Kevin Indiebass
LightNews LightNews
indiebass.bsky.social
Kevin Indiebass
@indiebass.bsky.social
30 followers 56 following 7 posts
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
bcmerchant.bsky.social
Freelance illustration gigs drying up. Ad agencies using Midjourney instead of hiring human artists. Costume design turned over to AI wholesale. Good work vanishing.

These are the stories of working visual artists, who describe losing jobs, wages, and hope as their clients and bosses embrace AI.
Artists are losing work, wages, and hope as bosses and clients embrace AI
Visual artists, illustrators and graphic designers share their stories about how AI is being used to lower wages, degrade work and even replace it altogether, in this installment of AI Killed My Job.
www.bloodinthemachine.com
September 17, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
amyhoy.bsky.social
guess where they got their weird trade deficit math from?

i went to the pit for y'all and brought back the screenshots with alt text
chatgpt log: What would be an easy way to calculate the tariffs that should be imposed on other countries so that the US is on even-playing fields when it comes to trade deficit? Set minimum at 10%. Reasoned about trade tariffs and deficits for 10 seconds v A straightforward (if naïve) method is to set the tariff rate for each trading partner equal to the percentage share of the trade deficit relative to that country's total imports-always no less than 10%. In formula form: Tariff Rate (%) = max(10, (Trade Deficit ÷ Total Imports) * 100) For example, if the US runs a $20 billion deficit on $100 billion worth of imports from a country, the calculated rate is (20/100)×100 = 20%. If the deficit were only 5%, you'd still impose a 10% floor. This method ignores the intricate dynamics of international trade-such as elasticities, retaliatory measures, and supply chain nuances-but it provides a blunt, proportional rule to "level the playing field." One might implement it in Python like so: [code] Gemini answer: Okay, let's break down the idea of using tariffs to achieve an "even playing field" defined as eliminating the US trade deficit. While the goal of balancing trade is understandable, devising an "easy way" to calculate tariffs to achieve this is extremely complex, and most economists would argue it's not feasible or desirable for several reasons. However, let's outline a highly simplified conceptual approach based only on the numbers, ignoring the vast real-world complexities and consequences: Simplified (and Problematic) Calculation Idea: 1. Identify the Bilateral Deficit: Determine the trade deficit the US has with a specific country (Country X). Deficit_X = Value of Imports from X - Value of • Exports to X 2. Target Reduction: The goal is to reduce imports from Country X (or increase their cost to US buyers) by the amount of the deficit, so that the value effectively balances out. 3. Calculate Required Tariff (Ignoring Economics): • If you assume, very unrealistically, that a tariff directly reduces the value of imports by a corresponding percentage (which it doesn't - it increases the price), you could try: Required Reduction % = Deficit_X / Value of • Imports from X Claude: What would be an easy way to calculate the tariffs that should be imposed on other countries so that the US is on even-playing fields when it comes to trade deficit? Set minimum at 10%. To calculate tariffs that could theoretically level the playing field for trade deficits, I'd suggest a straightforward approach based on the trade imbalance percentage: 1. Calculate the bilateral trade deficit with each trading partner: Trade Deficit - US Imports from Country - US Exports to Country 2. Express this as a percentage of total bilateral trade: Deficit Percentage - (Trade Deficit / Total Bilateral Trade) × 100 3. Apply a tariff rate that corresponds to this percentage, with your minimum 10% floor: Tariff Rate = max(Deficit Percentage, 10%) This creates a proportional response where countries with larger trade surpluses with the US would face higher tariffs. For example: • If Country A has a 25% trade surplus with the US (meaning the US has a 25% deficit), apply a 25% tariff • If Country B has a 5% trade surplus with the US, apply the minimum 10% tariff This method is relatively simple to calculate and directly ties tariff levels to trade imbalances. However, I should note that economists generally caution that trade deficits alone don't necessarily indicate unfair trade practices, and tariffs can have complex economic consequences including increased consumer prices and potential retaliation. Would you like me to elaborate on any part of this approach or discuss potential refinements to make it more sophisticated? Grok: the deficit. The deficit as a percentage of total trade is $295B/$582B = 50.69%. Using the formula Tariff% = 10% + (Deficit% × Scaling Factor), we choose a scaling factor of 50 for illustration: • Tariff = 10% + (50.69% × 50) = 10% + 25.345% = 35.345%, rounded to 35.3%. This means a 35.3% tariff on Chinese goods could be proposed to offset the imbalance, aiming to reduce imports and encourage domestic production or exports. Extending to Other Countries To provide a broader view, here's a table of top US trading partners with 2024 deficits, using data from The Motley Fool and similar calculations (assuming scaling factor of 50 for consistency): [data table headings] Country Deficit (USD Billion) Total Trade (USD Billion) Deficit % Calculate d Tariff % China -295 582 50.69% 35.3% Mexico -172 840 20.48% 20.2% Vietnam -123 (Data incomplet e, estimate) ~30% 25.0% Ireland -87 (Data incomplet e, estimate) ~25% 22.5% Germany -85 (Data incomplete estimate) ~20% 20.0%
April 3, 2025 at 12:42 AM
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
laresistance47.bsky.social
Make America not batshit crazy Again

Trump tariffs will cost average US family $1,600 or more per year: analysis

ground.news/article/econ...
Trump tariffs will cost average US family $1,600 or more per year: analysis
As U.S. President Donald Trump's new tariffs took effect on Tuesday, Congressman Don Beyer released a Joint Economic Committee report showing that the policies could cost the average working-class fam...
ground.news
March 5, 2025 at 7:11 PM
indiebass.bsky.social
I used to post this every year, but it's been a few years since I have.

“Make this year count. Look and feel your best, believe that love is real, spend time with people you care about, or that you have fun with... Today is just like most other days- choose to make it yours.”

~Alexi Wasser (HBD!)
February 14, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
chanda.blacksky.app
NNSA is the National Nuclear Security Administration. They are in charge of the bombs.
paleofuture.bsky.social Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · Feb 14
Holy shit. This is fucking nuts.
According to an NNSA employee, roughly 300 of the agency's 1,800 staff are expected to be fired after the agency was denied a national security exemption. The small organization is responsible for maintaining and upgrading America's arsenal of nuclear weapons, combatting nuclear terrorism, and preventing proliferation around the world.
February 14, 2025 at 2:31 AM
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
banditelli.org
Time to print out my Weingarten Rights card designed specifically for the the Pilled, updated for federal employees.

Private sector on the left, public sector on the right, which I just threw together on my phone.

More info: nffe.org/members-cent...
I'm meeting with my boss alone exempt card, that talks about Weingarten rights which means under any meaning that they lead the discipline you're allowed Union representation A similar card but siding a portion of the law similar to Weingarten rights and I took off the nlrb logo which means there's a giant white area
February 13, 2025 at 9:02 PM
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
davidcorn.bsky.social
As I reported during the election, Trump was running a disinformation operation not a conventional political campaign. That is continuing in the White House. The conventional media has trouble coming to terms with this.

www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
February 6, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
kindofnerdy.bsky.social
Completed this assignment last night. ✅

www.qasimrashid.com/p/how-do-we-...
How Do We Stop the South African Billionaire?
Take 30 seconds, demand the Treasury Department comply with the Privacy Act of 1974, and help spread the word—here's how
www.qasimrashid.com
February 6, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
mishellbaker.bsky.social
Being a person with deadly, incurable cancer who is nonetheless still alive for an indefinite timeframe gives me an interesting metaphor that helps me deal with things like large-scale corruption in government or commerce.

Bear with me for a second while I try to explain.
January 21, 2025 at 2:26 AM
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
georgetakei.bsky.social
ICE is planning immigration raids starting Tuesday. Please amplify.
January 19, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Reposted by Kevin Indiebass
wapplehouse.bsky.social
What’s that? Party City is suddenly closing every single store without warning? Huh. Always thought they did plenty of business. I wonder if…yep. Okay. Exactly what I thought it would be.
Steve Mandell, who launched the chain in 1986 with a single store in East Hanover, NJ, pinned the retailer's implosion on a lack of bargains and variety at its stores — a problem he claims was created when private equity executives locked it into a large supply deal with a manufacturer they already owned for roughly 80% of its supply. "They [new owners] took out the top two things that made this company very special," Mandell told The Post in an exclusive interview. "First, we were the discount party superstore. Today, it is not a discount store. The prices are top dollar." "Second, Party City had great variety," he added. That changed in 2005, according to Mandell, when Party City was bought by private equity firms Berkshire Partners and Weston Presidio. They also owned the party supply manufacturer Amscan, essentially giving it a monopoly. "Party City did away with competition," the 78-year-old Mandell said. "All of the innovation is long gone. That is a huge problem.
December 20, 2024 at 7:56 PM
indiebass.bsky.social
Bluesky now has over 10 million users, and I was #969,319!
A virtual certificate with text "Celebrating 10M users on Bluesky, #969,319, indiebass.bsky.social ‪@indiebass.bsky.social‬, joined on Sep 11, 2023"
October 8, 2024 at 2:53 PM