I totally agree. I thought the predicted kit was a little boring, but this actual version (missing the gold accents on the sides of the torso) is way worse.

Dumb joke: I went to the zoo, and decided to buy one of the zebras. The zookeeper told me I couldn’t, so I asked why it had a barcode!

Fun facts: Zebras have black skin, but evolved white stripes probably for protection from biting insects. These stripes are unique to each individual like human fingerprints, and can help them identify each other. A group of zebras can be called a “dazzle.”

Oh, where have you seen it (or heard confirmation)? I have been looking every day but only seen more sites adopting the prediction image.

I am a bit disappointed if this is what we’re really getting; it does have a “classic” vibe but nothing exciting. We got a wood grain design only five years ago.

Compostable/biodegradable flatware

Absolutely. Plus, Meta and X-Twitter are serious threats to people’s critical thinking skills. And now more than ever they’re a huge source of misinformation. All around just not great for humanity.

More than anything I just don’t like what the app does to people’s attention spans. I dislike YouTube shorts and Meta’s Reels for the same thing, though they aren’t all bad and serve a limited purpose. If I were in congress I wouldn’t have voted to ban TikTok, but I’m okay with it happening.

Yeah, and honestly that’s not a huge concern for me, it’s just kind of an underlying negative potential that other apps don’t (seem to) have as much. Even further down my list of concerns is China somehow stealing and using Americans’ user data, which is oddly the reason congress chose to ban it.

I’m also a bit leery of China’s ability to use it to push propaganda in subtle ways, or block content that’s unflattering to them, the way they already do to users in China. Again, something that other programs can also do, but I guess an actual dictatorship controlling it is scarier for me.

Mainly, just that it’s so heavily intended to just dominate users’ attention, and the algorithm is so good at it. I’ve literally seen people just sitting and swiping through videos, expressionless, for hours at a time. I know other apps do that, but that seems to be TikTok’s only purpose.

100% with you on stopping school shootings, not to mention a couple dozen other vital things. I am personally happy TikTok is going away, but yeah, that should be absolutely back burner shit. Maybe it’s a miracle Congress can agree on anything anymore.

If you get a chance, take some pictures of birds you see, wild or at home, and share them with me in a comment! 🦅

Here are some photos that I took recently: A couple of ravens (one having a snack), a starling, and a red-tailed hawk that did not want to be photographed. 🦩