I was a bit grumpy because my wife was having fun building a snowman while I was shoveling the driveway, turns out the snowman is the best thing ever!
Alex Li
alexli@zaps.lol
npub1szpa...h3td
Living free
New 10/22 takedown build
Was cleaning my room and found an old Free Ross flyer, man it’s so good to see that Ross is free now
Can’t stop the signal, so much fun to legally 3d print FOSS silencers
I’m renewing my Federal Firearms License and had to report that I bought 57 guns in the last 3 years. You don’t need a license for guns in America, but getting one gives you extra privileges. I can have guns shipped to my door and can buy guns out of state without background checks.
I legally carry a 9mm handgun. Yet Trump and ICE bootlickers act like any cop can execute me because the First and Second Amendments disappear when their favorite politician is in power.
So many “freedom loving” bitcoiners turned out to be bootlickers defending government thugs murdering Americans for legally exercising their 1st + 2nd amendment rights
More Freedom Go Up grants from @HRF, bullish for bitcoin in 2026!
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Happy New Year! Since 1934, the government charged $200 just for permission to make your own silencer. As of 2026, that tax is finally $0. Thanks to technology, a 3D printer can now make one for a few bucks. Just filed the paperwork, can't wait for my first 3D printed project of the new year!
Getting a foot massage. Therapist says my muscles are tense and that I must not go often (no surprise, massages are expensive in the US).
I pay 138 RMB($20)/hour but he only gets 35 RMB ($5). He works 10am–midnight, 365 days a year, zero days off, for 7,000 RMB a month (~$1,000)
Got my first traffic ticket in China, the endless AI cameras are all knowing and all seeing, you can’t dodge them. Was fined 100 RMB (~$14) for crossing a white line from the straight turn lane into the right turn lane. The local government was kind enough to text me about it
Nothing like some miserable Chinese smog to start the day with, winter heating + a power grid that’s still over 50% coal = heavy smog.
A basket of fresh strawberries here in China costs 60 RMB (~$8). Local minimum wage is 21 RMB/hr ($3). That’s ~3 hours of work. In the US, a carton of $5 strawberries is 30 min at minimum wage. Same fruit, vastly different purchasing power.
Xiaomi YU7 SUV: $33k USD base, $45k fully loaded. I tested the full self driving which uses LIDAR + cameras, lane changes, right turns, yielding, zero input from me. ~350-mile range, air suspension, sub-3 second 0–60 on Max version. Built by $4/hr factory labor.
Even in low wage China I cannot escape the scourge of self checkout machines
First time driving in China, I’m in a used $2k Wuling Mini! No airbags, 100 mile range, 65 mph top speed, it’s cheap can’t complain. The new $5k models have airbags and ABS. This top seller is built by workers on ~$3/hr, pulling 12-hour shifts with only 4 days off a month.
Xiaomi used to just be a knockoff android phone manufacturer but now they sell high end electric sedans and SUVs alongside their smartphones
Merry Christmas! I had a great time listening to a govt approved pastor give a govt approved sermon at Jingling Church. Although the sermon was dry, it was awesome to worship in the same venue where Sun Yat Sen’s wife and father in law/revolutionary financier used to worship
Asked my hotel in Shanghai for a razor and they delivered it via robot
The security camera at the Chinese DMV written test center. They have TSA security with a metal detector and wand to check for hidden electronics