U.S. gov't moves to suppress pushback on data centers

Post by jjk166 » Wed, Aug 26, 2026, 10:57 PM UTC

docdeek wrote: post #12

vintagedave wrote: post #2

> The latest proposal applies to permits for a "minor source" of air pollution ... [the Vantage data center was estimated to contribute] between $53 million and $99 million in annual health damages, the largest estimate for any single facility ever. 'The largest estimate for any single facility ever.' 'Minor source.' I give you double-speak, gentlefolks of HN. Name it something - anything - and you frame it in those…

FTA: 'The largest estimate for any single facility ever.' From the researcher: 'We estimated between $53 million and $99 million in annual health damages from associated air pollution — among the largest health-damage estimates produced for a single facility to date.' [0] Still enormous, but there is a significant difference between being 'THE X of all time, and being 'among the X of all time'. Regarding 'minor sourc…

For context, a US coal plant on average causes 3 deaths per year due to air quality. If we're not calling a coal plant a major source, wtf would we refer to as a major source?

It doesn't matter that the aggregate air pollution of the entire country far exceeds any individual source, the point of the major/minor distinction is to compare individual sources.

Post by flanked-evergl » Wed, Aug 26, 2026, 11:15 PM UTC

goda90 wrote: post #113

budman1 wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Dyson Sphere is the end game. Once you capture and use all of the sunlight hitting the earth, what do you do?

On our present course we're probably not going to reach Type I on the Kardashev scale, let alone Type II, because of collapse. We need to embrace long term planning instead of short term profits if we want to avoid that.

Of course we won't make Type I on the Kardashev scale if we abandon technological progress like AI.

"Long-term planning" has never once given us a quantum leap in technology. Having humans "plan" AI evolution is dumb. This stuff is happening. You can cry about it, but nothing you do will stop it from happening.

The best you can do is stop it from happening in your country, and the only result will be that your country will become completely insignificant within a couple of years.

Re: U.S. gov't moves to suppress pushback on data centers

Re: U.S. gov't moves to suppress pushback on data centers