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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton
@zx23.bsky.social
140 followers 38 following 3.2K posts
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · Jan 28
I've been reading Code The Classics
magpi.raspberrypi.com/books/code-t...

Volume 2 is now also available.

I've started work on a new version of my favourite Atari 2600 game. Combat.

Maybe I'll be done in time for the 50th Anniversay in 2027
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_...
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 15m
In front of any Irish Jury, that guy’s entire story is getting believed just on the basis of that comment.
zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1h
And if you do get experts to say “ this green bit is ok, but protect this brown bit” or vice versa. You’ll immediately have a dozen more disagreeing.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1h
The whole topic is a combination of vested interests, emotion, and desperation.

Housing is one area of life where it’s near impossible to be dispassionate and objective.

People are either desperate to get something. Or desperate to protect what they have.
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Reposted by Richard Dalton
bobfromaccounts.bsky.social
Bob From Accounts 🚲 @bobfromaccounts.bsky.social · 1d
It's impressive how quickly Paris has transformed car-dominant roads, prioritising more efficient modes of transportation. One lane for drivers on the right side, made to wallow in their own stop-and-start inefficiency, two giant lanes for bikes.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 3h
I do think some people argue to protect land without any objective understanding of its value.

Some green areas might be ideal for houses with minimal environmental impact.

Some brownfield development might be a terrible move.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 3h
I had a chat on here with some experts saying that some of the brown field sites are more valuable from a biodiversity perspective than some green field sites.

This may be part of that nuance.

So you have people protecting green and others protecting brown.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 3h
Massively restricting where houses can be built benefits capitalists and hurts the general public even more.

In fact I would not be surprised if the NIMBY culture isn’t encouraged somewhat by developers.

For the same reason OPEC don’t pump oil as quickly as possible.
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Reposted by Richard Dalton
jonnelledge.bsky.social
Jonn Elledge @jonnelledge.bsky.social · 4h
*sighs*

open.substack.com/pub/jonn/p/n...
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 3h
Colleague has decided to say thanks but no thanks to this house.

Which is a brave move when you’re desperate and you’ve been searching for a while, and you’ve managed to get a booking deposit in on a house.

Developers prey on that desperation and more people need to say NO, FUCK OFF.
zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 2d
A colleague is trying to buy a house in Dublin. New build, well north of €700k for a terrace house.

On getting the contracts he discovered he would not be allowed to dry washing in his own garden.

And..

Would not own the driveway outside his front door.

Apparently increasingly common.
zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 17h
Well I don’t know how you make Toad In The Hole, but it won’t affect mine.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 17h
Just remember when the 6 Mini is released, you don’t have to crash this one.

Someone will take it off your hands.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 18h
I was at a parent teacher meeting tonight.

I don’t know if any of you noticed. But they have kids teaching in schools now.
a man with glasses says you 're too young while sitting at a table
ALT: a man with glasses says you 're too young while sitting at a table
media.tenor.com
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 18h
He knows he owes €3k but feels that he should run up a solicitor bill as well because he and the tenants haven’t suffered enough.

I think we dodged a bullet with losing this genius as a candidate.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 23h
Wait

WHAT?
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Reposted by Richard Dalton
keithwdickinson.bsky.social
Keith W. Dickinson @keithwdickinson.bsky.social · 1d
Today is a day when arts degrees are worthless, but the product of those degrees is so valuable it would kill an entire industry if they were made to pay for it.
theverge.com
The Verge @theverge.com · May 26
Nick Clegg says asking artists for use permission would ‘kill’ the AI industry
Nick Clegg says asking artists for use permission would ‘kill’ the AI industry
Paul McCartne, Elton John and others signed an open letter.
buff.ly
400 9.1K 24K
zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
I don't understand.

There were only 3 Indiana Jones movies.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
Also if you're in your 20s and a Pension salesperson is telling you it's a good idea, then you think "of course you'd say that".

I'm not going to earn a penny from you getting a pension, so trust me.

It's a good idea.
zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
One annoying thing about pensions is these little separate pots that you can accumulate if you move jobs.

The new Auto enrolment pensions have a single transferable account.

One nice aspect of having more than one pension pots is you can see if one is lagging (probably due to high fees).
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
And I have more than 11 years until I retire, so I start the next 11 years with a pot of 70K not 28K in that frozen little pension that I never touch.

This is why you should make an effort to start early.

Future you will thank you.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
If I had been paying into that pension since then it would be way more, but that's not the point I want to make.

The point I want to make is that by having a relatively small pot (less than 30K) for 11 years, it's earned an average of over €300 a month.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
Once I left that company that pension find was frozen. It would continue to grow in value, but I couldn't pay any more into it.

At that time (Jan 2014) it was worth just over €28,000, the amount paid in up to that point was €22,240

less than 12 years later that pot is worth €70649.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
I've been self employed basically my entire career, (since 1996).

But there was one brief stint in the middle when I become an employee of a company that made generous pension contributions.

I left that company in around the end of 2013. The company made it's last contribution in Jan 2014.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
If there's anyone out there in their 20's thinking, I don't need to think about pensions, plenty of time later.

You're right, you can start later, you'll probably be ok. Especially if you have a really good income.

But let me show you something that might make you want to start NOW.
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
The economics of exporting at the moment are that the export price (for me) is less than what I pay at night.

So I could buy at night and export for a tiny profit.

That tiny profit isn't enough to tempt me to maximise exports. If you tax exports and make them less attractive, I'm even less likely
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zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 1d
I'm sure there are some who export more than us, but there are also a hell of a lot that export less. And I find it hard to believe that taxing all exports would suddenly bring in €10 million.

It has the ring of needing a number for a report that's more than €1 million and less than €100 million.
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