Post ApMt0pZRJ7VL2YO2PA by texhewson@datasci.social
(DIR) More posts by texhewson@datasci.social
(DIR) Post #ApMt0obssXrk3qWTZo by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
2024-12-23T17:54:07Z
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As we know, the Office for National Statistics is engulfed in a growing crisis of unreliability.... if you want some more detail, here's Heather Stewart joining the dots.The real Q. is whether other data (as Jonathan Portes believes) will be able to give parallel indications to policy makers, or whether they really are starting to 'fly blind' (as I rather suspect they are).....#ONS #statistics #economics https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/dec/23/ons-job-figures-labour-force-survey-data
(DIR) Post #ApMt0pZRJ7VL2YO2PA by texhewson@datasci.social
2024-12-24T09:09:27Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 one of the underlying problems isn't entirely the ONS' problem. It's declining response rates to official surveys. Sure, I agree the ONS are the professionals who need to address that as best they can, but it feels like a bigger issue of trust in institutions, civic duty or something that really lies with national leaders, not technicians here. Or maybe I'm miles off
(DIR) Post #ApMt0qPYBNBjeAled6 by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
2024-12-24T09:22:14Z
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@texhewson No, I think you're right on the button....
(DIR) Post #ApMt0r5NfqeHjuL3pY by h4890@liberdon.com
2024-12-24T10:39:54Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 @texhewson I agree! I have very low trust in government institutions and would not participate in surveys out of fear of the answers being used against me (depending on the survey) and due to ideological reasons. However! I always thought I was the small, libertarian minority. I am surprised that more people might be starting to mistrust the government. If so, I think it is good, but from an everyday perspective, it is bad. Without statistics any policy is just a shot
(DIR) Post #ApMt10mFdpHxnTSvOy by h4890@liberdon.com
2024-12-24T10:40:02Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 @texhewson in the dark.
(DIR) Post #ApMuBFJkXGpjk7ZuJk by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
2024-12-24T10:53:02Z
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@h4890 @texhewson Yup, the intrusion for individuals is clearly a problem, but as you say without the information so gleaned.... the emergent strategy may to look to track other forms of data to try to read off similar (parallel) information.... which is where, for the ONS, the move to electronic transactions may pay dividends (as they can be linked to consumer profiles)
(DIR) Post #ApMusLwRmbRYjuEXbM by h4890@liberdon.com
2024-12-24T11:00:52Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 @texhewson Another interesting aspect of this is that lack of opinion polls to correctly predict the rise and success of populist right movements. In sweden, many sweden democrats refuse to participate since they are afraid of being cancelled of someone learns they vote for teh sweden democrats. This is a huge warning light for the health of democracy, when adherents to a party, no matter how bad, are shunned, cancelled and hunted down. The result in sweden has been that SD
(DIR) Post #ApMv22hKBbRzx2mRyC by h4890@liberdon.com
2024-12-24T11:02:36Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 @texhewson has grown enormously in power since they were first ignored, then ridiculed, then feared. I think, due to the sad events in germany, that AfD (their SD) will have a record result in february, and that germany will have a minority government with the christian democrats, possibly supported by AfD. This constallation (mainstream government + far right support) has so far been successsful in sweden, although as a libertarian, they are building out the surveillance
(DIR) Post #ApMv6zlWW2DuIy6ddY by h4890@liberdon.com
2024-12-24T11:03:31Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 @texhewson state to enormous proportions which I am against. Another foolish thing they have implemented as of 1/1 2025 is anonymous witnesses against the advice of the lawyers association. If sweden ever gets an authoritarian party in government, they now have all the laws they need to basically sweep any opposition under the rug. =(
(DIR) Post #ApMvLeOEGwhaLxCN1s by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
2024-12-24T11:06:08Z
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@h4890 @texhewson Sadly, I think that trajectory is much wider than just in Sweden.... we are heading down a different road from the one I envisaged twenty years ago, that's for sure
(DIR) Post #ApMwCrlLHcOlAyNuZU by h4890@liberdon.com
2024-12-24T11:15:46Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 @texhewson This is the truth! I try to give my friends and family privacy with my IT skills, but there's only so much one can do.My apartment community voted to install surveillance cameras everywhere, and this shows that a hueg part of the public has now gotten used to, and like, surveillance, and I seriously doubt they have thought twice about it.What I find strange is that a people that was occupied by the soviet union, would be so quick to embrace surveillance. Very strange!
(DIR) Post #ApMwIlQljnPdH9ZeJk by h4890@liberdon.com
2024-12-24T11:16:51Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 @texhewson Needless to say, since I am very principled, I now need to move, since I do not enjoy the thought of my every move in my own apartment complex being monitored 24/7. =( Well, let's see where life takes me. Either I'll stay in eastern europe, or my wife might persuade me to move back to sweden physically (but not on paper).
(DIR) Post #ApMyIFWqY3KqF3Ibi4 by ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
2024-12-24T11:39:08Z
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@h4890 @texhewson I think I'm right in saying the UK is a world leader in public surveillance & to say its not popular would be an understatement.... the key thing, as you note, is a lot of people seem not to notice.
(DIR) Post #ApNsFNYY6BnznQEzLc by h4890@liberdon.com
2024-12-24T22:06:07Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 @texhewson It is very sad. I once thought about moving to the UK, but there were a couple of things that made me change my mind. In no particular order they were: * Increasing surveillance. * Long commute times (I was looking at IT jobs in a bigge rcity). * Salaries seemed to be on the way down compared with other countries. So altogether, in the end I ended up living 1.5 years in Zürich instead. The swiss were quite closed, boring and conservative, so after only having
(DIR) Post #ApNsHJoIzri8l2XGZE by h4890@liberdon.com
2024-12-24T22:06:29Z
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@ChrisMayLA6 @texhewson managed to get to know one swiss guy, and never having any social life, I moved back to sweden again.