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The photography of Tyre Nichols
Beyond the headlines, the man.
From Heather Cox Richardson.
Who asked for a new Twitter disaster list thread? Here it is.
Twitter’s staff spent years trying to protect the social media site against impulsive billionaires who wanted to use the reach of its platform for their own ends....
This article rehashes the last three months of Twitter flushing down the toilet.
“In England, no-one can hear you scream”
[CW: profanity, bleak imagery of England, Sting] UK GRIM is the new song by Sleaford Mods, from their forthcoming album. The video is directed by Cold War Steve and is, unsurprisingly, unsubtle. NME: “It might strike a chord with people at their wit’s end.” Big Issue: “It’s just that the English we’re proud of being is absolutely nothing like the English the authorities want to try and promote.”
J.J. Jeczalik speaks!
The collective that contains Art Of Noise have been trying to be more visible recently. Mystery man computer programmer J.J. Jeczalik has popped up in several podcasts recently: From June 2022, SOS pocast [55m], Dec 2022, Synthetic Dreams podcast [44m], Pro Synth Network LIVE! [2h25m, interview begins at around 40m15s] , and Electronic Cafe with a two part interview that totals ~90m
WooHoo*!
Katie Porter is running for Senate.
(*to the tune of Song 2)
Solidarity Forever
The long road to union representation at Yale (threadreader). Yesterday, after an organizing campaign that can be traced back well over 30 years (eg, JSTOR), the Graduate Employees and Students Organization (UNITE-HERE local 33) at Yale University won the right to representation in a landslide landslide 1860-179 victory. The victory comes on the heels of successful strikes at Columbia and the University of California and is part of a growing movement toward grad unionization -- including elections this month at Northwestern and the University of Chicago.
#OpenDnD
A draft of the new Dungeons & Dragons Open Gaming License 1.1 leaked, and the reactions from players and creators who have operated under the OGL 1.0 for nearly twenty years has been dark and angry. Wizards of the Coast (WOTC), which is now owned by Hasbro (who, depsite D&D making over $1Billion last year, regarded it as "under-monetized"), had been working on an updated version without fan input for some time. Gizmodo reporter Linda Codega goes into the details that upend years of fan particiption in 5th Edition.
"It was revelatory for younger Asians"
In 1982, no-one had ever seen a British Asian teenager in a sari singing Indian music on Top of the Pops – until Chandra appeared, with a raga-influenced single that would inspire musicians for decades. The music video. The article.
Misogynist Monster Fucks Around, Finds Out
After having his Twitter account reinstated, alt-right influencer and misogynist Andrew Tate decided to pick a fight with climate activist Greta Thunberg, and quickly found himself on the wrong side of her acerbic wit. His reaction to her snark wound up being much more serious for Tate, as he revealed he was currently in Romania - where he was facing charges of kidnapping, rape, and human trafficking. Needless to say, the Romanian police responded by arresting Tate and his brother Tristan.
Literary Britain
A blog about travelling around Britain (mostly England and Wales) with a literary focus.
* Welcome to Sunny Stevenage (Ellen Terry, Gordon Craig, Forster, Orwell, Bulwer-Lytton)
* The Strangest Town in Wales (Laugharne: Dylan Thomas)
* East Enders (Dickens, Marlowe, other London writers)
* Welcome to Sunny Stevenage (Ellen Terry, Gordon Craig, Forster, Orwell, Bulwer-Lytton)
* The Strangest Town in Wales (Laugharne: Dylan Thomas)
* East Enders (Dickens, Marlowe, other London writers)
A March to the Grave
Joseph Roth and the End of the Austro-Hungarian Empire
No standard biography of Roth exists in English, but this collection of his letters, superbly translated and judiciously edited by long-time Roth advocate Michael Hofmann, provides a more intimate portrait than any biography could. Roth’s letters are a study in authorial candor: in vino veritas, at least in part, for some of them were composed while he was drunk, getting that way, or hungover—the grim trinity that dominated his life more and more until he died of it, plus weltschmerz, in Paris in 1939. He was just short of 45 and had come a long way to die so young. He left behind one masterpiece, The Radetzky March, in which, in a series of vivid set-pieces, he evokes the reality of life high and low during the Austro-Hungarian Empire’s long decline, a vast theme encapsulated in the Trotta family, who ascend to nobility and imperial favor from provincial origins on the obscure fringes of the realm.
"Befriending crows is a wonderful thing"
How to befriend crows.
"Only the females rattle-knock."
The Making Of Tron
You can't imagine what this little company with big ambitions went through to create an iconic film that entirely flopped at the box office. The Making Of Tron [1h28m] is full if insights about process, computer imaging, business running, and basically everything about Tron, the cutting edge movie of its day.
Stop Talking to Each Other and Start Buying Things, or, How We Got Here
Novelist and "cuspy Oregon Trail Xennial" Catherynne M. Valente (previously) takes us through Three Decades of Survival in the Desert of Social Media.
"resentment is an essential survival skill"
A few short scifi pieces by BIPOC authors whose work I love and I frequently recommend. "As a low-quality person waiting for slaughter, Helena understands how those cows feel." "A Series of Steaks" by Vina Jie-Min Prasad (January 2017) (previously) portrays a beef forger, stuck with an awful job, who makes an unexpected friend. "I’m a very expensive prototype but there will be efficiencies at scale." "Left of Bang: Preemptive Self-Actualization for Autonomous Systems" by Vajra Chandrasekera (April 2017), on training in surviving and committing violence, is short and brutal.
Prioritization of carceral spending in U.S. cities
...most large U.S. cities spend more on carceral systems than on health and supportive services, combined.
...After controlling for age, the strongest prioritization of carceral systems was observed in cities where the proportion of low-income Black residents approached or exceeded that of high-income white residents.
Beautiful Boards of Wargaming
Wargames blog The Player's Aid has started a bi-weekly column on map-making and map design for tabletop war games. It provides a look into a very particular niche in graphical design. Examples of two different approaches shown are the lush area-based map of Britain in This War Without an Enemy about the English Civil War and the more subdued but very clear hex-based map in Holland '44 about Operation Market Garden, but there are up to now a total of five games featured.
Putin's War (SLNYT)
Putin's War
A Times investigation based on interviews, intercepts, documents and secret battle plans shows how a “walk in the park” became a catastrophe for Russia.
@elonjet@mastodon.social
If you want to follow the progress of the private jet of the world's richest man, you're out of luck. Bernard Arnault, the LVMH CEO sold it over a month ago.
But suppose you want to follow the comings and goings of the private jet of the man who will soon be the third richest person in the world? That's a more interesting story. "Free speech absolutist" Elon Musk has not only banned the @elonjet account from his once-popular social media site Twitter, on Thursday night the accounts of multiple high profile journalists were banned apparently for reporting on the controversy.
But suppose you want to follow the comings and goings of the private jet of the man who will soon be the third richest person in the world? That's a more interesting story. "Free speech absolutist" Elon Musk has not only banned the @elonjet account from his once-popular social media site Twitter, on Thursday night the accounts of multiple high profile journalists were banned apparently for reporting on the controversy.
Luddite’ Teens Don’t Want Your Likes
In NY, some teens are rejecting iPhones and social media. SL-NYT, but to reader view - think it should work for everybody.
it's kind of like Suspiria but for synth nerds with perms
The year is very very definitely 1971, and these are Rare Moog Dancers.
The Haçienda
The Haçienda - The Club that Shook Britain is an hour-long 2022 BBC documentary about Manchester becoming the center of the universe in the late 80s, with The Hacienda, a club founded by New Order and Factory Records that changed the the culture of the UK and far beyond.
PSA: do not use services that hate the internet
As you look around for a new social media platform, I implore you, only use one that is a part of the World Wide Web.
If posts in a social media app do not have URLs that can be linked to and viewed in an unauthenticated browser, or if there is no way to make a new post from a browser, then that program is not a part of the World Wide Web in any meaningful way.
Consign that app to oblivion.
Gregory Dale Bear, 1951 - 2022.
R.I.P. an American science fiction writer.
Winner of Hugo and Nebula awards, Bear wrote more than fifty books.
App Tracking Protection Beta is Now Available to All Android Users
App Tracking Protection is now open for all Android users. It’s a beta feature in DuckDuckGo for Android that helps block 3rd-party trackers in your apps, even when you’re not using them.
You can see what personal data trackers are typically trying to collect before we block them (like your precise location, age, and a digital fingerprint of your phone). We’ve also improved performance, reduced app exclusions, and made our blocklist publicly available. Start blocking 3rd-party trackers in your Android apps today: update to the latest version of the DuckDuckGo Android app, open Settings and select “App Tracking Protection” and follow the onscreen instructions.
How what you eat affects climate change
How what you eat affects climate change. One serve of beef = 330 grams of carbon dioxide. One serve of chicken = 52 grams of carbon dioxide. One serve of fish = 40 grams of carbon dioxide. One serve of vegetables = 14 grams of carbon dioxide. One serve of lentils = 2 grams of carbon dioxide. Livestock = 14% of all global greenhouse gas emissions, which is equivalent to all the cars, trucks, planes, trains and ships in the world (transportation) which is also 14%.
…a half-dozen glittering new towers stab through the San Jose gloom
Migratory Patterns of The Modern American Skyscraper, a short story by Derrick Boden in Clarkesworld.
Rest in Peace Kevin O'Neill
Comic book illustrator Kevin O'Neill, best known for his work on Marshal Law, 2000 AD, and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, has passed away of cancer at 69.
The highest degree of reprehensibility
Alex Jones ordered to pay nearly half a billion dollars to Sandy Hook families in additional damages (CNN). "This depravity, and cruel, persistent course of conduct by the defendants establishes the highest degree of reprehensibility and blameworthiness," said Judge Barbara Bellis in her decision.
[it looks better] in the dark, which is a compliment I receive a lot too
"When I started this, I thought this video was going to be like a chill travelog, that was like 30 minutes long, and, uh, it didn't turn out to be that."
Jenny Nicholson does a fascinating four hours (almost) on the history and status (as of 2021) of Evermore, a Theme Park/Live Action Role Play experience.
The Sun Always Shines on EV
BBC News: “...they saw a Fiat Panda which had been converted from petrol to electricity. They imported a similar car into Norway and used the first modern-day EV on the country's roads to launch a campaign of civil disobedience, making a point about how it needed to embrace an alternative to polluting fossil fuel vehicles. They racked up fines as they drove the car through toll booths, parked illegally and refused to pay vehicle taxes, arguing that this new form of sustainable transport should be free of these levies in order to make it more attractive.” More in [Goodwood] [Which Car]
“Today the only winner is the Brazilian people”
Lula defeats Bolsonaro to again become Brazil’s president.
"Twenty years after first winning the Brazilian presidency, the leftist defeated incumbent Jair Bolsonaro Sunday in an extremely tight election that marks an about-face for the country after four years of far-right politics." Background on Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva: 'Our phoenix': Lula's ups and downs in Brazil defy belief; background on the election: All you need to know about most divisive vote in Brazil’s history.
"It's doing some really interesting things with roof."
Architect Michael Wyetzner breaks down the details of five creepy buildings from scary movies for Architectural Digest.
'People were sucked into schemes': Molly White on Crypto
Crypto winter had just started when software engineer Molly White launched her blog, Web3 is going just great. She’s now one of the most influential blockchain skeptics.
Wherein Molly White explains, among other things, that, no, she does not think it's all a scam.
But:
“It felt like suddenly people were marketing crypto to the average person,” she told Protocol. “People were getting sucked into these schemes that they really did not know much about or understand properly.”
We got blood red martinis / We got Christina Ricci
Come and find me / at the Goth Beach
Taking pets like no problem
"Bodega cats are royalty in New York City," but it's not always an easy life (YT 4:47). Flatbush Cats is a nonprofit that gives non-judgmental help where people care for neighborhood cats but cannot afford to have them treated. Chill music and explanatory videos help them raise money for their own spay-neuter clinic. They patiently foster spicy kittens, tough old boys, and girls in trouble, along with helping cats who got themselves stuck. [cw: animal injuries]
"Love & Rockets" at 40
For one trio of brothers raised in Oxnard, there was no use in asking for permission to make their comics. They didn't need it. With all the trademarks of an '80s punk mentality, Mario, Jaime and Gilbert began sharing their work on their own... Fans quickly followed, and their fervor remained steady, as did the brothers' creative output. "Love & Rockets," the brothers' ongoing series — now helmed by Gilbert and Jaime — is celebrating its 40th anniversary. And in celebration an hourlong documentary
Elon Musk Says "Fuck It"
After saying he would, then he wouldn't, Elon Musk has announced that he will go through with his purchase of Twitter at $54.20/share.
“[F]or parody to work, it has to plausibly mimic the original.”
Anthony Novak made a parody facebook page of the City of Parma’s police department.
The cops arrested him, charged him with a felony, and lost. Novak sued the cops for ignoring that his site was a parody. He lost his case. He appealed to the sixth circuit and lost again.. Now, it’s on the docket for this Supreme Court term.
Most importantly (to me), The Onion has filed an amicus brief in support of Novak that jokes around but makes a serious argument.
The cops arrested him, charged him with a felony, and lost. Novak sued the cops for ignoring that his site was a parody. He lost his case. He appealed to the sixth circuit and lost again.. Now, it’s on the docket for this Supreme Court term.
Most importantly (to me), The Onion has filed an amicus brief in support of Novak that jokes around but makes a serious argument.
The Cost Of Doing Business
After dealing with a number of personal and social issues throughout the pandemic, Innuendo Studio has another part to the Alt-Right Playbook, in which the way in which white supremacy is handled between white moderates and conservatives is broken down, and how the marginalized become the tokens in a game between those two groups.
Nine Inch Nails Live Q&A from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
Streamed live yesterday as part of NIN Appreciation Day, join Trent and Atticus and nearly the entire other cast of Nine Inch Nails for Nine Inch Nails Live Q&A from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame [1h10m]
Hark! A Duck
Cape Breton comics artist Kate Beaton, best known for Hark! a Vagrant has a new book relaesed today, Ducks, based on her time working in the Alberta tar sands industry. Reviews are good, from NY Times (gift link), the Narwhal, The Guardian, Wired, Quill and Quire. There is an eight page PDF excerpt here and a lengthy video from today of Beaton launching/discussing her new book. An early glimpse from 2014 of Ducks, on Metafilter with good discussion. Mefi-affiliate Amazon link.
it'll turn out right if you've got a potato
you are a halfling just trying to exist. meanwhile, the dark lord rampages across the world. you do not care about this. you are trying to farm potatoes ...
POTATO: a one-page RPG that you can play for yourself in a few minutes with just a piece of scrap paper and a six-sided die or a dice-rolling app. From Oliver Darkshire, who has written other one-page RPGs with the same mechanic, such as Trapped in Your House Due to Hans Christian Andersen and Gay for the Pirate King. All the game pages are free to read on Patreon.
POTATO: a one-page RPG that you can play for yourself in a few minutes with just a piece of scrap paper and a six-sided die or a dice-rolling app. From Oliver Darkshire, who has written other one-page RPGs with the same mechanic, such as Trapped in Your House Due to Hans Christian Andersen and Gay for the Pirate King. All the game pages are free to read on Patreon.
Peter Eckersley has died.
Peter Eckersley (1979-2022)
"Security engineer, digital rights activist, AI safety and policy researcher. Beloved in these communities."
Secretive Billionaire Hands Windfall to Conservatives
Through a series of opaque transactions, secretive billionaire Barre Seid has given $1.6 billion to a non-profit run by Leonard Leo, the conservative Federalist Society co-chair who helped engineer the rightwing takeover of the courts. [ProPublica]