Pnut Readers Predict the Future | Autocrats + Technology = Mass Surveillance | Ending Sessions Post Midterm

More than 2,800 Daily Pnut readers completed our Midterm Election Survey. Pnut readers accurately predicted that Democrats would retake the House but not the Senate. Pnut readers strongly believe that the Republican party is now the party of Trump. Pnut readers are not optimistic about the future of the United States and are more optimistic about the world than the US. A majority of Pnut readers believe Trump will be reelected but only 15% would vote for him if the election was today. The three biggest worries of Pnut readers are Trump, the environment (climate change), and healthcare. Here are the results of the survey. Thank you very much for those who participated in the survey!

“Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.” – Edward Snowden

“When it comes to privacy and accountability, people always demand the former for themselves and the latter for everyone else.” – David Brin

Watch You While You Work: American entrepreneurs and investors can learn a lot from China’s work ethic, ambition and technological advances. So executives from three of Silicon Valley’s venture capital firms organized a trip last August to two Chinese cities competing for the title Silicon Valley of China: Beijing and Shenzhen. Thirteen investors and start-up founders from America’s technology hub made the trip to get a close-up look at how, in barely 20 years, China has become a tech rival to the US. The group met Chinese counterparts and saw firsthand what their life is like. The biggest takeaways were how different Chinese work habits were from American, how quickly the people had embraced technology, how powerful China’s tech companies had grown, how intense is the pursuit of artificial intelligence, and how ubiquitous is the societal control.

The typical Chinese work schedule is 996 — 9 am to 9 pm, 6 days a week. Technology executives are ambitious and driven to win at all costs, although there is little concern about the impact on society or the potential misuse of their technologies. Privacy laws are loosely enforced, government censorship is strict, and domestic surveillance apparatus is everywhere. Upon entering their hotel rooms, the Americans quickly saw that “due to Chinese internet regulations”, they would not be able to access Facebook, Twitter, Google, YouTube, Instagram, Bloomberg or the New York Times.

The visitors could not pay for snacks at the cashier-less convenience store because mobile payments required a local number and a Chinese bank account. Mark Goldberg, a partner at Index Ventures and one of the organizers, said: “It was impressive to see the pace of innovation in China. Some of the newer technologies, like facial recognition software, can be very powerful, and will need to be deployed very thoughtfully—not just in China, but also in the West.” By the end of their weeklong visit, the American executives and investors had seen an alternate tech universe, one that resembled Silicon Valley on the outside, but up close was a futuristic yet closed-off world, equal parts impressive, alienating and dystopian.

Additional Read: “Google Workers Reject Silicon Valley Individualism, in Walkout.” (NYT)

Bill Reinvents The John: Even before Matt Damon learned how to grow potatoes on Mars, Bill Gates was thinking about how to turn bodily waste into clean water and fertilizer. The billionaire philanthropist, whose Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation spent $200 million over seven years funding sanitation research, addressed the Reinvented Toilet Expo in Beijing Tuesday, telling a captive audience: “The technologies you’ll see here are the most significant advances in sanitation in nearly 200 years.” Apparently if you can think of it, somewhere there’s an expo or “con” for it (VidCon, Politcon, Comic-Con. (Bloomberg)

Speak Loudly And Carry A Big Gun: Interior minister and a deputy prime minister, Matteo Salvini, is the most powerful figure in Italy’s populist government. A huge gun advocate, Salvini posed at a police convention in September with a submachine gun, and later caressed an enormous military-grade sniper rifle. That same month the Italian government loosened gun laws, making it possible to own more assault weapons like the AR-15, the rifle used in numerous mass shootings in the US. Salvini is using the Trumpian populist playbook, creating his own following by promoting himself as the law and order tough guy. He’s tethered immigration to security issues, cracked down on migrants, declared a war on drugs, and spread the sense of a public safety emergency despite crime in Italy declining for years. (NYT)

That’s Not A Bid: Australia is trying to balance its economic growth with its national security interests. In that regard, it has a healthy fear of too much Chinese influence in the country. That’s why the government is carefully weighing a Hong Kong billionaire’s bid to acquire the APA Group, Australia’s largest gas and pipeline company. Li Ka-shing may be one of the most influential and wealthiest businessmen in Asia, but that’s not necessarily a good thing Down Under. (NYT)

– “A ‘Legacy of Terror’: ISIS Left More Than 200 Mass Graves in Iraq” (NYT)

– “Knife crime epidemic should surprise no one: Readers respond to articles covering the rise in knife crime that’s claiming the lives of more and more young men and boys” (Guardian)

Let’s face it, no one enjoys fundraising. What’s one of the most difficult aspects of it? Building a Pitch Deck. Slidebean has helped 1000s of entrepreneurs raise capital by giving them access to beautiful Pitch Deck design. If you’re in the process of raising funding, and are looking for a replacement to your drab PowerPoint or Keynote presentation, check out Slidebean. Daily Pnut readers can receive a 7 day free trial, plus 10% off their first purchase.

Session’s Session As AG Ends In Concession: Jeff Sessions supported Donald Trump’s agenda from the get-go, but Wednesday, after a tumultuous tenure as Attorney General, he resigned his post at what he said was the president’s request. Trump never got over Sessions recusing himself from overseeing Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, although Sessions had conflicts of interest that required him to do so. Trump immediately installed Sessions’ chief of staff, Matthew Whitaker, as acting AG. Incoming House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi tweeted: “Given his record of threats to undermine & weaken the Russia investigation, Matthew Whitaker should recuse himself from any involvement in Mueller’s investigation. Congress must take immediate action to protect the rule of law and integrity of the investigation.” #FollowTheFacts (NPR)

Brace For Impact: President Trump gave a rambling and contentious post-election press conference Wednesday during which he insulted reporters, threatened House Democrats, and fired Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Trump said he would adopt a “warlike posture” if Democrats use their newly won control of the House to investigate his financial and political dealings. Democrats gave the traditional nods to bipartisanship after Tuesday’s election, but emphasized they intend to perform their oversight function, as the Constitution intended they should. Fasten those seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy two years. (NYT)

– “Russia is unhappy the Democrats won the House: The 2018 US midterm election results are in — and Russia feels like it lost.” (Vox)

– “Amazon Plot Twist: 2 Cities Will Split The 2nd Headquarters” (NPR)

– “Far-Right Internet Groups Listen for Trump’s Approval, and Often Hear It: As President Trump and his allies have waged a fear-based campaign to drive Republican voters to the polls, far-right communities have parsed his statements, looking for hints of their influence.” (NYT)

– “Indonesian Caves Hold Oldest Figurative Painting Ever Found, Scientists Say” (NPR)

– “Is The Pentagon Modifying Viruses To Save Crops — Or To Wage Biological Warfare?” Our Terminator future is going to be full of sniffles. (NPR)

– “‘Single-Use’ Is The 2018 Word Of The Year, Collins Dictionary Says” (NPR)

– “Why the French Don’t Show Excitement: Not only is ‘Je suis excité’ not the appropriate way to convey excitement in French, but there seems to be no real way to express it at all.” (BBC)

– “That adorable baby bear clip captures the dark side of wildlife videos:Some saw a cute video — others saw wildlife endangered by a drone” The penguins were marching in fear! (Verge)

– “How the Jumping Spider Sees Its Prey: Researchers looked deep into the eyes of a predatory spider to learn what it was looking at.” (NYT)

– “The best free photo-editing software: Here are 4 free alternatives to Photoshop for all your editing needs” (Digital Trends)

– “Inside the booming business of background music: Once derided, the successors to muzak have grown more sophisticated – and influential – than any of us realise.” (Guardian)

Please consider making a donation to Daily Pnut, an independently operated and bootstrapped publication. Many thanks to everyone who already supports us!