Service Businesses with Little or No Staffing; Waymo's Problems Are at the Intersection of the War on Labor Expense and the EV Follies

As I have documented several times, I am not a fan of self-driving cars. I am skeptical that it is possible to fully program the necessary combination of sound recognition, peripheral vision, pattern behavior, human instinct, and intuition that is necessary to safely power a multi-ton machine through uncommon perils.

Google’s Waymo operation seems to be going through a lot of growing pains. Unfortunately, those growing pains are occurring while there are passengers on board but without a person at the wheel.

It’s also becoming evident that a major part of the push for driverless vehicles is related to the War on Labor Expense that has normalized abhorrent business practices to reduce the cost of labor. The good news is that Waymo is not putting off-the-books or slave labor behind the wheel. The bad news is that there is no human involved whatsoever in the operation of its troubled vehicles.

The complete removal of customer-facing employees may save money, but it also results in unstaffed chaos when something goes wrong. For some reason, the self-driving taxi services all seem to use EVs too. Perhaps there is still an aura of gee-whiz futurism about EVs that has appeal, but a vehicle that cannot quickly be refueled seems like a bad choice for a taxi.

Before I discuss the latest round of Waymo problems, it was just two months ago that I wrote a piece about the many recent failures which put Waymo customers in serious peril. These included:

• A Waymo in Austin crossed a double-yellow line to use the oncoming traffic lane as a left-turn lane.

• Also in Austin, a Waymo drove into a flooded roadway, then once it was caught in the water, it stopped rather than drive away.

• A Waymo in Dallas was videotaped slowing at a red light, then just slowly creeping through the intersection, making other cars dodge it.

• A Waymo in San Antonio drove into a flooded roadway, and was then washed away!

July 4th was a very bad day for Waymo, especially in San Francisco, where one self-driving taxi with a passenger aboard drove into and directly over fireworks that were going off. Another Waymo drove into fireworks and the vehicle actually caught fire.

Elsewhere in San Francisco, stalled/bricked/discharged electric Waymos were blocking intersections and causing ire among actual humans who couldn’t get through the intersections. Neither could they talk to a live human driver about removing the abandoned Waymos that were obstructing roads.

“Waymo cars stranded on San Francisco streets as Fourth of July gridlock drains batteries” [NBC]

Dave Guingona told the [TV station] he spent nearly two hours in standstill traffic until a number of Waymo vehicles were cleared from a roadway.

Did I mention that these ridiculous vehicles are EVs?

Several Waymo vehicles had to be towed away after the company said their batteries died while they were stuck in heavy San Francisco traffic amid Fourth of July celebrations.

I also mentioned that there is a serious downside to putting customers in complicated products without having any employees present who can work with those customers to deal with problems that arise.

“We realized people were getting out of their cars, yelling and screaming at these Waymos because there were no drivers,” he said.

A Waymo spokesman blamed his cars’ malfunctioning on “severe traffic congestion”, adding that "Our team is always evaluating ways to strengthen Waymo's resilience in major traffic disruptions."

Human drivers do not freeze up and stop operating in gridlock traffic. We may get mad, but we don’t just abandon our cars in the roadway. Waymo cannot say the same. This is clearly a technology that is not ready to be turned loose on city streets if something as common as traffic congestion causes the cars to just stop working in the middle of already crowded roads. In addition, it took several hours for Waymo to scrape together some actual humans that could assist in removing their vehicles from the road, making it the city’s problem to clear the streets.

It should be noted that Uber, Lyft, and traditional taxicabs did not abandon their vehicles in busy roadways like Waymo did, nor did they drive over exploding fireworks. Cities should rethink whether a company like Waymo that is habitually derelict in its conduct on public roads should be given access to those roads.

*****

Related to this topic of unmanned service businesses:

I recently found myself trapped in a parking garage which had a system failure that caused the entrance and exit arms not to rise despite its scanner being presented a valid passcard. There were several of us trapped, and we all tried our cards, none of which worked on either the exit or the entrance gates. So, we called the posted “If there is a problem” phone number and a gentleman in India answered. He inquired of the problem and then started reading his script for “Gate won’t open.” He asked for the faulty passcard number. We explained that the problem wasn’t a faulty passcard, because there were many passcards among us, none of which worked. He returned to his script, asking for a passcard number. So we gave him one of the numbers. He told us the gate should now open. It didn’t open, which we advised him. So, he hung up on us. We called back and he said “Please hold,” then he hung up again. We called a third time and now the phone just rang without being answered.

Suffice it to say we were quite frustrated, and members of our party now felt justified in taking whatever actions were necessary to remove the barrier creating our false arrest. The arm would not budge as we tried to push it straight up. However, by pushing the arm out and up at the same time, we a few of the guys were able to bend the arm and bypass whatever mechanism was blocking it from being raised. We Those guys left a bent arm that needed to be repaired or replaced by the owner, but there was now clearance for everyone to exit.

That resolution was not ideal, but there was not a better one, since the garage operator did not offer us a human option to escape our entrapment (unless you count an outsourced screen-reader in India who hung up on us when he couldn’t resolve the problem.)

If zero-staffing is the future of customer service, then businesses are going to be dealing with “customer resolutions” they don’t like when there are problems to resolve.

I was at Aldi recently and my steak wouldn’t scan at the self-check register, nor would it recognize the SKU number I typed in. Aldi’s war on labor expense means that it has decided that one lone employee can apparently handle all upfront roles, with his/her primary focus being to serve as the cashier at the sole checkout lane that is staffed. That same person is somehow supposed to check IDs for alcohol purchases at the self-check lines, and also attend to scanning and payment problems at self-check stations. It was clear that I was not going to get assistance for my problem, so in frustration I just left the steak sitting there and I left. I felt bad about it later, not so much because “I’m better than that,” but because I hated to see that steak go to waste. I felt remorse for the cow, not for Aldi.

*****

Other Stuff I’m Writing About

My latest piece at the The American Spectator has been published. “Two Roads to the Same Communism” discusses how Net-Zero climate communism is just as big a threat as DSA-style communism, yet the former is feted while the latter suddenly has people scared.

Democrats also demand that the use of fossil fuels be abolished. Doing so would impoverish people in a way that makes Cuba look prosperous. It would also be a form of mass murder. Before air conditioning, tens of thousands of Americans died from summer heat, especially during the prolonged heat waves of the 1930s. As Energy Secretary Chris Wright noted in a tweet on the morning of July 2, just 9 percent of the energy powering the 13-state Mid-Atlantic region was coming from “renewable” sources. Ninety-one percent was coming from natural gas, coal, and nuclear.
In Europe, there is also a war on farming, because it is a belief of the climate cult that the petroleum used in agriculture, especially to make fertilizer, is destroying the planet. The “intellectual” class pursuing Net Zero in Europe seems to believe that food comes from grocery stores, not farms; therefore, they see no harm in effectively outlawing farming. Nothing that the DSA is proposing is as radical as the climate cultists effectively seeking to abolish food production, yet Democrats in the U.S. stand in solidarity with the European Net Zero agenda. Starvation is a predictable outcome of communism, yet that is on the agenda of the climate crowd.

This piece is not behind a paywall. I’d be honored if you’d give it a read.

My latest piece at The American Spectator: “Two Roads to the Same Communism; Net-Zero Climate Communism Is Just as Much a Threat as DSA-Style Communism”https://t.co/jJDgcKeVEu
— Buck Throckmorton (@BuckThrockmort) July 9, 2026

[buck.throckmorton at protonmail dot com]

Posted by: Buck Throckmorton at 11:00 AM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 Letting those in the Art thread know this one's live...

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at July 10, 2026 11:00 AM (O7YUW)

2 FIRST!!!!!

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:00 AM (2YhKe)

3 I was distracted reading that Candace Owens post in the sidebar.......FFS.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:01 AM (2YhKe)

4 I yield FIRST to Sponge, as is traditional, and right.

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at July 10, 2026 11:01 AM (O7YUW)

5 I take the Slug Line from where I live to where I work.

It works thusly: You drive to a commuter lot, get out, stand in line, and get picked up by a random driver headed to the same place you are.

You get a free ride to work. The driver gets (with three people in the car) a free trip up the Express Lanes (otherwise tolled at about $50/day, each way) to the place he's driving anyway.

Do the same thing in reverse going home.

A few weeks ago, a driver in a Tesla put on the self-drive mode and FELL THE FUCK ASLEEP!

I yelled at him to please wake up, sir, and he did, but I'll never get in a Tesla again.

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at July 10, 2026 11:03 AM (xA5g+)

6 I haven't yet tried Waymo. Don't trust it.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at July 10, 2026 11:04 AM (RIvkX)

7 Doncha love it when Tech Bros "disrupt!"?

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:04 AM (X8xt3)

8 Yonder Horde

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 10, 2026 11:04 AM (jehhT)

9 "I am skeptical that it is possible to fully program the necessary combination of sound recognition, peripheral vision, pattern behavior, human instinct, and intuition that is necessary to safely power a multi-ton machine through uncommon perils."
++++

Don't forget. I get a vote.

Posted by: The Weather at July 10, 2026 11:04 AM (2Ez/1)

10 My latest piece at the The American Spectator has been published. “Two Roads to the Same Communism” discusses how Net-Zero climate communism is just as big a threat as DSA-style communism, yet the former is feted while the latter suddenly has people scared.

I'm a lot less worried about the climate hysterics than I used to be. I think they've run out of dupes, since most people now understand that it was all a lie, or at least a mistake. Now, to focus on resurgent communism...

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:05 AM (Riz8t)

11 Net Zero: You will own nothing and like it

DSA/Soviet communism: You will own nothing and like it

Posted by: 18-1 at July 10, 2026 11:06 AM (sKqQm)

12 4 I yield FIRST to Sponge, as is traditional, and righ

It is meet and right so to do.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:06 AM (Riz8t)

13 >>I also mentioned that there is a serious downside to putting customers in complicated products without having any employees present who can work with those customers to deal with problems that arise.

Lemme guess, after having to navigate a complex map of recorded options and AI, they were eventually connected to Ramesh, in Delhi, who didn't have a script for handling stranded Waymos.

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:06 AM (X8xt3)

14 Thanks Buck

On the plus side, thanks to certain, um, demographics, self checkout is taking a hit. Even Walmart at my part of Canada, I'm seeing more cashiers.

Related, I've been perfecting removing the human labor expense from prostitution since I was 12.

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog at July 10, 2026 11:06 AM (Sco7b)

15 a gentleman in India

Diaper head Punjabi wog asshoe.
Union Carbide did us a favor in bhopal.

Posted by: Commissar of plenty and festive little hats at July 10, 2026 11:06 AM (Kt19C)

16 I've given up trying to call my gastroenterologist because the phone tree they've set up is worthless.

I login to the patient portal and send a message directly to my care provider.

That seems to work much better.

I'd still prefer to deal with an actual person over the phone for some questions, though.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at July 10, 2026 11:07 AM (FZ29D)

17 The fact that our tests to determine if you are human are dependant on the fact that robots cannot identify traffic lights, crosswalk, busses and bicycles does not give me confidence in the utility of self-driving cars.

(No, this is not original, bit I don't know who to give credit.)

Posted by: tankdemon at July 10, 2026 11:08 AM (Of+r/)

18 Cities should rethink whether a company like Waymo that is habitually derelict in its conduct on public roads should be given access to those roads.

Public transit is available for 'people' of lesser value. -- City government

Posted by: I used to have a different nic at July 10, 2026 11:08 AM (ExV1e)

19 II also mentioned that there is a serious downside to putting customers in complicated products without having any employees present who can work with those customers to deal with problems that arise.

My mother complains about this all the time - I don't want to use AI, chatbots, or read through your documentation, I'm paying you I want a human to answer my questions.

And...it is a fair question.

But it is cheaper to cut out the humans since tech costs less. Will people pay more for a service/product with better customer support? Data seems to say no.

Posted by: 18-1 at July 10, 2026 11:08 AM (sKqQm)

20 Probably already mentioned?

@SecRubio
Laotian national Tou Lue Vang was convicted of sexually abusing a 10-year-old girl in Minnesota.

He was set to be deported until @GovTimWalz issued him a pardon.

Then, I revoked his legal status. @ICEgov has removed him from the U.S. and he will never endanger another American.

Marco Rubio, best Sect of State evah!!

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:08 AM (X8xt3)

21 A few weeks ago, a driver in a Tesla put on the self-drive mode and and FELL THE FUCK ASLEEP!

I yelled at him to please wake up, sir, and he did, but I'll never get in a Tesla again.
Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at July 10, 2026 11:03 AM

++++
Obligatory movie clip:

https://youtu.be/M73Gb3gDldY

Posted by: Quarter Twenty at July 10, 2026 11:08 AM (2Ez/1)

22 > Doncha love it when Tech Bros "disrupt!"?
Posted by: Lizzy
---------
If reports are true, Anthropic founders Dario Amodei and Daniela Amodei are "giving" their AI suite of tools to leftist NGO's to go harass Trump, his administration and supporters.

This is software that typically runs millions of dollars.

They're providing the software/services for free. To target us. Appears to have started back in May. Some may recall the company had some issues with our DoW and how they used the AI to "game out" the Maduro snatch and grab operation.

The civil war continues apace.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 10, 2026 11:08 AM (jehhT)

23 On the plus side, thanks to certain, um, demographics, self checkout is taking a hit. Even Walmart at my part of Canada, I'm seeing more cashiers.

Related, I've been perfecting removing the human labor expense from prostitution since I was 12.
Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog at July 10, 2026 11:06 AM (Sco7b)
---
I was at Walmart this morning. We had a storm roll through last night and it wreaked havoc on their point of sale stations. They only had a couple of working self-checkout stations.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at July 10, 2026 11:09 AM (FZ29D)

24 I've given up trying to call my gastroenterologist because the phone tree they've set up is worthless.

I login to the patient portal and send a message directly to my care provider.

That seems to work much better.

Same. That's by design. It's similar to the way an insurance company will initially deny a claim to see if you'll just go away. If you demonstrate that you intend to continue making the claim, you can usually prevail.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:09 AM (Riz8t)

25 I've given up trying to call my gastroenterologist because the phone tree they've set up is worthless.

Most phone trees are really designed to get you to give up before you reach a human.

Posted by: 18-1 at July 10, 2026 11:09 AM (sKqQm)

26 { I recently found myself trapped in a parking garage...

... Those guys left a bent arm that needed to be repaired or replaced by the owner...

... If zero-staffing is the future of customer service, then businesses are going to be dealing with “customer resolutions” they don’t like when there are problems to resolve. }

9-1-1 call, and "We're trapped". Not because it's taking the high road, or it's ethically better, or any of that, but because it makes it a problem that the business is now unable to ignore, and more importantly, unable to cover up or hide from.

There will be penalties in the form of fines at the "Shoving a pineapple up their arse" levels of uncomfortable.

Just for future reference, in case it happens again.

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at July 10, 2026 11:09 AM (O7YUW)

27 Ha! You can't drive across state lines into CA with a piece of fruit, but they'll let an EV do it with a 1000lbs of hazardous waste without permit from DOT.

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at July 10, 2026 11:10 AM (fkjGs)

28 the necessary combination of sound recognition...

Part of the problem is that, while you can set certain standards for distance, lane lines, etc., tolerances are actually very different for different people. I *hate* radar cruise control in all of the rentals where I've encountered it (except one), because it's ONLY option at some distance well outside my safe following distance is to slow down. I'm a maneuvering driver. So, when I'm approaching another car, I check all my mirrors and blind spots and start planning a maneuver to pass the slower vehicle. I use the cruise to maintain my speed until I can accelerate to pass (or just slide on out, depending on traffic) and here it is slowing me down. Far enough back I'm going to be in some other faster guy's way for a bit while I catch and pass the vehicle in front of me.

If the computer is going to drive like someone afraid to change lanes it's going to frustrate me awfully.

(Why, yes, I did learn to fly in formation, and it improved my driving considerably.)

Posted by: GWB at July 10, 2026 11:10 AM (kU0PQ)

29 He was set to be deported until @GovTimWalz issued him a pardon.

As I have always said let he that hasn't molested a 10 year old throw the first stone

Posted by: Tim Walz at July 10, 2026 11:10 AM (sKqQm)

30 Buck> ... I am not a fan of self-driving cars.

How about being a fan of self-driving trucks? The status quo with foreign, low-trust, low-IQ slave labor as power only truck "driver" and their foreign owned and controlled power only brokers is a total disaster.

Furthermore, California has imposed irrevocable emissions standards on trucks operating in their state. Drayage is probably the most insulting and least paying function a truck driver can do, and given port logistics, self-driving drayage EV trucks would seem to be a Win-Win. The routes are highly predictable, will respond best to the wealth of training data and arguably safer than Pejeet preparing stir-fry while navigating on the highways.

Posted by: Community Notes at July 10, 2026 11:10 AM (U4c/V)

31 Q: How much more money will they need to spend to get this technology to work?

A: Waymo

Posted by: Chuck Martel at July 10, 2026 11:11 AM (Dv3i1)

32 No clankers

Posted by: Mark Andrew Edwards, buy ammo at July 10, 2026 11:11 AM (xcxpd)

33 I yield FIRST to Sponge, as is traditional, and right.

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at July 10, 2026 11:01 AM (O7YUW)

I am sincerely humbled by your comedic and noble gesture.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:11 AM (2YhKe)

34 Public transit is available for 'people' of lesser value. -- City government
Posted by: I used to have a different nic at July 10, 2026 11:08 AM (ExV1e)
=====

Our transit is a rolling Adult Residential Facility.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at July 10, 2026 11:12 AM (RIvkX)

35 Willowed:

The War Between The States occupies half my wall to wall floor to ceiling dining room bookshelf. Not counting den bookshelt where 75% floor to ceiling is TWBTS. The other 25% is WW II.
Posted by: Eromero at July 10, 2026 11:04 AM (LHPAg)

Holy smokes.

That's awesome. I wish I had a collection like that about The Dustup. I should start buying more.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at July 10, 2026 11:12 AM (BI5O2)

36 I'd still prefer to deal with an actual person over the phone for some questions, though.
Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at July 10, 2026 11:07 AM (FZ29D)

I used to get stuck on the line for my late Mother's doctor's office.

Out town is so small, it was just easier to drive 4 minutes and talk to them. Sad....

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog at July 10, 2026 11:12 AM (Sco7b)

37
Another Waymo drove into fireworks and the vehicle actually caught fire.

Yeah, but it left a suicide note.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) - Humiliate! Humiliate! Humiliate! at July 10, 2026 11:13 AM (s9VOe)

38 I'm a lot less worried about the climate hysterics than I used to be. I think they've run out of dupes, since most people now understand that it was all a lie, or at least a mistake.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:05 AM
###

What about me?

Posted by: Recycling at July 10, 2026 11:13 AM (2Ez/1)

39 Did the story even get into prankster causing Waymo traffic jams?

http://tiny.cc/0bh6101

Posted by: tankdemon at July 10, 2026 11:13 AM (Of+r/)

40 As I have always said let he that hasn't molested a 10 year old throw the first stone

Posted by: Tim Walz at July 10, 2026 11:10 AM (sKqQm)

*yeets a stone at T-Hustle*

Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at July 10, 2026 11:14 AM (xA5g+)

41 >>But it is cheaper to cut out the humans since tech costs less. Will people pay more for a service/product with better customer support? Data seems to say no.

Oh, but they will try this!!

Last year we had an internet issue. After calling the number, navigating all the recorded options, AI troubleshooting, a fist live agent overseas who could not help (all scripted jargon, speedtalking and not listening), then a SECOND overseas agent who didn't help, he decided to up-sell me on talking to a US-based tech person. Yes, he sold me a plan to get actual help. After balking and calling him out on this, I agreed and was transferred to the US-based tech. The guy walked me through a fix in minutes, I thanked him profusely, then I politely asked him to cancel the up-sold service (he understood why).

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:14 AM (X8xt3)

42 Wasn't watching the time, sorry I am late

Posted by: Skip at July 10, 2026 11:14 AM (sgkY8)

43 I was at Aldi recently and my steak wouldn’t scan at the self-check register, nor would it recognize the SKU number I typed in. Aldi’s war on labor expense means that it has decided that one lone employee can apparently handle all upfront roles, with his/her primary focus being to serve as the cashier at the sole checkout lane that is staffed. That same person is somehow supposed to check IDs for alcohol purchases at the self-check lines, and also attend to scanning and payment problems at self-check stations. It was clear that I was not going to get assistance for my problem, so in frustration I just left the steak sitting there and I left. I felt bad about it later, not so much because “I’m better than that,” but because I hated to see that steak go to waste. I felt remorse for the cow, not for Aldi.
*****

I am in no way in favor of theft - but when someone is in that intolerable situation, with no employees to be found, I would not blame them for just tossing the steak in the bag and walking out with it. You tried to give them the money, but Aldi wouldn't take it.

Posted by: Tom Servo at July 10, 2026 11:14 AM (edUvp)

44 Had one on a Facebook reel. Demonstration of faulty driverless car.

Car driving down road. Passes oncoming school bus that is stopped with sign out and red lights flashing. Demo part was at the back end of bus, a robot "kid" pops out from between two cars. Driverless car nails kid. Everyone is defending car. "No one could stop that fast".

You fucking inbred hillbillies, YES, everyone could stop in time BECAUSE they would have stopped before the bus like they are legally liable for.

That was the whole point of the demonstration. The driverless car couldn't pick up the stopped bus.

Posted by: rickb223 at July 10, 2026 11:14 AM (/UfFW)

45 All call trees:

Hello, your call is important to us please stay on the line. Note wait times are longer then usual due to elevated call volumes. Note our menu options have changed.

Press 1 for English....

30 presses later....estimated hold time 123 minutes. Note you can answer most questions by going to our website (slowly reads out a very long utl). Your call is important to us please continue to hold.

Posted by: Tim Walz at July 10, 2026 11:15 AM (sKqQm)

46 The only driverless things I've been on are those little shuttle trains at various airports. They run on tracks, on a loop or just back and forth on the same rail. Don't hear too much about those. But, in comparison to driverless cars or trucks, they're pretty simplistic.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 10, 2026 11:15 AM (jehhT)

47 I am in no way in favor of theft - but when someone is in that intolerable situation, with no employees to be found, I would not blame them for just tossing the steak in the bag and walking out with it. You tried to give them the money, but Aldi wouldn't take it.
Posted by: Tom Servo at July 10, 2026 11:14 AM (edUvp)

Endorsed

Posted by: Mark Andrew Edwards, buy ammo at July 10, 2026 11:15 AM (xcxpd)

48 I agreed and was transferred to the US-based tech. The guy walked me through a fix in minutes, I thanked him profusely, then I politely asked him to cancel the up-sold service (he understood why).

I hope you've checked your CC statement to make sure they actually DID cancel it.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:15 AM (Riz8t)

49 We don't have self checkout at our Aldi's (I got to two...neither has it)...

Posted by: Nova Local at July 10, 2026 11:15 AM (tOcjL)

50 @14/Stateless: "On the plus side, thanks to certain, um, demographics, self checkout is taking a hit. Even Walmart at my part of Canada, I'm seeing more cashiers."

Which pretty much all of us predicted as soon as we saw this nonsense go into play.

No-Frills in my corner of Canada has re-done the self checkout area:
- 6 stations
- No carts permitted, only hand baskets or what you can carry in your arms.
- One employee monitoring and "helping".

Still not enough manned cashiers. They have like 10 or 12, and there's only 2 or 3 open, sometimes 5 at pre-scheduled times when they estimate traffic will be heavy.

What really irks me is the self-checkout stations at places like Metro, where each item must be scanned individually, and placed into the weighing area. There you CAN bring a cart, but the weighing area doesn't have enough space to hold a cart full of items.

"We want you to use this system because it'll save us on people, but we'll be arsed if we'll actually make it convenient for you to use it."

I'm so tired of the enshittification of ... well, everything.

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at July 10, 2026 11:15 AM (O7YUW)

51 28> If the computer is going to drive like someone afraid to change lanes it's going to frustrate me awfully.

You mentioned "rental", but the more upscale cars not only have adaptive cruise but will also orchestrate safe passing.

Not knowing how aggressive you are — passing three or more cars and the farm tractor leading them at a time on a two-lane, might be outside the permissible passing rules programmed into Nav By Wire systems.

Posted by: Community Notes at July 10, 2026 11:15 AM (U4c/V)

52
Waymo EV vehicle caught in an intersection?

Torch it -- it'll happen sooner or later anyway, because EV.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) - Humiliate! Humiliate! Humiliate! at July 10, 2026 11:16 AM (s9VOe)

53 Waymo is google. Google is the Devil.

Google wants to kill you and harvest your soul.

Waymo is the way.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:16 AM (2YhKe)

54 38 I'm a lot less worried about the climate hysterics than I used to be. I think they've run out of dupes, since most people now understand that it was all a lie, or at least a mistake.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:05 AM
###

On X, I've noticed that almost all of the really hard core climate fanatics left are from the UK.
Kind of fun to tell them that their religion is dying, they need to give Greta more offerings and beg her forgiveness.

Posted by: Tom Servo at July 10, 2026 11:16 AM (edUvp)

55 >>How about being a fan of self-driving trucks? The status quo with foreign, low-trust, low-IQ slave labor as power only truck "driver" and their foreign owned and controlled power only brokers is a total disaster.

There are American truck drivers available for the work.
The driver shortage narrative has always been fiction, allowing politicians to sell out yet another industry to foreigners.

Foreign drivers vs. self-driving trucks is a false choice.

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:16 AM (X8xt3)

56 Waymo sounds like a great name for fat chicks.

Posted by: Pudinhead at July 10, 2026 11:16 AM (1D2Ie)

57 I'm a lot less worried about the climate hysterics than I used to be. I think they've run out of dupes, since most people now understand that it was all a lie, or at least a mistake.
/i]

The oligarchs funding/controlling them have moved on to AI datacenters.

They need all the power plants they can get so no more "baby GAIA will die if we don't reduce power usage!

Posted by: Tim Walz at July 10, 2026 11:16 AM (sKqQm)

58 As I have always said let he that hasn't molested a 10 year old throw the first stone

Posted by: Tim Walz at July 10, 2026 11:10 AM (sKqQm)

*yeets a stone at T-Hustle*
Posted by: Washington Nearsider

*throws teo dozen boulders at T-man.

Posted by: rickb223 at July 10, 2026 11:17 AM (/UfFW)

59 Automation is the result of wages being too high.

Cashier jobs SHOULDN'T support a family. It's low skill.

But our "betters" have decided that it should be $15 per hour.

So now we have 10 open self-checkouts (and 15 more that are closed!) and 2 cashier lanes at Kroger.

I will say that I had zero issues when I went to the grocery store in my hometown while visiting for my mother's birthday. No self-checkouts and no lines either.

Posted by: Formerly Virginian at July 10, 2026 11:17 AM (XHO5P)

60 I am actually amazed Garmin and Google do a fairly decent job getting around and doesn't have to drive tje vehicles

Posted by: Skip at July 10, 2026 11:17 AM (sgkY8)

61
I'm so tired of the enshittification of ... well, everything.
Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant

Not me! It gets me new pants -- sometimes two or three pairs -- every day!

Posted by: J'Blowme Biden at July 10, 2026 11:18 AM (s9VOe)

62 then started reading his script for “Gate won’t open.”

Oh yeah. My ISP back when put my number on a list, I guess, after calling multiple times and telling the support person to please go down in their script past all of the simple carp that I had already tested, or that I had already troubleshot everything and I knew where the problem was (it was a recurrent problem, too). I started getting someone who would say, "Let me check which items on my list you've already done, and we'll then get to the other items."

And chat-bots are almost as bad (they're improving). It would be easier to post a checklist, then engage the chatbot once you've narrowed things down.

Posted by: GWB at July 10, 2026 11:18 AM (kU0PQ)

63 Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at July 10, 2026 11:15 AM (O7YUW)

I keep hoping it'll get better.

Everyone have a good day.
Yardwork then my projects.

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog at July 10, 2026 11:18 AM (Sco7b)

64 > Car driving down road. Passes oncoming school bus that is stopped with sign out and red lights flashing. Demo part was at the back end of bus, a robot "kid" pops out from between two cars. Driverless car nails kid. Everyone is defending car. "No one could stop that fast".
---------
Driver's Ed, high school... sitting in one of those simulators, the film's running a typical drive in suburbia. Come to a stopped school bus with kids crossing the street. Every. Single. Student. hit the gas and "mowed them down."

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 10, 2026 11:18 AM (jehhT)

65 "We want you to use this system because it'll save us on people, but we'll be arsed if we'll actually make it convenient for you to use it."

Reminds me of the old hotel scam. "In order to save our planet, we won't change your bed linens unless you request it."

Me: Do you save money by not changing the bed linens?
The Hotel: Of course.
Me: Howzabout we split the savings?
The Hotel: ......
Me: Change the f***ing linens.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:19 AM (Riz8t)

66 A number of big-box stores are pulling back from the self-checkout fad (yes, I'm calling it such) and going back to putting people at cash registers. The systems have simply failed that thoroughly.

Posted by: Brother Tim sez: Fiat Justicia, Ruat Caelum at July 10, 2026 11:19 AM (OUMaO)

67 Many (most?) buildings have separate entrances for employees and the public.

You can bet a nickel on this: Throckmorton's Bentley might get trapped indefinitely by some insolent robot, but there'll be a man at the ready with a Sawz-all to disarm that robot within fifteen minutes if an executive from that building has his Tesla stuck in there.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at July 10, 2026 11:20 AM (BI5O2)

68 Just wait till the airlines get this idea!

Posted by: Zombie Robbo the Llama Butcher at July 10, 2026 11:20 AM (SgdqL)

69 Not knowing how aggressive you are — passing three or more cars and the farm tractor leading them at a time on a two-lane, might be outside the permissible passing rules programmed into Nav By Wire systems.

The first time I drove a rental, two years ago, the lane “assistance” had a similar problem. It was generally okay with passing another normal-sized car. It did not understand that different techniques were necessary when passing a semi on a west Texas highway where the wind is blowing and the other driver may or may not be awake…

Posted by: Stephen Price Blair at July 10, 2026 11:20 AM (kYmoU)

70 In other news:

First Lady just finished her appointment with her oncologist. Everything is reported just fine and she's graduated to the 6 month checkup and mammogram schedule.

We are blessed and thankful for this news.

We are humbled by the Horde and their prayers over the past several years.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:20 AM (2YhKe)

71 From each according to their abilities: to some, based upon their value to the collective.

Posted by: Richard Cranium at July 10, 2026 11:21 AM (/Sk8Y)

72 There are American truck drivers available for the work.
The driver shortage narrative has always been fiction, allowing politicians to sell out yet another industry to foreigners.

Foreign drivers vs. self-driving trucks is a false choice.

True, but self-driving is eventually going to happen, and when it does, it will be much cheaper than paying a driver and hourly wage, and food and lodging (included in the driver cost), and self driving vehicles won't get tired and need to rest.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:21 AM (Riz8t)

73 >>We are blessed and thankful for this news.

Woohoo! Big milestone!!

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:21 AM (X8xt3)

74 A number of big-box stores are pulling back from the self-checkout fad (yes, I'm calling it such) and going back to putting people at cash registers. The systems have simply failed that thoroughly.
Posted by: Brother Tim sez: Fiat Justicia, Ruat Caelum at July 10, 2026 11:19 AM (OUMaO)

They're getting robbed.

Posted by: Mr Aspirin Factory at July 10, 2026 11:21 AM (sn5xH)

75 Waymo sounds like a great name for fat chicks.
Posted by: Pudinhead at July 10, 2026 11:16 AM (1D2Ie)

The Waymo Dating app. If you don't like what you see, bulldoze right and view the next candidate.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:22 AM (2YhKe)

76 Google’s Waymo operation seems to be going through a lot of growing pains. Unfortunately, those growing pains are occurring while there are passengers on board but without a person at the wheel.
___

I can't think of any reason whatsoever why I would ever set foot in a driverless vic.

Posted by: SMH at God's mercy at July 10, 2026 11:22 AM (gErpE)

77 I was forced to share a Waymo from Little Italy to Market St. near Church. It sucked. Took congested routes, you couldn't redirect it, and i had the creepy feeling I was being driven to my doom. Nah, bro.

Posted by: Dark Lixtiquatal at July 10, 2026 11:22 AM (DZ9Lv)

78 eventually connected to Ramesh, in Delhi
Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:06 AM (X8xt3)

Whose first words on the call are something like, "Hello. My name is Bill. How may I help you."

Dude, if the first thing you're going to do is lie to me, this support call is not going to go well.

Posted by: GWB at July 10, 2026 11:22 AM (kU0PQ)

79 I guess we'll have to agree to disagree that a self-driving car is possible. At least I think it's not all that difficult a task to create the software, and it's kind of the field that I'm in so I would like to think I have some real insight into where the real difficulties lie.

However, I'm not anxious to be an early adopter of the technology. Not without some sort of visibility into how that particular sausage is made.

Posted by: Cybersmythe at July 10, 2026 11:22 AM (Zst8M)

80 The oligarchs funding/controlling them have moved on to AI datacenters.

They need all the power plants they can get so no more "baby GAIA will die if we don't reduce power usage!

I read that NVidia's newest AI datacenters will have a closed loop water cooling system, so people will stop bitching about water usage. TBH, I'm not sure why they didn't do that before.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:23 AM (Riz8t)

81
I can't think of any reason whatsoever why I would ever set foot in a driverless vic.

Posted by: SMH at God's mercy at July 10, 2026 11:22 AM (gErpE)

It is sad but true. Vic is no longer driving.......

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:23 AM (2YhKe)

82 It is sad but true. Vic is no longer driving.......
Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:23 AM (2YhKe)
___

haha

Posted by: SMH at God's mercy at July 10, 2026 11:24 AM (gErpE)

83 Outspoken British conservative and Reformer Anne Widdecombe was murdered yesterday. The lovely press are reporting the headline that she has "died". Leaving out the murder part.

The things I want to say about journalists are ironically not fit or smart to print. Bastards. They want us all in graves.

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:24 AM (SWQdN)

84 Once upon a time people were upset about us, too.

Posted by: ATMs and self-service gas pumps at July 10, 2026 11:24 AM (2Ez/1)

85
Dave Guingona told the [TV station] he spent nearly two hours in standstill traffic until a number of Waymo vehicles were cleared from a roadway.

We carry a window breaker combo multi tool seat belt cutter in all our vehicles. I wouldn't even get in a driverless car without the violent means to exit when I want to.

Posted by: BifBewalski - at July 10, 2026 11:24 AM (QVmho)

86 At the moment it's very likely an assassination. Of another conservative.

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:25 AM (SWQdN)

87 The Waymo Dating app. If you don't like what you see, bulldoze right and view the next candidate.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer

If you want to go back, does it beep loudly while it does so?

Posted by: Brother Tim sez: Fiat Justicia, Ruat Caelum at July 10, 2026 11:26 AM (OUMaO)

88 80 The oligarchs funding/controlling them have moved on to AI datacenters.

They need all the power plants they can get so no more "baby GAIA will die if we don't reduce power usage!

I read that NVidia's newest AI datacenters will have a closed loop water cooling system, so people will stop bitching about water usage. TBH, I'm not sure why they didn't do that before.
Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:23 AM (Riz8t)

It's more expensive and people didn't bitch before...

Posted by: Nova Local at July 10, 2026 11:26 AM (tOcjL)

89 eventually connected to Ramesh, in Delhi
Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:06 AM (X8xt3)

Whose first words on the call are something like, "Hello. My name is Bill. How may I help you."

Dude, if the first thing you're going to do is lie to me, this support call is not going to go well.
Posted by: GWB

I booked a hotel room through Radisson years ago. You could hear roosters in the background. I wanted to ask the lady if I could lay a bet on the cock fight later on.

Posted by: Mr Aspirin Factory at July 10, 2026 11:26 AM (sn5xH)

90 77 I was forced to share a Waymo from Little Italy to Market St. near Church. It sucked. Took congested routes, you couldn't redirect it, and i had the creepy feeling I was being driven to my doom. Nah, bro.
Posted by: Dark Lixtiquatal at July 10, 2026 11:22 AM
++++

Kidnapping is a felony in most states.

Posted by: Your opportunistic lawyer at July 10, 2026 11:27 AM (2Ez/1)

91
If you want to go back, does it beep loudly while it does so?
Posted by: Brother Tim sez: Fiat Justicia, Ruat Caelum at July 10, 2026 11:26 AM (OUMaO)

Fresh with air brake sound effects!

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:27 AM (2YhKe)

92 I fucking despise self checkout and every accursed thing about it. It sucks shit.

But I have to use it frequently because these tightfisted grocery chiselers want to squeeze coal into diamonds, and they only ever have one or two of G-d's intended checkout lines open, with 13 dormant, unmanned ones sitting there eating up space.

If they want to start putting back the dour, unfriendly women to check out my groceries while I try to charm a smile out of their stony visages, I'll be very grateful.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at July 10, 2026 11:27 AM (BI5O2)

93 >>I guess we'll have to agree to disagree that a self-driving car is possible. At least I think it's not all that difficult a task to create the software, and it's kind of the field that I'm in so I would like to think I have some real insight into where the real difficulties lie.

Think the only way for self-driving cars to work well is to have it 100% self-driving. That way they can program based on the predictable, uniform behavior of the other vehicles on the road.

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:27 AM (X8xt3)

94
Read the article at Cowboy State Daily about the data center in Cheyenne.

It is about something contaminating the waste water.

Posted by: four seasons at July 10, 2026 11:27 AM (/QHx4)

95 I'm sure these robo-cabs are using EVs because:
1) you can't steal the charge like you can w/ gasoline. (Why not syphon out a bunch of gas at $6/gal in california if no one is looking)
2) dirt cheap prices on EVs now.

Posted by: Scott_T at July 10, 2026 11:27 AM (2waQ7)

96 I read that NVidia's newest AI datacenters will have a closed loop water cooling system, so people will stop bitching about water usage. TBH, I'm not sure why they didn't do that before.

https://tinyurl.com/mf5x94c6

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:28 AM (Riz8t)

97 Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:20 AM (2YhKe)

Awesome!!! You guys deserve some good news. 👊🏻

Time to take it out of your handle. It doesn't have to be your identity anymore.

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:28 AM (SWQdN)

98 The fare is 18 credits, please.

Posted by: Johnnycab at July 10, 2026 11:28 AM (4NO2D)

99 Johnny Cab is waymo better!

Posted by: Phillip K. Dick at July 10, 2026 11:29 AM (wVcYX)

100 I read that NVidia's newest AI datacenters will have a closed loop water cooling system, so people will stop bitching about water usage. TBH, I'm not sure why they didn't do that before.
Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:23 AM (Riz8t)

It's more expensive and people didn't bitch before...

That is the usual reason.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:30 AM (Riz8t)

101 I don’t really have a strong opinion one way or the other on self-checkout; it’s no more work for me, and I don’t have to engage anyone in conversation (or, more likely, be forced to listen to the conversation in front of me). I’m usually faster than the cashiers anyway.

But I very much prefer scan-as-you-shop over any sort of checkout. Instead of loading/unloading/queuing/reloading, all the steps are combined into one: fill my bags, point the phone at a screen, and walk out; maybe someone looks at the top three items. Further, I get to see the scanned price as I load my bags: no surprises at checkout, no waiting for someone to price-check something. Just put it back on the shelf, done. (If I want to have a conversation about it, I can still bring it up, but… I don’t want a conversation about it.)

I can see why owners, in low-trust areas, would be against this; but as a customer there is no contest. Faster, easier, less hassle. I drive out of my way to go to grocery stores that support scan-as-you-go.

Posted by: Stephen Price Blair at July 10, 2026 11:30 AM (kYmoU)

102 @80/Archimedes: "I read that NVidia's newest AI datacenters will have a closed loop water cooling system, so people will stop bitching about water usage. TBH, I'm not sure why they didn't do that before."

Water usage is a distraction from the power usage, specifically how much of it they're pulling down, and what it's going to do to the grid's reliability, and how much it's going to increase people's individual power bills.

Supply and demand is a bitch when aggregate demand doubles or triples, and infrastructure needs time and investment to catch up.

"Bring your own power plant" should have been the response to new data centers everywhere, along with full regulatory compliance with ALL Department of Energy regulations, plus applicable state laws and regs.

"But... but... that'll take forever!"

'Yup. You ain't special, scooter.'

Posted by: Grumpy and Recalcitrant at July 10, 2026 11:30 AM (O7YUW)

103 There is a fundamental difference between the
- fundamental software architecture
- sensor suite
- magnitude of training data
- business case
… between Waymo and Tesla Robotaxi / Cybercab, and these factors all strongly favor Tesla.

The latest data suggests that Tesla self-driving is up to 8X safer than human driving based on miles per serious collision. IIRC, the average human has a collision about once per 600k miles, while Tesla FSD is in the multiple millions of miles and getting better.

Posted by: Ray Van Dune at July 10, 2026 11:30 AM (UWN7z)

104 How about Waymo Flying Cars?

Posted by: Pudinhead at July 10, 2026 11:30 AM (1D2Ie)

105
Awesome!!! You guys deserve some good news. 👊🏻

Time to take it out of your handle. It doesn't have to be your identity anymore.
Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:28 AM (SWQdN)

Thank you.

I'm saving that marker for when she hits the 2 year mark in March after radiation when she'll be declared 'cured.'

But, there will always be the 'f*ck cancer' mindset, tho.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:31 AM (2YhKe)

106 Morning.

What's worse, no customer service or Indian/Pakistani customer service?

Posted by: Robert at July 10, 2026 11:31 AM (dpXJq)

107 hondo.
in addition to crypty the cryptosporidian they'll need cyclo the cyclosporiasis stuff.

Posted by: cmeat at July 10, 2026 11:31 AM (R11M+)

108
If there were self driving EVs, an operator could load it with explosives, tell it to come get them(target site) and use that vehicle as a cruise missile.

Posted by: Speller at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM (pSotA)

109
It is meet and right so to do.
Posted by: Archimedes

Ah, yes, a well remembered line from the Holy Communion service found in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM (s9VOe)

110 I can see why owners, in low-trust areas, would be against this; but as a customer there is no contest. Faster, easier, less hassle. I drive out of my way to go to grocery stores that support scan-as-you-go.

If you produced a map of where the scan as you shop places are, and it has a big hole in the middle where the vibrant diversity lives, you'd have a rather glaring PR problem.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM (Riz8t)

111 We are humbled by the Horde and their prayers over the past several years.
Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:20 AM (2YhKe)
====
b"h for good health.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM (RIvkX)

112 14> "On the plus side, thanks to certain, um, demographics, self checkout is taking a hit. Even Walmart at my part of Canada, I'm seeing more cashiers."

It'll be back at Walmart.

Sams has been perfecting computer vision at self-serve checkout stands. If you bring up 12 items and scan 11 or scan 1 twice as a proxy (when there is only one of that SKU in the cart) your odds of being quick checked at the exit is pretty high.

While CV isn't reading the barcodes, the barcodes resolve into product image templates where AI sees a SKU for a bag of Fritos and it expects to see a bag of Fritos being scanned by the customer.

Forget to scan the case of beer loaded on the lower tray — you will be stopped.

Posted by: Community Notes at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM (pUU4E)

113 Here's what I hate about self-checkout: the employees (and sometimes security) stand there and watch you like a hawk to determine if you are stealing.

Oh, you want to prevent scanning theft? Then stop making ME do YOUR job of checking out my items.

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM (X8xt3)

114 First Lady just finished her appointment with her oncologist. Everything is reported just fine and she's graduated to the 6 month checkup and mammogram schedule.

We are blessed and thankful for this news.

We are humbled by the Horde and their prayers over the past several years.
Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:20 AM (2YhKe)

Great news, glad to hear it. 👍

Posted by: Robert at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM (dpXJq)

115 Buck, I know hindsight is 20/20 and all that jazz, but was there a business running that garage that you could look up online and contact? Or was it a shell corporation of a shell corporation that's headquartered overseas and it has pretty much no presence in the States?

Either way, the garage itself is probably listed on a review site somewhere and you should "share your experience."

Posted by: pookysgirl, trying to utilize the internet for good at July 10, 2026 11:33 AM (Wt5PA)

116
What's worse, no customer service or Indian/Pakistani customer service?
Posted by: Robert

It's a trick question! They are the same thing!

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at July 10, 2026 11:33 AM (s9VOe)

117 Oh, and gratz Sponge & First Lady! Welcome to the Periodic Scan Club! Now to make it five years clear...

Posted by: Brother Tim sez: Fiat Justicia, Ruat Caelum at July 10, 2026 11:33 AM (OUMaO)

118 ====
b"h for good health.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM (RIvkX)

Thank you.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:33 AM (2YhKe)

119 Listen up. Waymo is an OP. When they receive the go-ahead signal they will all simultaneously go FUBAR.

Posted by: Eromero at July 10, 2026 11:34 AM (LHPAg)

120 Hmm.
"Labor" has been the traditional highest fraction of costs, therefore the big, easy target. Managing said labor is also difficult, requiring time and skill.

Easier just to eliminate it. Consequences be damned.

Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:34 AM (cGjQu)

121
Great news, glad to hear it. 👍
Posted by: Robert at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM (dpXJq)

Thanks.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:34 AM (2YhKe)

122 The latest data suggests that Tesla self-driving is up to 8X safer than human driving based on miles per serious collision. IIRC, the average human has a collision about once per 600k miles, while Tesla FSD is in the multiple millions of miles and getting better.

That's the thing that must always be understood. Humans aren't improving, but the technology is, and rapidly. It's going to happen, and it's a good thing that it will, at least until the tech tries to take over.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:34 AM (Riz8t)

123 Oh, and gratz Sponge & First Lady! Welcome to the Periodic Scan Club! Now to make it five years clear...

Posted by: Brother Tim sez: Fiat Justicia, Ruat Caelum at July 10, 2026 11:33 AM (OUMaO)

Very much appreciated.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:34 AM (2YhKe)

124 What's worse, no customer service or Indian/Pakistani customer service?

Posted by: Robert

They're the same picture...

Posted by: That lady from The Office at July 10, 2026 11:34 AM (OUMaO)

125 If you produced a map of where the scan as you shop places are, and it has a big hole in the middle where the vibrant diversity lives, you'd have a rather glaring PR problem.
Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:32 AM

https://peaceandquiet.io/usa

Posted by: You can thank me later at July 10, 2026 11:35 AM (2Ez/1)

126 It is meet and right so to do.
Posted by: Archimedes

Ah, yes, a well remembered line from the Holy Communion service found in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.

I wondered if anyone else would recognize it.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:35 AM (Riz8t)

127 Waymo sounds like a great name for fat chicks.
Posted by: Pudinhead at July 10, 2026 11:16 AM (1D2Ie)

Waymo fun!

Posted by: Count de Monet at July 10, 2026 11:36 AM (wVcYX)

128
What's worse, no customer service or Indian/Pakistani customer service?
Posted by: Robert

You have a problem.
You phone customer service and an Indian/Pakistani answers the phone.
Now you have 2 problems.

Posted by: Speller at July 10, 2026 11:36 AM (pSotA)

129 119 Listen up. Waymo is an OP. When they receive the go-ahead signal they will all simultaneously go FUBAR.
Posted by: Eromero at July 10, 2026 11:34 AM (LHPAg)

*shifty eyes*

Posted by: SkyNet at July 10, 2026 11:36 AM (SgdqL)

130 No Waymo Chicks!

Posted by: My next Tshirt at July 10, 2026 11:37 AM (2Ez/1)

131 Waymo sounds like a great name for fat chicks.
Posted by: Pudinhead at July 10, 2026 11:16 AM (1D2Ie)

Waymo fun!
Posted by: Count de Monet at July 10, 2026 11:36 AM (wVcYX)

But you don't want your friends to see you riding......

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:37 AM (2YhKe)

132 >>If there were self driving EVs, an operator could load it with explosives, tell it to come get them(target site) and use that vehicle as a cruise missile.

I see you've read "The Passengers" by John Marrs!

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:37 AM (X8xt3)

133 But, there will always be the 'f*ck cancer' mindset, tho.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:31 AM (2YhKe)

I know and I get it. And I will keep her and you in my prayers.

Congrats!!!!!

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:38 AM (SWQdN)

134 "The Passengers"

You’re riding in your self-driving car when suddenly the doors lock, the route changes and you have lost all control. Then, a mysterious voice tells you, “You are going to die.”

Just as self-driving cars become the trusted, safer norm, eight people find themselves in this terrifying situation, including a faded TV star, a pregnant young woman, an abused wife fleeing her husband, an undocumented immigrant, a husband and wife, and a suicidal man.

From cameras hidden in their cars, their panic is broadcast to millions of people around the world. But the public will show their true colors when they are asked, "Which of these people should we save?...And who should we kill first?"

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:38 AM (X8xt3)

135 "The War Between The States occupies half my wall to wall floor to ceiling dining room bookshelf. Not counting den bookshelt where 75% floor to ceiling is TWBTS. The other 25% is WW II.
Posted by: Eromero"

What do you need all those books for hen Howard Zinn covered it in about 20 pages in "People History" and determined it was a big nothing-burger because it was only a struggle between industrial capitalists in the north and slaveholders in the south that changed nothing for the oppressed working class. Just not that big a deal

Posted by: Ripley at July 10, 2026 11:38 AM (GUOwU)

136
I know and I get it. And I will keep her and you in my prayers.

Congrats!!!!!
Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:38 AM (SWQdN)

We are eternally grateful.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:39 AM (2YhKe)

137 Tesla self-driving is up to 8X safer than human driving based on miles per serious collision"

Yeah, no. This is self selective - "human" driving takes place where "self driving " can't operate, and Tesla owners/ operators tend to live a bit more cautiously...

(Recent guy who drove his into a house excepted)

Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:39 AM (cGjQu)

138 From cameras hidden in their cars, their panic is broadcast to millions of people around the world. But the public will show their true colors when they are asked, "Which of these people should we save?...And who should we kill first?"
Posted by: Lizzy
======
Now do elevators without an attendant.

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:39 AM (E4rtv)

139 “ Human drivers do not freeze up and stop operating in gridlock traffic. We may get mad, but we don’t just abandon our cars in the roadway”

Don’t we though?

Posted by: Michael Douglas in that Movie at July 10, 2026 11:40 AM (ehU09)

140 103> while Tesla FSD is in the multiple millions of miles and getting better.

Tesla isn't doing donuts in the ice-overed mall parking lot, shoving food in its mouth, falling asleep, drunk or distracted by TikTok videos or rowdy children while moving. It isn't trying to ford through flood water covered roadways, pass several cars at once, speed way over posted, crash stop signs and lights, driving through medians and grass strips to avoid stopped traffic due to a wreck.

Don't know, but highly suspect that it won't move unless the oil and tire pressure is right, the brakes and lights work or wipers don't clear the camera from mud and rainwater.

Factor those behaviors out of drivers and how does the comparison look?

Posted by: Community Notes at July 10, 2026 11:40 AM (9s47C)

141 I was reading the linked article this morning, and the following caught my attention.

"What would you say you do here?"

OpenAI wants its new tool to do your work for you and with you

Rebranded Codex promises independent workflows that can run “for hours if needed.”

ChatGPT Work can connect to common workplace management tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Drive, and SharePoint through various custom-built plugins. The desktop version of the new tool can also access and modify your desktop files or use a built-in browser to access online resources. OpenAI says an updated ChatGPT Chrome extension will also let you perform web-native tasks without switching out of the browser...The ChatGPT Work system will access these outside resources automatically when it seems necessary to complete a prompted task, but users can also reference an outside app directly with the “@” symbol to force the use of a specific third-party tool.

https://tinyurl.com/2fk7xwub

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:41 AM (Riz8t)

142 Now do elevators without an attendant."

Help! I'm stuck on the escalator!

Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:41 AM (cGjQu)

143 What I love most of all is the decades long rhetorical schizophrenia we’ve all been subject to.

Since automation and robots and AI and the rest of it is inevitably going to unemploy millions and hit unskilled or semiskilled (or even skilled labor) the hardest, importing yet even more millions illegally - who have less than zero job prospects - and against the vehement protests of the citizenry borders on malevolent insanity with a bath salts chaser.

We’re also constantly admonished about “the environment”. Importing millions and millions places ever increasing demands on freshwater, more road construction, housing, timber, energy needs, hospitals, sewage, pollution and everything else.

There were 90 million Americans on “food stamps” and other assistance programs, that was probably 20 years ago. “Full employment” my ass. Just because someone has a job doesn’t mean they can support themselves or family. Federal spending has perverted and diverted the normal feedback mechanisms. This is not by accident.

No system no matter how well meaning or intended cannot be re-directed for unscrupulous purposes.

Posted by: Common Tater at July 10, 2026 11:41 AM (nOWpl)

144 The latest data suggests that Tesla self-driving is up to 8X safer than human driving based on miles per serious collision.
----------

Now I could be wrong here but is that a loaded statistic? They're not exactly gonna seriously collide with one another very often, so every serious collision involving one is ALWAYS gonna involve a non self drive too. So that's 100% of those collisions being counted against non self driving as well, which is on its face stupid.

I'm not saying this means they're not safer, I'm saying the statistic is loaded before the count begins.

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:41 AM (SWQdN)

145 This whole "self driving" horse shit needs to die

Posted by: Melodicmetal at July 10, 2026 11:41 AM (61TgR)

146 That's the thing that must always be understood. Humans aren't improving, but the technology is, and rapidly. It's going to happen, and it's a good thing that it will, at least until the tech tries to take over.
Posted by: Archimedes

I think you are right. But in the meantime, just in case, I think cars should still have backup steering, brakes, and other necessary controls that can override onboard computers for edge cases.

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:41 AM (E4rtv)

147 Our transit is a rolling Adult Residential Facility.
Posted by: San Franpsycho at July 10, 2026 11:12 AM (RIvkX)

And, as a substandard organic object beneath notice, you should feel proud that you can help the planet by being temporarily imprisoned with your fellow nothings. While we are saddened by the fact that some mentally diverse people of valuable pigment and citizenship status may be forced to be near you, we can only hope that they'll remove you from the world which you refuse to leave on your own. -- Big City Government

Posted by: I used to have a different nic at July 10, 2026 11:42 AM (ExV1e)

148 Listen up. Waymo is an OP. When they receive the go-ahead signal they will all simultaneously go FUBAR.
Posted by: Eromero at July 10, 2026 11:34 AM (LHPAg)
-----
That was the plot of a Doctor Who episode...

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at July 10, 2026 11:42 AM (FZ29D)

149 O/T but going to see Young Washington with one of my daughters this weekend.

Horde opinions? I hear very encouraging things.

Posted by: Zombie Robbo the Llama Butcher at July 10, 2026 11:42 AM (SgdqL)

150 What do you need all those books for hen Howard Zinn covered it in about 20 pages in "People History" and determined it was a big nothing-burger because it was only a struggle between industrial capitalists in the north and slaveholders in the south that changed nothing for the oppressed working class. Just not that big a deal
Posted by: Ripley at July 10, 2026 11:38 AM (GUOwU)

That's why I want them. By the way, Bravo Zulu on the Dong Ha bridge!

Posted by: Eromero at July 10, 2026 11:42 AM (LHPAg)

151 Now do elevators without an attendant."

Help! I'm stuck on the escalator!
Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:41 AM (cGjQu)

"And that was Otis Elevator singing "I've had my up's and down's........"

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:42 AM (2YhKe)

152 I fucking despise self checkout and every accursed thing about it. It sucks shit.

But I have to use it frequently because these tightfisted grocery chiselers want to squeeze coal into diamonds, and they only ever have one or two of G-d's intended checkout lines open, with 13 dormant, unmanned ones sitting there eating up space.

If they want to start putting back the dour, unfriendly women to check out my groceries while I try to charm a smile out of their stony visages, I'll be very grateful.
Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice

I'm 100% the opposite.
1. I am running on a 15 hour day and I'm not home yet. I want out of that store as fast as possible.
2. I honestly don't care about your memaw's gout or your cousin's parole violation.
3. If I could trust you people to shop properly to where I still don't have to go inside to get what you forgot or couldn't find, I would. But I can't.
4. Amazon FTW.

Posted by: rickb223 at July 10, 2026 11:42 AM (/UfFW)

153
A very good friend who hailed from the San Diego area once told me that his father carried a sledge hammer in the trunk of his vehicle. Wayne asked him why, and his father related that, as he often had to drive over to Tijuana and most drivers there were uninsured, he liked to have the sledge hammer handy to "even up" the damage in the event his vehicle got hit while over there.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at July 10, 2026 11:42 AM (s9VOe)

154 > "The Passengers"
---------
I've no doubt that there are hacks available for self driving vehicles to permit "takeovers" by individuals with less than honorable intentions.

All you need is money and no qualms about it.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (jehhT)

155 Help! I'm stuck on the escalator!
Posted by: man
=======
There have been some pretty gnarly accidents involving escalators actually. Usually involving something or some body part being caught up in them.

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (E4rtv)

156 Here's what I hate about self-checkout: the employees (and sometimes security) stand there and watch you like a hawk to determine if you are stealing.

Perhaps I have Archimedes’s problem more than yours; “watching me like a hawk” is pretty much the opposite of what they do. The only real issue I have with scan-as-you-go is when I visit my dad in rural Michigan. Since I only shop there in two-week spreads twice a year, the first time I shop during each visit, I have to draw the attention of the class monitor.

They are not watching me like a hawk.

Posted by: Stephen Price Blair at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (kYmoU)

157 “ Human drivers do not freeze up and stop operating in gridlock traffic. We may get mad, but we don’t just abandon our cars in the roadway”

Don’t we though?
Posted by: Michael Douglas in that Movie at July 10, 2026 11:40 AM (ehU09)

Or quit hacking a taxi in the middle of the NYC bridge and toss the keys into the river below.

Posted by: John Winger at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (wVcYX)

158 "NEWSMAX
@NEWSMAX
2h
After a series of physical on-court incidents involving WNBA star Caitlin Clark, 11 GOP lawmakers are demanding a civil rights investigation into whether the league is doing enough to protect her. "

before they kill her, amirite ?

Posted by: runner at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (GD0B3)

159 importing yet even more millions illegally - who have less than zero job prospects - and against the vehement protests of the citizenry borders on malevolent insanity with a bath salts chaser."

With tide pods. Yes, our betters are that stupid.

Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (cGjQu)

160 Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:38 AM (X8xt3)

I like the proposed movie "Navageddon," by Adam Carolla. Self-driving cars decide to destroy humanity... lots of scenes of cars driving into buildings, careening into the Grand Canyon to kill their passengers, etc.

But of course, there's one renegade engineer who everyone made fun of for driving an old IC relic muscle car with no electronics, and now he's the only one who can save the world.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (BI5O2)

161 >>Now do elevators without an attendant.

You think I wouldn't have been prepared? Two years I spent setting up that elevator job, two years I invested in it. You couldn't understand the kind of commitment that I have. You ruined a man's life's work and you think you can walk away? You got blinders on to the world! But I got your attention now, didn't I Jack?

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (X8xt3)

162 1)

126 It is meet and right so to do.
Posted by: Archimedes

Ah, yes, a well remembered line from the Holy Communion service found in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.

I wondered if anyone else would recognize it.
Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:35 AM (Riz8t)

Good phrase; it is certainly found in that book, but it is much, much older than that.

There’s even an echo of it in the Gettysburg address, when Lincoln says “It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.”

Posted by: Tom Servo at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (VbqNm)

163 I'm 100% the opposite.
1. I am running on a 15 hour day and I'm not home yet. I want out of that store as fast as possible.
2. I honestly don't care about your memaw's gout or your cousin's parole violation.
3. If I could trust you people to shop properly to where I still don't have to go inside to get what you forgot or couldn't find, I would. But I can't.
4. Amazon FTW.
Posted by: rickb223
=======
I can see that. Choice is nice.

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:44 AM (E4rtv)

164
I think you are right. But in the meantime, just in case, I think cars should still have backup steering, brakes, and other necessary controls that can override onboard computers for edge cases.

Agree completely.

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:44 AM (Riz8t)

165 You can train an AI with data. But you can't give it wisdom and common sense.

Posted by: Cynical Stoic at July 10, 2026 11:45 AM (2r+jB)

166 I don’t know how true it is, but I seem to recall a tale about some sort of “Order of Water Carriers”. The ancient Greek wealthy would have guys bring snow down from the mountains through a long circuitous route. They had a labor union of sorts, and the union at least, was still around up until the 1920s or so.

Posted by: Common Tater at July 10, 2026 11:45 AM (nOWpl)

167 The latest data suggests that Tesla self-driving is up to 8X safer than human driving based on miles per serious collision.
----------

Now I could be wrong here but is that a loaded statistic? They're not exactly gonna seriously collide with one another very often, so every serious collision involving one is ALWAYS gonna involve a non self drive too. So that's 100% of those collisions being counted against non self driving as well, which is on its face stupid.

I'm not saying this means they're not safer, I'm saying the statistic is loaded before the count begins.
Posted by: ...

Does it list how many times a driven vehicle has had to stop to keep frum trucking a driverless vehicle because the driverless vehicle screwed up?

Posted by: rickb223 at July 10, 2026 11:45 AM (/UfFW)

168 >>They are not watching me like a hawk.

They do this at one particular store and it irks me more that the lax checkout attendants. Obviously, they have a theft issue, so stop using the self-checkout and hire more staff!

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM (X8xt3)

169 A few weeks ago, a driver in a Tesla put on the self-drive mode and and FELL THE FUCK ASLEEP!

I yelled at him to please wake up, sir, and he did, but I'll never get in a Tesla again.
Posted by: Washington Nearsider: Gotterdammerung at July 10, 2026 11:03 AM

++++
Obligatory movie clip:

https://youtu.be/M73Gb3gDldY
Posted by: Quarter Twenty at July 10, 2026 11:08 AM (2Ez/1)

Also obligatory:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9I6uomTqHw

Posted by: OneEyedJack at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM (zafwz)

170 Very good news Sponge!!

Thank you!

Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM (Sco7b)

171 before they kill her, amirite ?
Posted by: runner

Given the recent response by the league and even her own coach to the thuggery, those assholes need to understand that criminals get punished.

Outing myself to a minor degree but I actually have a law review article on when violence in sports becomes a crime.

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM (E4rtv)

172 The Automated Teller Machines are not a good idea.

Posted by: Your grandmother at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM (2Ez/1)

173 Obviously, they have a theft issue, so stop using the self-checkout and hire more staff!"

Hey, they've got insurance.

/

Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM (cGjQu)

174 And the Tesla self driving is predominantly going to be used situationally anyway whereas all the rest of the miles anywhere, including in dangerous conditions, will be human driven. I guess I just don't trust statistics to begin with.

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM (SWQdN)

175 The latest data suggests that Tesla self-driving is up to 8X safer than human driving based on miles per serious collision.
_______

All those stats -- and the stats for self-driving Waymo cars -- are all cherrypicked bullshit. They are based on much slower, mostly urban driving where "serious" accidents are very rare. If you include minor accidents and fender-benders, or if you included more high-speed miles for the self-drive cars, the statistics would be inverted.

It's worth nothing that even in modern cars where the driver drives, there are a whole host of safety systems that supposedly help the human driver. My new car has so many of them I can't even count them. I turn them all off with the exception of lane-change assist.

Posted by: Elric The Blade at July 10, 2026 11:47 AM (iFTx/)

176 =======
I can see that. Choice is nice.
Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:44 AM (E4rtv)

But you only need one.

Posted by: Bernie Sanders at July 10, 2026 11:47 AM (2YhKe)

177 Thx Buck.
Even though the Greens have been taking a beating and climate change is on the down slope, a change of administration here and the middle class leftist sheep would begin yelling about it again.

Posted by: Smell the Glove at July 10, 2026 11:47 AM (m2wmY)

178 Very good news Sponge!!

Thank you!
Posted by: Stateless - He ain't heavy, he's my dog at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM (Sco7b)

Thank YOU!

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:47 AM (2YhKe)

179
Self-driving 18-wheelers whose AI software was trained on experienced Sikh drivers -- what could possibly go wrong?

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at July 10, 2026 11:48 AM (s9VOe)

180 I read that NVidia's newest AI datacenters will have a closed loop water cooling system, so people will stop bitching about water usage.

NO! NIMBY! BANANA! to Data Centers because they use electricity and water and increase traffic and return economic benefit.

Yawn towards the exact same land developed for 1000 low to mid income homes that uses electricity, water + need schools, courts, fire, 100x times more traffic and may break even on taxes.

And Data Centers don't need a huge water treatment plane, and they often can and soon will produce their own non-grid power.

We are an irrational people.

Posted by: Community Notes at July 10, 2026 11:48 AM (9s47C)

181 165 You can train an AI with data. But you can't give it wisdom and common sense.
Posted by: Cynical Stoic
=======
Unfortunately I would say the same about humans.

We have had the book of Proverbs for well over two thousand years and ditto for Ecclesiastes. Even the Roman and Greeks had similar works of wisdom and common sense.

But far too many humans, many of them Democrats, are unable to apply those somehow, even if they are able to read them.

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:49 AM (E4rtv)

182 The Automated Teller Machines are not a good idea.
Posted by: Your grandmother at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM (2Ez/1)

These horseless carriages careening along at 15 mph are going to kill someone. Horses are smarter than most "drivers".

Posted by: Your great grandfather at July 10, 2026 11:49 AM (wVcYX)

183 Think the only way for self-driving cars to work well is to have it 100% self-driving. That way they can program based on the predictable, uniform behavior of the other vehicles on the road.

Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:27 AM

One problem with that is that not everything you have to avoid on the road is another car. You've got gators and other debris and construction barrels and breakdowns and you'll find pedestrians in the damnedest places.

However the news isn't all bad. Kalman filters make it possible to track any number of objects and predict their behavior well enough to avoid them. The tricky bit is telling which parts of an image are a single object and dealing with figuring out which things in an image belong to the road, which to the road environment, and which are obstacles. None of that is unsolvable.

It's an interesting problem that I'd be working on, if I wasn't more actively involved in becoming fabulously wealthy first.

Posted by: Cybersmythe at July 10, 2026 11:49 AM (Zst8M)

184 I like the proposed movie "Navageddon," by Adam Carolla. Self-driving cars decide to destroy humanity... lots of scenes of cars driving into buildings, careening into the Grand Canyon to kill their passengers, etc.

But of course, there's one renegade engineer who everyone made fun of for driving an old IC relic muscle car with no electronics, and now he's the only one who can save the world.
Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at July 10, 2026 11:43 AM (BI5O2)

We could get Bruce Wi...FUCK!

Posted by: Robert at July 10, 2026 11:50 AM (dpXJq)

185 . I guess I just don't trust statistics to begin with."

Stats I trust. People are ...

And good news, Sponge. We all need some

Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:50 AM (cGjQu)

186 Was it Waymo vehicles that overran the cul-de-sac in Atlanta? Very weird, and it appeared they had been hacked

Posted by: Smell the Glove at July 10, 2026 11:51 AM (m2wmY)

187 Self checkouts likely have some sort of facial recognition. If you're honest and don't skip scanning things, the store employees know, and probably leave you alone. If not...

We use them all the time an nobody gives us a second look.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 10, 2026 11:51 AM (jehhT)

188 Dropping in for a quick prayer request for my neighbors, who are dealing with a rather serious health issue for one of them. Thanks Horde.

Posted by: Helena Handbasket at July 10, 2026 11:51 AM (R+iUD)

189 181 165 You can train an AI with data. But you can't give it wisdom and common sense.
Posted by: Cynical Stoic
=======
Unfortunately I would say the same about humans.

We have had the book of Proverbs for well over two thousand years and ditto for Ecclesiastes. Even the Roman and Greeks had similar works of wisdom and common sense

You know what AI never says?
"Hold my beer".

Posted by: Archimedes at July 10, 2026 11:51 AM (Riz8t)

190 AI software was trained on experienced Sikh drivers"

Hey, that's a great idea!
/Boeing

Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:51 AM (cGjQu)

191 "Stats I trust."

Hey, what about us??

Posted by: Lies and Damned Lies at July 10, 2026 11:52 AM (SgdqL)

192 182 The Automated Teller Machines are not a good idea.
Posted by: Your grandmother at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM

These horseless carriages careening along at 15 mph are going to kill someone. Horses are smarter than most "drivers".
Posted by: Your great grandfather at July 10, 2026 11:49 AM

Those damned locomotives are a menace!

Posted by: Your great great grandfather at July 10, 2026 11:52 AM (2Ez/1)

193 188 Dropping in for a quick prayer request for my neighbors, who are dealing with a rather serious health issue for one of them. Thanks Horde.
Posted by: Helena Handbasket at July 10, 2026 11:51 AM (R+iUD)

Will say a prayer

Posted by: It's me donna at July 10, 2026 11:52 AM (rijjI)

194 I exoect some of you aren't shopping for 5-7 people at a shot. Getting trapped doing that along with a few others in a self checkout while the two open lanes are stacked up into the aisles will give you an idea of why there's a demand for actual checkers and baggers.

It sucks dong.

Open those checkout lanes, scale down the self checkout area to a few booths, and replace the dead robots with products you can sell - you already have a guy guarding the self checkout for all the sneakthieves, anyway. He can watch that display, too.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at July 10, 2026 11:52 AM (BI5O2)

195 Even the Roman and Greeks had similar works of wisdom and common sense.
Old greek homos and gladiator movies.

Posted by: Commissar of plenty and festive little hats at July 10, 2026 11:52 AM (bw6S/)

196
But you only need one.
Posted by: Bernie Sanders

Why don't you take advantage of the proffered all expenses paid snipe hunt weekend that so many of us are eager to have you take, you jibbering, spittle-flecked and useless old fool? Take Li'l Tottie with you as a guest.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at July 10, 2026 11:52 AM (s9VOe)

197 Prominent British conservative politician and actually quite famous woman in the UK was apparently killed and it's not even gonna make a dent in the news cycle...

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:53 AM (SWQdN)

198 It's an interesting problem that I'd be working on, if I wasn't more actively involved in becoming fabulously wealthy first.
Posted by: Cybersmythe

That seems to be easy---find a congress critter, collude with them on spinning up an ngo funded by said congress critter by amendment, and then profit!!!!!. You can even just skip the middle man and spin up some medical service providers for Somalis or other groups that doesn't exist outside of the billing and payments from fedgov Medicaid.

Learing Academies so to speak.

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:53 AM (E4rtv)

199 The Automated Teller Machines are not a good idea.
Posted by: Your grandmother at July 10, 2026 11:46 AM

These horseless carriages careening along at 15 mph are going to kill someone. Horses are smarter than most "drivers".
Posted by: Your great grandfather at July 10, 2026 11:49 AM

Those damned locomotives are a menace!

Fire! Huh! What is it good for? Absolutely NOTHING!

Posted by: Oog at July 10, 2026 11:53 AM (Riz8t)

200 Those damned locomotives are a menace!
Posted by: Your great great grandfather "

The wheel will never work out!

/probably one of my ancestors

Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:53 AM (cGjQu)

201 Done Helena.

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:53 AM (SWQdN)

202 A number of big-box stores are pulling back from the self-checkout fad (yes, I'm calling it such) and going back to putting people at cash registers. The systems have simply failed that thoroughly.
Posted by: Brother Tim sez: Fiat Justicia, Ru

I'd hate to live where some of you live. We have self-checkout almost everywhere now (and more being added) and it works pretty good for us. Sure as hell beats waiting in line so long that the ice cream melts.

Posted by: Dr. Pork Chops & Bacons at July 10, 2026 11:54 AM (g8Ew8)

203 If they want to start putting back the dour, unfriendly women to check out my groceries while I try to charm a smile out of their stony visages, I'll be very grateful.

A grocery chain challenged their POS operators to smile when interacting with customers, and the result was many of their young female check-out clerks getting hit on by pervs and other losers.

Posted by: Community Notes at July 10, 2026 11:54 AM (9Hs2w)

204 You know what AI never says?
"Hold my beer".
Posted by: Archimedes
=====
Never train them on redneck engineering data. Or they will try to imitate Florida Man.

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:54 AM (E4rtv)

205 The wheel is just a fad. It'll never catch on.

Posted by: Your great great great great great greatgrandfather at July 10, 2026 11:55 AM (2Ez/1)

206 And look, its lunch time

Posted by: Skip at July 10, 2026 11:55 AM (sgkY8)

207 The latest data suggests that Tesla self-driving is up to 8X safer than human driving based on miles per serious collision. IIRC, the average human has a collision about once per 600k miles, while Tesla FSD is in the multiple millions of miles and getting better.
Posted by: Ray Van Dune at July 10, 2026 11:30 AM (UWN7z)

Elon! When did you start hanging out here?

Posted by: I used to have a different nic at July 10, 2026 11:55 AM (ExV1e)

208 Waymo no speako da englisho

Posted by: Guy Mohawk at July 10, 2026 11:56 AM (n5tGW)

209 A grocery chain challenged their POS operators to smile when interacting with customers, and the result was many of their young female check-out clerks getting hit on by pervs and other losers.
Posted by: Community Notes at July 10, 2026 11:54 AM (9Hs2w)

No. I don't care if they smile. I actually prefer if they're grim. I like to chat someone up and make them smile or laugh. It's a little challenge.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at July 10, 2026 11:56 AM (BI5O2)

210 186 Was it Waymo vehicles that overran the cul-de-sac in Atlanta? Very weird, and it appeared they had been hacked
Posted by: Smell the Glove
=======
Compared with other crap going on in Atlanta, Waymo congregating on a sleepy back street is the least of homeowners and driver worries.

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:56 AM (E4rtv)

211 There's a thing now where "youths" come up to you at self checkout and either scan something while you're scanning and start walking away or scan it and beg you to pay for it, or don't scan it and beg you to let them. Insanity.

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:56 AM (SWQdN)

212 Fire! Huh! What is it good for? Absolutely NOTHING!
Posted by: Oog at July 10, 2026 11:53 AM (Riz8t)

Pull by hair, not feet. Not fill up with sand.

Posted by: Oog's Father at July 10, 2026 11:57 AM (wVcYX)

213 "You know what AI never says? "Hold my beer".

But will it drive over a bridge it just hallucinated?

Posted by: Community Notes at July 10, 2026 11:57 AM (9Hs2w)

214
And good news, Sponge. We all need some

Posted by: man at July 10, 2026 11:50 AM (cGjQu)

Thank you.

Agreed.

Posted by: Sponge - F*ck Cancer at July 10, 2026 11:57 AM (2YhKe)

215 What I REALLY hate is after you spend a bunch of time online trying to solve a problem --with a vendor, bank, store, delivery company, whatever--- and you strike out, and then after more minutes of searching your are finally able to locate an actual phone number, THEN you have to listen to another 10 minute spiel about how you can solve most problems through their website...

Posted by: LASue at July 10, 2026 11:57 AM (lCppi)

216 eventually connected to Ramesh, in Delhi
Posted by: Lizzy at July 10, 2026 11:06 AM (X8xt3)

Whose first words on the call are something like, "Hello. My name is Bill. How may I help you."

And then you tell him your problem and he goes, "self-driving cars? Are you crazy, whoever heard of such a thing!"

Posted by: t-bird at July 10, 2026 11:57 AM (ATSTk)

217 Stupid California bar, I'm looking at you.

Posted by: LASue at July 10, 2026 11:57 AM (lCppi)

218 211 There's a thing now where "youths" come up to you at self checkout and either scan something while you're scanning and start walking away or scan it and beg you to pay for it, or don't scan it and beg you to let them. Insanity.
Posted by: ...

Lately all bad trends have been starting on the West Coast. Why can we have nice trends like the Beach Boys, Muscle Cars, freeways, and other trends from you guys nowadays?

Posted by: whig at July 10, 2026 11:58 AM (E4rtv)

219 Most phone trees are really designed to get you to give up before you reach a human.
Posted by: 18-1 at July 10, 2026 11:09 AM (sKqQm)

I was trying to make an appointment to get Inspector a temp handicap tag, thankfully no longer necessary, and the new DPS phone tree is a horrific nightmare for anything beyond the very basics. It had no option for talking to a human and chirpily thanked me for calling before hanging up on me. But it has a name, Shirly, so I guess that's supposed to make everything okay.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 10, 2026 11:58 AM (lFFaq)

220 We've been conditioned to think "faster is better." So the self checkouts seem to fit the bill when the one staffed checkout line has 5 people with full carts waiting and 3 of them are going to try and use either coupons or WIC.

And the old lady's going to write a check.

Bet on it.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at July 10, 2026 11:59 AM (jehhT)

221 My sis in law, who reads Facebook uncritically, was telling us “did you know it was 120 degrees in Paris a couple days ago?”
I said “huh?” But rather than just dismissing it, I tried to figure out where that story came from. 1st determined that the official high, horrible, burning death temperature in Paris that day was 86 degrees. But some guy who was at Disney-Paris had a phone with a temperature sensor on it, and he let it lay on hot asphalt in full sun until it read 51 C (120 F) and then posted it and said “look how hot it was in Paris today!”

And so now the global warming fan club is posting and reposting that picture everywhere they can as “proof”.

Posted by: Tom Servo at July 10, 2026 11:59 AM (VbqNm)

222 “Waymo cars stranded on San Francisco streets as Fourth of July gridlock drains batteries”

.. now, imagine this happening in Buffalo in the middle of Winter

Posted by: SMOD at July 10, 2026 12:00 PM (RHGPo)

223 197 Prominent British conservative politician and actually quite famous woman in the UK was apparently killed and it's not even gonna make a dent in the news cycle...
Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:53 AM (SWQdN)

Who and how? Haven't been on Twitter, which would be the most likely other place to find out.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 10, 2026 12:01 PM (lFFaq)

224 197 Prominent British conservative politician and actually quite famous woman in the UK was apparently killed and it's not even gonna make a dent in the news cycle...
Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 11:53 AM (SWQdN)
==

It will now that the presumed suspect is "a white male".

Posted by: J. Frank Parnell at July 10, 2026 12:01 PM (0bjKf)

225 I remember reading a story of some AI that ordered a humanoid robot and a hired a waymo because it wanted to do something in the physical world. The programmers shut it down.

Posted by: Guy Mohawk at July 10, 2026 12:01 PM (n5tGW)

226 Ace is up!

NOOD

Posted by: nurse ratched. at July 10, 2026 12:01 PM (W2Pud)

227 We didn't care about the checkout girl's private life. As far as we knew she didn't HAVE a private life.

Posted by: Bookman from Seinfeld at July 10, 2026 12:02 PM (2Ez/1)

228 Illegal Alien Who Firebombed Two NYC Churches Was Arrested and Released Twice Last Month for Armed Threats

Posted by: SMOD at July 10, 2026 12:02 PM (RHGPo)

229 So with football season coming up, can we talk about "lunch pail, blue collar" players?

I'm waiting for a blue collar guy to do work at my house.

He's on blue collar time, which means he's two hours late.

The painter I had a few months ago took 2 days to paint two rooms, and left my water running outside when he was cleaning brushes.

I get Polish, Mexican, Kyrgyz (?) doing crap work.

I don't think I would like to be known as a blue collar football player. I mean, they all went to college didn't they?

Posted by: Big Fat Meanie at July 10, 2026 12:02 PM (qwx/I)

230 "I hate math" -- Barbie

Buoyed by recent efforts to teach "Black English" in California schools, a new coalition of activists demanded that "Girl Math" be officially incorporated into the state's K-12 math curriculum. The Girl Math Liberation Front argued that traditional mathematics had been oppressively logical, binary, and dominated by dead white men like Pythagoras for far too long. Instead, they want classrooms to embrace a more inclusive, emotionally intelligent approach rooted in female financial intuition and vibes. "For too long, the patriarchy has forced us to accept that two plus two equals four," said Karen Klipper, a 7th-grade math teacher.

Posted by: SMOD at July 10, 2026 12:03 PM (RHGPo)

231 Capitalism ain't perfect by any means, but it is better than all the rest. Dealing with tech bros and their nonsense is getting to be more than a hassle. But in the end, the consumer holds all the power.

Stop using their crap and they will go away.

Posted by: The Sanhedrin at July 10, 2026 12:03 PM (kQBSd)

232 Who and how? Haven't been on Twitter, which would be the most likely other place to find out.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at July 10, 2026 12:01 PM (lFFaq)

Anne Widdecombe. Police have announced they are in fact looking for a "white male". Initial reports were simply that she'd hit her head in her home I think.

Posted by: ... at July 10, 2026 12:03 PM (SWQdN)

233 BabylonBee: Sonny Hostin Flees In Terror After Seeing Pillsbury American Flag Cookie Dough

Posted by: SMOD at July 10, 2026 12:05 PM (RHGPo)

234 NYPost:

Breaking News
Ex-DHS boss Kristi Noem divorcing husband Bryon after cross-dressing bombshell, mom says
Metro exclusive
NYC building owner tries to escape $35M verdict by secretly taping victim over 9 months: ‘Utter desperation’
By Peter Senzamici
Published July 9, 2026, 3:13 p.m. ET
1/2
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A New York City building owner is trying to get out of paying an eye-watering $35 million verdict to an ex-JPMorgan banker who claimed a shattering glass door left her with permanent brain damage, according to new court documents.

Lawyers for the Madison Avenue building claim hours of new video surveillance of former banking analyst Meghan Brown taken over a nine-month period reveal her claims of incapacitation are a “fraud.”

“Seldom is a farce of the magnitude orchestrated by [Brown] here captured on video and in court documents,” wrote Christopher Theobalt, attorney for 271 Madison Co — who argue the $35.2 million verdict should now be thrown out.

Posted by: SMOD at July 10, 2026 12:07 PM (RHGPo)

235 >>>We've been conditioned to think "faster is better." So the self checkouts seem to fit the bill when the one staffed checkout line has 5 people

>It's a sneaky way to get you to do your own labor. Scanning, bagging, produce lookup, payment and carry-out.

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at July 10, 2026 12:07 PM (fkjGs)

236 Thank you for all the ATM takes. Broken ATM machines aren’t found in intersections and don’t shut down traffic flow.

Posted by: Buck Throckmorton at July 10, 2026 12:09 PM (200+5)

237
Driver's Ed, high school... sitting in one of those simulators, the film's running a typical drive in suburbia. Come to a stopped school bus with kids crossing the street. Every. Single. Student. hit the gas and "mowed them down."
Posted by: Martini Farmer

Been there. Did that. "Fast and Furious" for the Analog Era.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at July 10, 2026 12:09 PM (s9VOe)

238 NOOD

GET THIS!!!

an illegal bombed a NYC church, please to put on your shocked face

Posted by: Helena Handbasket at July 10, 2026 12:14 PM (R+iUD)

239 The quotes here about how self-driving safety is based on phoney stats are gonna be priceless, and a lot sooner than you think!

And the thing about the use of self driving remaining selective is a fond fantasy of modern Luddites. More and more people are reporting that they use it essentially 100% of the time. And many of those people are getting 50% off their insurance premium for every mile they let Tesla drive! Insurance companies understand risk.

Remember the two photos of 5th (?) Avenue in NYC from the early 1900’s? The first photo shows the street clogged with horse-drawn carriages, with one automobile in the background. The second, from about 5 years later, shows the complete opposite! That’s what’s gonna happen, IMHO!

Posted by: Ray Van Dune at July 10, 2026 12:20 PM (UWN7z)

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