Terms of Use
Last updated: September 23, 2026
What these terms cover
The Variables is an independent publication. These terms cover the website, the newsletter, reader accounts, and comments. Using the site means accepting them.
Accounts and comments
One account per person, registered to an email address you control. You can delete your account from your account page. Deletion removes your name and address, and your comments are shown as written by "Deleted reader". When deleting your account, you can choose to remove the text of your comments as well; after deletion, you can request this at editor@the-variables.com. You keep ownership of what you write. By posting a comment, you allow it to be displayed and stored with the article it belongs to, in any language the article appears in. Comments must not be abusive, unlawful, or promotional, and comments that break these rules may be hidden. A reader's first comment waits for review; after that, comments appear immediately, and you can remove your own at any time.
Privacy: what is stored, and why
This section is the privacy policy. The site collects only what is listed here. An account stores a name, an email address, and a preferred language. A newsletter subscription stores an address and a language. Comments and likes are stored against the account that made them. Article reads are counted anonymously, as a view, a read-depth signal, and the referring domain. Server logs hold IP addresses and request lines for a short period, to diagnose faults and stop abuse. Email is used for the newsletter and for account messages such as address confirmation and password resets. Every newsletter includes a one-click unsubscribe link; unsubscribing does not delete your account. Your data is not sold, rented, or shared. There are no advertising networks, no third-party analytics, and no tracking cookies on this site.
Your rights, cookies, and retention
You can read and correct your name, address, and language on your account page, and delete your account there. After deletion, your comments remain under "Deleted reader" unless you also removed their text; a comment whose text was removed no longer appears with the article. There are two cookies: access_token keeps you signed in and is removed when you sign out, and tv-theme remembers your choice of light or dark theme. Neither tracks you, and there are no others. Account data is kept until you delete the account, newsletter addresses until you unsubscribe, reading counts only in anonymous aggregate, and server logs for a short period before deletion.
Who is responsible
The data controller is The Variables, operated from the European Union. Requests about anything on this page go to editor@the-variables.com and are answered within thirty days. If a request is refused, you receive the reason in writing. Nothing here removes a right you hold under the consumer or data-protection law of the country you live in; where that law and these terms conflict, that law wins.
Content and liability
Articles, images, and the design of the site belong to The Variables or to the credited authors and rights holders. Authors keep copyright in their own work and license it to The Variables. Quoting with attribution and a link is welcome; republishing whole articles needs permission. The site is provided as is. What is published here is analysis, not financial, legal, or professional advice. So far as the law allows, The Variables is not liable for losses arising from use of the site or from reliance on its contents.