Linked List: January 24, 2022

Monday, 24 January 2022

NBA Hall of Famer John Stockton Has Lost His Mind ★

Theo Lawson, writing for the Spokane Spokesman-Review, after Gonzaga revoked Stockton’s season tickets for refusing to wear a mask:

During the interview, Stockton asserted that more than 100 professional athletes have died of vaccination. He also said tens of thousands of people – perhaps millions – have died from vaccines.

“I think it’s highly recorded now, there’s 150 I believe now, it’s over 100 professional athletes dead — professional athletes — the prime of their life, dropping dead that are vaccinated, right on the pitch, right on the field, right on the court,” Stockton said in the interview.

There’s unhinged from reality, and then there’s just floating into the void like Frank Poole in 2001.

Netherlands Authority for Consumer Markets Begins Fining Apple for Non-Compliance With Dating App Rules for Third-Party Payments ★

The Netherlands Authority for Consumer Markets:

Apple has failed to satisfy the requirements on several points. The most important one is that Apple has failed to adjust its conditions, as a result of which dating-app providers are still unable to use other payment systems. At the moment, dating-app providers can merely express their ‘interest’. In addition, Apple has raised several barriers for dating-app providers to the use of third-party payment systems. That, too, is at odds with ACM’s requirements. For example, Apple seemingly forces app providers to make a choice: either refer to payment systems outside of the app or to an alternative payment system. That is not allowed. Providers must be able to choose both options.

What are the next steps?

ACM has informed Apple that its statements do not satisfy the requirements laid down in the order subject to periodic penalty payments. Apple is still obligated to act in accordance with said order. If it fails to do so, Apple will have to pay each week a penalty payment of 5 million euros up to a maximum of 50 million euros.

Apple could just write them a check for €50 million now, from the company’s spare-change-under-the-sofa account. Or they could just pull dating apps from the App Store in the Netherlands. Otherwise, put their napkins on their laps and eat a Dutch shit sandwich.

Update: Francisco Tolmasky:

It must be really frustrating to roll out an entire plan only to be completely at the whim of a reviewer — err, regulator — to find out whether it sufficiently meets a set of vague criteria.