https://feddit.org/u/benjhm@sopuli.xyz

But the article says, the core factors are economic.

The article says the factor are economic and cultural. For example, it reads that “online, young people openly discuss their frustrations with societal expectations […] Hashtags related to singlehood, career focus, and discussions around marriage trends regularly go viral, amplifying the voices of those who feel pressured to conform to traditional life paths.”

Even so, as they have built so many surplus apartments, the [real] prices must drop

The ‘surplus apartments’ are the result of a real estate crisis that, among others, has cost a lot of money. Many Chinese has lost their live savings. In the meantime, many experts (inside and outside China) are afraid that the problems in the property sector could severely hurt the financial and banking system and the whole economy in the long run.

I wonder how many years before they are trying to sell the Chinese dream to migrants from Africa or elsewhere.

Regarding migrant, especially from Africa, I suggest your read a release by a rights group (2023), or a very informative expert video (19 min, here is the archived link for this video). The video is from 2022.

Yeah, it’s not easy. But is there another option?

The German state of Schleswig-Holstein is doing the same. Here is also a good podcast by Nextcloud (one of the state’s partners) if interested.

Open source and Nextcloud in government: Insights from Sven Thomsen, Schleswig-Holstein’s CIO – (podcast, 55 min)

They also discuss Munich in the podcast.

It is certainly a long way, Schleswig-Holstein says it’s a “10-year journey into open source”, but there is no alternative imho.

There is a thread on this already: https://feddit.org/post/4415864

A related article on what is known regarding Russian sabotage activities in Europe:

How and why Russia is conducting sabotage and hybrid-war offensive – (Archived link)

Across Europe, we’re seeing more confirmed or suspected instances of Russian sabotage. It is part of a broader hybrid war campaign against NATO countries, aimed at eroding support for Ukraine and damaging Western cohesion […]

Russia has conducted arson attacks in Poland, Germany, Lithuania, Latvia and Czechia. Other reported sabotage attempts include flying drones over Stockholm airport, jamming of Baltic countries’ civil aviation GPS systems and disruption of French railways on the first day of the Paris Olympics. Facilities linked to supplying Ukraine have also been targeted: a BAE Systems munitions facility in Wales, an air-defence company’s factory in Berlin and a Ukrainian-owned logistics firm in London.

Authorities have arrested suspects for plots to bomb or sabotage a military base in Bavaria and a French facility supporting Ukraine’s war efforts. Agencies disrupted a plot to assassinate the CEO of German arms maker Rheinmetall, a supplier of artillery shells to Ukraine. Latvian authorities tracked down saboteurs dispatched to several countries on paid missions. Norway’s domestic intelligence service warns of the threat of sabotage to train lines and to gas facilities supplying much of Europe.

[…]

The West is running out of non-military options for response, since it is already imposing extensive economic and diplomatic sanctions against Moscow and has limited capacity or opportunity to retaliate in kind inside Russia. Still, a more strenuous response by Western governments is needed.

[Edit typo.]

I understand. You are right and everyone else is wrong. Classic.

https://feddit.org/u/Deceptichum@quokk.au

I know exactly how the terms are, and I know there is overlap in the exploitation game.

This is apparently not the case. The ‘exploitation game’ is not unique to any of form of capitalism (there are many) as there has been exploitation of large groups of people also in the pre-industrial feudal system, just to name an example.

Unfortunately, we see similar over-simplified narratives all over the web spaces, also on the Fediverse. This is not a grave issue in itself, we all can be mistaken, but very often these narratives are communicated in a very dogmatic and offensive way. This is unnecessary and not very smart, especially as you are wrong here.

You could short individual stocks.

I can’t elaborate on the Dutch, but I feel that your prediction that they won’t hire native speakers/chartered translators will hold true not only for the Netherlands. I used to work for international publishing houses in various roles and guess I have some idea of this industry, and I think they won’t hire experts just for saving money (not because they overestimate their language proficiency). They won’t care about quality as long as the financials are fine, even if such a commercial success has a short life.

The only exceptions I see at the moment are some small media organizations and/or grassroots media. But large publishing houses will use AI to further drive down costs, no matter what.

A user in another thread on this topic has guessed that there will be a ‘parallel economy’ (their word) dedicated to human-made goods, while the rest is AI generated. Maybe that’s the future?

They said that long time ago, although even in Switzerland many struggle to understand this after reports by the Swiss Intelligence.

Espionage: Russia, China pose greatest threat with spy bases operating in embassies, Swiss intelligence report says

The greatest espionage threat to Switzerland currently comes from the Russian intelligence services, the Swiss Federal Intelligence Service’s (FIS) says in its latest report. The threat to Switzerland from the Chinese intelligence services is also high. Numerous services maintain covert bases in Switzerland, known as residencies. These usually operate out of diplomatic missions.

There are some issues related to the topic:

A survey of Swiss banks has highlighted international sanctions imposed on other countries, such as against Russia over Ukraine, as the greatest geopolitical risk to their business

The report by the Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) and consultants zeb said on Thursday that Swiss policymakers should develop an approach to sanctions that ensures neutral Switzerland remains a safe haven for banks and their customers […]

Shortly after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Switzerland decided to adopt EU sanctions against Moscow. One measure was to freeze assets belonging to sanctioned Russians.

August Benz, deputy head of the SBA, raised concerns about Switzerland’s rapid adoption of sanctions […]

According to bankers, Switzerland’s clear stance on the Ukraine war has raised fears among foreign customers that it could support further Western sanctions in the future.

And:

Switzerland praises China-Brazil peace plan for Ukraine

Switzerland says its view on the Chinese plan has significantly changed in recent months Ukraine expresses disappointment in Swiss position

The greatest espionage threat to Switzerland currently comes from the Russian intelligence services, the Swiss Federal Intelligence Service’s (FIS) says in its latest report. The threat to Switzerland from the Chinese intelligence services is also high. Numerous services maintain covert bases in Switzerland, known as residencies. These usually operate out of diplomatic missions.

[Edit typo.]

So prison labor for profit is bad now?

It should be a matter of course, but the EU already banned forced labour explicitly this years. The question is rather that we must ensure that the law is enforced.

I assume you agree that they will continue to interfere, but, yes, for now there is reason to celebrate a bit :-)

https://feddit.org/u/petrescatraian@libranet.de

Seems all fine, right?

Pro-EU leader claims Moldova victory despite alleged Russian meddling

Moldova’s pro-EU President Maia Sandu has claimed a second term after a tense election run-off seen as a choice between Europe and Russia. With most votes counted Sandu had won 55%, and in a late-night speech she promised to be president for all Moldovans.

Her rival Alexandr Stoianoglo, who was backed by the pro-Russian Party of Socialists, had called for a closer relationship with Moscow.

During the day the president’s national security adviser said there had been “massive interference” from Russia in Moldova’s electoral process that had “high potential to distort the outcome”.

Russia had already denied meddling in the vote, which came a week after another key Eastern European election in Georgia, whose president said it had been a “Russian special operation”.

It would be interesting to hear what the presumptive PM has to say about China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Last year, the Chinese ambassador to France said that former Soviet nations had ‘no effective status’ of independence in international law, and he said that Crimea belongs to Russia. Lithuania’s foreign minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, said back then that "[Chinese] diplomats [should] reminded we [Lithuania] are not post-Soviet countries but countries that were illegally occupied by the Soviet Union”.

On social media, Landsbergis then wrote: “If anyone is still wondering why the Baltic states don’t trust China to ‘broker peace in Ukraine’, here’s a Chinese ambassador arguing that Crimea is Russian and our countries’ borders have no legal basis.”

What does Lithuania’s presumptive PM say about that?

Addition: Don’t give a free pass to Beijing for its aggressive behaviour

[…] The type of influence China exercises is not something we can accept as simply ‘what great powers do’. It launched a cyber attack on the Pacific Islands Forum, spreads online disinformation in the Pacific to undermine democracies and weaken Pacific partnerships, sought security agreements that lack public transparency, and undertaken various other malicious activities—such as hybrid and grey zone operations.

And that’s just in the Pacific—China is carrying out this malicious activity globally, not to mention being the main supporter enabling Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Of course, other significant powers seek influence, but responsible nations don’t behave like this […]

Or maybe a proxy war of democracies against dictatorships.

I didn’t miss the point, but this is a different topic. We need to provide housing, end homelessness and possibly the right to a bank account for everyone. These are different things.

Also nobody agreed to protect Ukraine for giving up nukes.

This is irrelevant. We have to do it anyway, no matter whatever they agreed upon 30 years ago.

This is not about ‘neoliberals’ but about foreign malicious actors attacking digital systems for no reason.

Affordable housing and the threat by malicious actors to attack digital payment systems are two different things. Homelessness has to be addressed, of course, but we are dealing here with something else.

This article has been published on 24 February 2020, exactly 2 years before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. They may change their mind like Sweden and Norway are doing.

[Edit typo.]

In addition to what others have already said, China wants a chunk of Siberia for what it calls the “polar silk road”. Climate change will open the possibility of a navigable Arctic sea route connecting North America, Est Asia, and Europe. Such a route is a shorter and more economically viable transportation option than the current route via the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. But for this, China needs better access to the Arctic.