Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Benjamin @benjami.no · 2d

Saleh Al-jafarawi was just killed, despite a ceasefire, by a militia group affiliated with Israel.

Friends of his are coming out saying he's been a target of this group for a while, and he suspected they would come after him.

Rest in peace, martyr of Palestine. 🇵🇸

Photo of Saleh Al-jafarawi, smiling and holding a Palestinian flag and wearing a prominent blue bodyarmor with the word "press" prominently displayed.

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zaebucca @zaebucca.itch.io · 11d

1. FREE SPRITE SIZE. Ideally, but not necessarily, from 64x48px up is perfect.
2. FREE PALETTE, but it should also contain the colours of the Palestinian flag below!
3. You can do anything from boats to ships, rafts and even airships, spaceships and, why not, sea animals and mythological creatures! The view is top-down (classic Zelda or Pokémon style), with the ship’s prow (or sprite’s direction!) facing East.
It can be slightly tilted of course, but we all sail towards East. Light source is the rising sun, so top-right of the screen!
4. You can put everything aboard, from food to toys, books, characters, even yourself. NO violence, NO weapons!
5. No deadlines! Lifelines only: as more boats join the pixel flotilla, we update our patchwork with each entry!

For any doubt, submission or request you can DM Zaebucca on Bsky / instagram / Tumblr

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zaebucca @zaebucca.itch.io · 11d

#pixelflotilla
As Italy goes on strike, we all stand with Sumud, with humanity, against the g3nocide and corrupt politicians. Together we sail. I know for sure that some heroes definitely like One Piece.

If you want to join the flotilla as a collab, more details in the first comment.

A top down pixel art of the Going Merry Ship from One Piece, sailing calmly through the waves. The Strawhat jolly roger waves gently at the very top of the mainmast. A Palestine flag waves atop the rear mast, where a red, white and green sail is also found right below. Many green, red, white and black triangular flags are tied to the ropes all around.
The crew can be spotted all around: Sanji is looking at a watermelon crate, possibly thinking of new recipes. Tony Tony Chopper is strolling happily down the staircase in the deck. Zoro is taking a nap at the bottom of the main mast. Nico Robin is relaxed, leaning on the main central deck railing and watching the waves, with a book by her side. Nami is looking towards the horizon from the bow deck where Usopp can be found as well, busy with ship's reparations. Luffy is sitting atop the sheep figurehead, with his arms stretched, hugging the giant watermelon he is enthusiastically eating.

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Benjamin @benjami.no · 11d

In many ways the movie can be read as a critique of specifically the cruise-ship industry. But if you read into it, it has to mean that many humans were left on earth (though the movie doesn't imply this).

All-in-all, I like the specificity of the Wall-E universe. It gives it a distinct flavour

Benjamin @benjami.no · 11d

I think it was just beyond the scope of the movie. Not every movie can contain the entire breadth of critique.

By my verdict, Pixar was going for a "fuzzy total authoritarian consumerist utopia via puppet regime" vibe. Even if you get everything you want in this utopian vision, its still bad.

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Susan Kaye Quinn is Writing Solarpunk 🌞🌱 @susankayequinn.bsky.social · 13d

Pittsburgh folks! Join us for bookclub tomorrow when we'll be discussing BLOOD IN THE MACHINE with a special guest visit for Q&A from author @bcmerchant.bsky.social !

www.staygoldbooks.com/events
Everything is Fine Book Club
1104 S. Braddock, Pittsburgh PA
Thurs 10/2, 10 am
#bookclub #AI #PGH

Everything is Fine Book Club
Blood in the Machine by Brian Merchant
1104 S. Braddock, Pittsburgh PA
Thurs 10/2, 10 am

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Benjamin @benjami.no · 13d

Adara has been intercepted, expecting them to be boarded any moment.

Benjamin @benjami.no · 13d

The Adara feed went dark a little while ago, but it's back again.

Listening to Kieran Andrieu on the Adara speak now.

Some of the boats have reported being surrounded by Israeli vessels.

All eyes on the floatilla.

Alex @dirtbagboyfriend.bsky.social · 13d

Here’s the official live, with over 60k people watching. Please join us, western witnesses are the only thing that may stay Israel’s hand.
www.youtube.com/live/uEN2bWF...

Reposted by Benjamin

Keith Frankish @keithfrankish.com · 15d

Important 2023 piece by @xriskology.bsky.social on the inhumane and arrogant ideology of AI fanatics. I urge everyone to read it.
www.truthdig.com/articles/the...

TESCREALism: The Acronym Behind Our Wildest AI Dreams and Nightmares

To understand the divide between AI boosters and doomers, one must unpack their common origins in a bundle of ideologies known as TESCREAL.

www.truthdig.com

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Drop Site @dropsitenews.com · 13d

⭕️Update: Drop Site News reporter Alex Colston (@recolston.bsky.social) said the Israeli navy contacted their boat, the Sirius, about 30 minutes ago and told the captain if they kept going they would be breaking what they said was a “lawful blockade,” they mentioned Oct. 7, and said if the boat...

Drop Site @dropsitenews.com · 13d

x.com/i/broadcasts...

x.com

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Drop Site @dropsitenews.com · 13d

BREAKING: Union in Italy has announced a general strike on October 3, as per their promise if the Gaza flotilla was attacked, as it has been now.

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Benjamin @benjami.no · 13d

The Adara feed went dark a little while ago, but it's back again.

Listening to Kieran Andrieu on the Adara speak now.

Some of the boats have reported being surrounded by Israeli vessels.

All eyes on the floatilla.

Alex @dirtbagboyfriend.bsky.social · 13d

Here’s the official live, with over 60k people watching. Please join us, western witnesses are the only thing that may stay Israel’s hand.
www.youtube.com/live/uEN2bWF...

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Alex @dirtbagboyfriend.bsky.social · 13d

Here’s the official live, with over 60k people watching. Please join us, western witnesses are the only thing that may stay Israel’s hand.
www.youtube.com/live/uEN2bWF...

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Benjamin @benjami.no · 13d

Made these back in 2023. Feels more relevant now than ever.

Screenshot of the movie Wall-E
where the captain is getting out of
bed in the morning next to portraits
of previous captains.

A meme photo edit of a portrait of a
Space Captain from the movie Wall-E.
Sam Altman, CEO of Open Al, is
superimposed on the portrait of
the captain. A plackard below reads
"Captain Altman, Open Al". Looming
over his shoulder behind him is a
glowing red eye of a robot Al called
"Auto".
In the movie, a big plot twist is the fact
that the robot is in charge instead of
the human.
Sam is 37, white, has a rectangular
long face and short clean-cut dark
hair, and is looking at the camera with
a sort of goofy half-smile. He has a
defined jawline but a slightly rounded
chin. thin eyebrows, wide lips and
eyes that look a little tired perpetually.

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Alanna Smith @alannawrites.bsky.social · 13d

The language of non-consent around AI is really telling. "It's too late to be scared." "It's here whether we want it or not." "You'll have to learn to work with it." "You can't fight the inevitable."

All just variations of "you're not allowed to say no." Creepy technology made by creepy people.

The Guardian @theguardian.com · 13d

‘It’s too late to be scared’: readers on the controversial rise of AI ‘actors’

The birth of AI ‘actor’ Tilly Norwood has caused a backlash in Hollywood and has sparked conversation from Guardian readers

www.theguardian.com

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Aimee Cozza Illustration @aimeecozza.com · 13d

AI crawler user agent bot list has been updated. WP "Simple NoAI" plugin update to come with the new bots on it.

User agents list of all known AI web crawlers

This is an ongoing list of AI-adjacent crawler user agents that will be updated regularly as new user agents are announced.

www.foundationwebdev.com

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EGAIR - European Guild for AI Regulation @egair.eu · 13d

OpenAI, one of the most prominent AI companies in the world, just released a model trained BLATANTLY on stolen IP.

It's obvious that rights are being violated, and it's also obvious that existing enforcement is not preventing these violations: they press onward.

The EU must enforce its rules

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Sonja Drimmer @sonjadrimmer.bsky.social · 17d

“AI” isn’t a tool or technology or even a cluster of technologies with a misleading name. It’s the infrastructure at the foundation of a form of capitalism dependent on data brokering. We should be teaching our students about this and not teaching them about “responsible” use.

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Benjamin @benjami.no · 21d

Israel is using drones to drop chemicals and bombs on the Global Sumud Flotilla right this second.

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404 Media @404media.co · 22d

We just sued ICE. Support us here: 404media.co/membership/

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Benjamin @benjami.no · 22d

NRK, the National broadcasting service of Norway, should stand in solidarity with Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland, Netherlands, Spain and Palestine, and demand that Israel is banned from Eurovision 2026.

It is the only moral choice to make.

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Tylor Brand @khayyat.bsky.social · 25d

I had to give a big speech to our school's freshmen class on Wednesday and my big takeaways were a) Fuck Gen AI, b) this is an opportunity to find something you love that will enrich your life, so don't just outsource the process to the planet-killing autocorrect app.

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Brian Merchant @bcmerchant.bsky.social · 27d

Freelance illustration gigs drying up. Ad agencies using Midjourney instead of hiring human artists. Costume design turned over to AI wholesale. Good work vanishing.

These are the stories of working visual artists, who describe losing jobs, wages, and hope as their clients and bosses embrace AI.

Artists are losing work, wages, and hope as bosses and clients embrace AI

Visual artists, illustrators and graphic designers share their stories about how AI is being used to lower wages, degrade work and even replace it altogether, in this installment of AI Killed My Job.

www.bloodinthemachine.com

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EGAIR - European Guild for AI Regulation @egair.eu · 26d

Thank you Brian for getting these testimonies and first-hand accounts.

Harrowing reading on how AI impacts artists.

Brian Merchant @bcmerchant.bsky.social · 27d

Freelance illustration gigs drying up. Ad agencies using Midjourney instead of hiring human artists. Costume design turned over to AI wholesale. Good work vanishing.

These are the stories of working visual artists, who describe losing jobs, wages, and hope as their clients and bosses embrace AI.

Artists are losing work, wages, and hope as bosses and clients embrace AI

Visual artists, illustrators and graphic designers share their stories about how AI is being used to lower wages, degrade work and even replace it altogether, in this installment of AI Killed My Job.

www.bloodinthemachine.com

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Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.bsky.social · Sep 14

Amazon, Microsoft, and Google are all firing any dissenting voice, and anyone who dares to ask these corporations stop fuelling genocide

www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...

Tech worker dissent over Gaza bubbles inside Amazon, Microsoft and Google

An Amazon employee said he was suspended for saying it must cut ties with Israel over the Gaza war. Microsoft and Google have fired workers for similar protests.

www.washingtonpost.com

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castpixel ⚧️⚢ @castpixel.bsky.social · Sep 3

I art directed and did graphics on this game. I promise it's something special

Rami Ismail (رامي) @ramiismail.com · Sep 3

It's been a while.

Glad to be announcing a new game, and happy that it is something experimental and weird: a tiny, tense, turn-based strategy game about merging units into spectacular combinations, and then watching them evaporate thousands of bugs.

store.steampowered.com/app/2396130/...

Australia Did It - Reveal Trailer

YouTube video by MysticForge

www.youtube.com

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