a dead end email address.
So say first is my address may be considered a dead end because you're never going to
get a reply or any activity from me.
If I don't want anything from you versus a person who actually goes and actively you know
goes through the steps to unsubscribed.
Now you're going to be put on a list of yes this is a real human being.
They went through all of the steps to try and unsubscribe.
So that's a valuable email address that can be sold to a client, right?
Even if you don't want that to be the case that I mean that's the world we live in now.
So you broke some really great points and expect I like the the environmental impact one.
I agree if they would respect our decisions to not send the spam.
You know if we could just ask them not to and then they not sell our information and all
the other dirty things that happen.
Then yes the environment the environmental impact is a good thing to keep in mind so that
you can unsubscribe but because that's not going to happen I mean it's you know very rarely
in the amount of companies that send out these the spam where you find others that have
the same mindset as far as preserving the environment so they don't want to just send
out more letters than you absolutely have to that kind of thing.
I'd also like to point out whenever you weigh something like the carbon footprint of these
different AI technologies that we're doing these days you know like to chat and in some
of the other AI ones that generate images and things of that nature.
The carbon footprint of those in one year I think surpasses 10 plus years of what email
spam can generate.
You know if you if you were able to just weigh them I think that the AI is just significantly
more harmful to the environment and here's the thing I don't agree with either of them.
I this I hate calling it AI but because most people are familiar with it you know there
are the large language models or neural networks or other terms that are used but we're
going to be polluting the conversation with a tons of terms so I'll just use AI just
for now.
Yeah if we could slow down a bunch of and the same thing with like the blockchain technologies
think about how much carbon waste or the carbon footprint of like say the NFT markets just
that alone not not the other so-called digital assets that that are exists out there.
So I mean you know when you compare email to any of those I mean it's I think it's relatively
small even though I don't like any other so I agree with you on that it would be nice
if we could stop a lot of it just for the environmental impact.
I think that we'll just we'll have to take a grain of soul with that.
Now on the point you mentioned about the attackers getting hold of the addresses I mean data
breaches happen all the time so if the company doesn't outright just sell your address
to an attacker or just you know first whoever comes with money you know if they'll just
outright sell it I mean data breaches the attackers are going to have it they're going to pass
it around within their own little networks and it's out there and if you're like me you
have an email address that's been around since you know the 90s I mean I imagine my addresses
everywhere so asking asking the world beyond Thunderbird to do the right thing with my address
just seems it seems like a lost cause you know I'd much rather just ask Thunderbird to give me
more control over what arrives at my inbox so I appreciate your your comment and I think your
statement your comments in the different points that you've made were well thought out I appreciate
all of them and if you happen to do things differently like if you have a method of unsubscribe
in the success that you've received from it I mean do a show let us know I wouldn't know more
about it you know I mean I'm happy to learn how to do things better oh and let's not forget about
the GDPR I think when just attackers aside because obviously if you're an attacker out there you really
don't care what laws or rules are available but a lot of companies don't either here in the United
States you know you tell them hey that violates the GDPR I mean you know I don't think a lot of
really going to care so far we we don't really have the enforcement mechanism to make them quit but
users do have a method of you know mitigating the impact like Thunderbird so it's it's what we have
right now and again thank you you might be able to hear my daughter in the background I had to
center back our room she was going bonkers out here so on to the next show and we got some spicy
goodness in these comments oh we good heavens all right so HPR 40 0 8 sextortion good heavens that
was another show that I did I can't even remember when I made that show um it was in reserves so I made
it sometime ago and and put it in there I got two comments so far on that show I imagine there
maybe even more coming in but let's take let's go ahead and take a look at the ones that we have
right now so the first comment that I have comes from another guy on the internet and the title
with this comment is this show is very opinionated I'm going to have to agree yes the show is very
opinionated given the topic of sextortion that was covered and the fact that I gave a ton of opinions
in there yeah I'll agree it's very opinionated comment started off very good give me a wonderful
comment that I'd love to put on the t-shirt I remember Ken Fallon stated that I said a few things
like one of the shows I did where I said don't don't compete with stupid and it was some other
things I said in the past that he said could be on the t-shirt this could also be on the t-shirt
where he goes that he says in here the nice thing about podcasts and radio is that you can
monologue whatever nonsense you like and act like it is a single truth in the universe if I could
have that on the t-shirt let me tell you I would definitely wear it around I would definitely wear
that so thank you for that comment alone that's like the first sentence and I I agree with the
statement and I would wear it on the shirt so thank you now after that he goes through the the uh
the good stuff he says that there is some helpful information in the show which again I thank you
that's wonderful now we going to the straight out ugly that's right where about to get ugly over
now for everyone out there listening keep in mind I don't take any of this personal
all right we create shows because we think this is beneficial for others and interesting to hackers
so this comment is interesting to me I I really enjoyed this next portion of the statement I don't
want to miss can I don't want to put any words in their mouth or anything but I I don't fully
understand where they're coming from and I would ask them to do a show help me better understand
what you're saying there because I believe it's it's very interesting what I believe you're saying
but again I don't want to put any words in your mouth and it will be best if you did a show where you
can explain this a little bit better this next portion of the uh statement there but I'll scroll
down to the part where you say is uh you give a quote don't do that which is a totally random moral
stance I don't know about totally random but yeah moral stance if you want to call it that I mean
I would not necessarily disagree with it I think it'd also just be helpful uh it brings up Coca-Cola
and how they uh project their random moral obligations on the world I guess that's you know kind of
associating what I said here in the show with Coca-Cola and again that leads me to thinking certain
things like this this writing seems very familiar like maybe I've I've read work from this comment
before somewhere but it seems very familiar and I'm also very interested in how you think about
these issues because apparently my my take on it my opinions are not really appreciated or welcomed
is what I'm with them sensing so I'd like to hear more from you tell us tell us how my opinions are
wrong and how yours are or better or or could be better or whatever you know that I would like to hear
and uh of course we get the obligatory keep your opinions to yourself statement where he goes uh
they are legit they're rightfully yours to keep but don't try to push them further than that
because that's just randomly stupid all right so we got the word randomly being put
down a little bit I don't know what's so random about it but I mean hey that's an opinion right tell
us how I'd like to know how my opinions of of saying don't create evidence that can be used to
extort you and then hand them to someone that's going to extort you how is that randomly stupid
again I could be interpreting everything you're saying wrong and you have a much better way of
expressing yourself and I would love to hear that in the show that will be fantastic I think we
could all benefit from that so definitely keep it coming let's move on to the next statement here
well this is the next in the last statement which is also a part of the same show this extortion show
it is the second comment on that show by the subject is called poor quality and let me be clear
when I first read that first thing I thought is oh no my audio my audio quality is just so
par you know maybe they couldn't hear me maybe it was fuzzy maybe they had a ton of background
noise I knew I should have made some adjustments maybe I should have re-recorded it but as I read
you know through the rest of the comment I realized oh that's not what they were talking about it all
so you right wipe the brow there right dodge the bullet they gave me a wonderful compliment
there in the very first second well I guess it'd be the first sentence because they just said
Scotty period I'm assuming that was meant to be like a comma or something but yeah very first
sentence good quality and well considered you know every show up until this one apparently so I
thought great you know that's a fantastic start right there let's get into it and then the show
starts to look I'm just gonna outright say it this this this comment feels like output from one
of those prompts you know what I'm talking about you know like chat jippity I think that I think
that's with this comment came out of maybe it was slightly modified after they got it but it feels
like an output just in case I'm wrong about that though we would treat it like someone actually
typed up all everywhere of it and then brought it here they gave they say that yes extortion is
something that exists and absorbing observing some safety measures you know some basic safety
measures could be used to prevent it and I'm assuming they're talking specifically about the
extortion portion now after that here's another statement right here I like this right here this show
however was a hideous disappointment what did I'm certain it may not have been the best show you've
ever heard but a hideous disappointment okay I got you this this either sounds like that statement
alone tells me the first thing like this could have come out of a prompt or this is like one of
those redditors that are used to making those kind of statements you know what I mean on reddit
normally when you're gonna get blasted into oblivion you know by someone just thrashing whatever
statements you had to make like like say for instance if you were to go visit the arch community
and ask for help this this is the kind of thing you're gonna hear right off the job oh here's this
appointment okay I got you utterly condescending to other human beings well I don't know anyone that
speaks like that again leading to that whole prompt thing so it's ended here you're utterly
condescending to other human beings particularly victims of this moral panic or let me make sure I
get this one the proper respect it deserves because this is another statement that needs to be on
on the t-shirt I would wear this or actually no no no I'm gonna use this in y'all know news this line
is great it's gonna come up in the y'all know news again but moral panic written pearl clutching
nonsense good habits right oh my god it does does that not fit no no news well hey hello and welcome
to another episode of hacker public radio I'm your host some guy on the internet or you ready for
some more moral panic written pearl clutching nonsense right isn't that great so I'm totally gonna
be I'm taking that I've definitely taken that thank you for that one even if it did come from a
prompt totally gonna be making use of that next we're uh he said that I opted not to speak to the
victims you know the people who actually suffered from sex torsion um you're right I I did not
speak to any victims of sex torsion because there's plenty of testimony out there you can you
don't I don't have to actually speak to the victims when there are experts who have assisted
these people gotten them help and then gotten their consent to provide the testimony and I think
I've even linked to some of that so I mean you're right I didn't speak to them but I mean look hey
this is an opportunity for you to shy hpr listener I mean if you've got access to sex torsion
victims and you'd like to go out there and interview a bunch of them or even just even a couple of them
and get some of their takes on it I mean that will make some excellent show material right there
he tells us about apparently there are some other security experts that are in the field of sex
torsion that hpr listener feels are better sources because um as I mentioned it they don't really
like the FBI they consider the FBI uh let me just read from the beginning because it won't make
sense if I say it like that the FBI a government agency known globally for for other incompetent
in understanding social phenomena tell me if that didn't sound like I'll put from a from a
prompt and we're calling uh sex torsion a phenomena I mean okay and to stop my daughter just
ran in here just now dealing with that all right yeah recording is getting harder and harder man
but anyway back to uh back to the comment here oh yeah they really don't like the fact that I
want to read it right and read it read it you know put that in capital letters right there I mean how
dare I go to a place where users recognize they can come and get advice and they they show up to
again share their experiences with the topic you know I the topic being sex torsion in this case
so they come to share their experiences and I'm there in the crowd with everybody else sort of
listening and think hmm I'll do a show on that yeah how dare I do that well obviously someone who
engages in moral panic per oh hold on me more moral panic written pearl clutching nonsense right
you know obviously that's what I do and they said that this is a cut case of source bias I think
it's be mostly because they don't like the FBI and good heavens how dare we talk about read it now
this what this this next statement right here is why I want you to do a show tell us more about what
you believe like I don't care if you want to trash more about my show like if you want to just say
my show was terribly bad and whatever that's fine but this this next statement I'm going to give
you right here is one that's very interesting to me and I'd like to hear more about your beliefs
your your thought process because he says quote nothing whatsoever besides moral grandstanding and
a baseless belief you have any right to tell others how to conduct their personal lives close
what I did in the show was again tell you do not create evidence of an act that is incredibly
embarrassing so much so that some people have inflicted self harm because they could not live with
the idea of this evidence being released to their friends and family you know whatever the social
so he me telling them don't create the evidence and certainly don't don't you know that will be the
best thing don't create it at all but then don't share it either that is a baseless belief it's it's
moral grandstanding and a baseless belief so I'm I don't take any offense to these words would it
does those make me very very curious and what you believe like I really want to know how how does
I want to make sure I don't put any words in your mouth or anything here but what do you believe
especially as far as extortion is concerned and the act of creating this this evidence that we're
talking about here and putting it on the internet or sharing it with people on the internet um it
could be someone that you physically know in real life or just maybe you met him on a on a chat
thing somewhere and you decided that this is a good idea you want to share these these images with
them uh what do you believe about this give us some more inside here man don't you know or I guess
this wouldn't actually be man this is just hpr listener for all we know this could be um any other
pronoun but just tell us what you tell us what you think that will make a fantastic show because we've
all heard what I think and we got these two fantastic comments over here right with some great
quotes that I'm totally going to be taking by the way but before my daughter comes back around here
telling me about how she's got to uh make some more bandages for her baby doll and everything
else that's going on around there think she made a baby doll some spaghetti or something and I had
to test it and all that but you know I got to get back to making sure that the baby doll is okay
and uh earning father of the year but you you fantastic listeners out there if you have if you
also have taking offense or maybe maybe you agree who knows definitely do a show let us know
I mean comments are fine too but uh they just they leave so much wiggle room in it right because you
can't say everything that you want to say so I'll show you so much better all right I'm out of here
some guy on the internet thank you for listening to hpr
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