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Van Badham

@vanbadham.bsky.social

23K followers 1.2K following 2.9K posts

Guardian columnist, co-hosts The Week on Wednesday podcast, makes theatre, yaps a lot. Contact me: https://linktr.ee/vanbadham You should totally buy my book, QANON & ON: A Short and Shocking History of Internet Conspiracy Cults. It’s bonkers.

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Van Badham @vanbadham.bsky.social · 6d

My latest in the @australia.theguardian.com isn’t just about how we must regulate tech - it’s about how WE CAN.

#auspol

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

In a world where techlords rule us by whim, Australia’s stance against deepfakes is reason to celebrate | Van Badham

Could courage be contagious? Let’s hope so, because in the absence of powerful regulation, the normalisation of awful blooms

www.theguardian.com

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Tom Red @tomredmemes.bsky.social · 14h

Do they do *participation* awards?
Asking for a friend.
#trump #Gaza #NobelPeacePrize

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Pearls and Irritations @johnmenadue.com · 13h

At a time when the value of research is being questioned, Richard Robson’s story is a powerful reminder of how scientific research leads to real-world impact. #auspol #NobelPrize

An Australian chemist just won the Nobel Prize. Here’s how his work is changing the world

The 2025 Nobel Prize in chemistry has been awarded for the development of metal-organic frameworks: molecular structures that have large spaces within them, capable of capturing and storing gases and other chemicals.

johnmenadue.com

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southpaw @nycsouthpaw.bsky.social · 2d

This South Side Weekly report on the Chicago building raid is well worth reading. Most striking to me are the indications of collusion between federal authorities and the building owner and management to effect a mass eviction at the blighted property. southsideweekly.com/federal-agen...

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audreyii_fic @audreyii.bsky.social · 13h

oh this is not good

Reuters @reuters.com · 13h

US Supreme Court asked to hear dispute over copyrights for AI creations reut.rs/478nrij

US Supreme Court asked to hear dispute over copyrights for AI creations

A computer scientist on Friday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reconsider a ruling that a work of art generated by artificial intelligence cannot be copyrighted under U.S. law.

reut.rs

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Faine Greenwood @faineg.bsky.social · 13h

we have an inexpensive thing in our house right now that makes other little useful things and yet everyone’s boss isn’t demanding everyone get 3D printers - curious!!

Laruna Softpaw @larunasoftpaw.bsky.social · 13h

Speaking of, why didn't 3D printers get this much attention? It's something that's actually really cool that has practical applications. Is it because they're too cool and useful? Is it because it's harder to scam people with them?

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Anna Bower @annabower.bsky.social · 18h

Paul Ingrassia is now threatening to sue Politico:

“This vexatious political attack masquerading as "journalism" is defamatory and will be addressed in forthcoming litigation.”

October 10, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Re: Statement on behalf of my client Paul Ingrassia regarding last night's story, Key Trump nominee accused of sexual harassment, POLITICO (Oct. 9, 2025), https://www.politico.com/news/2025/10/09/ingrassia-trump-harassment-dhs-
00596545
POLITICO's hit piece about Mr. Ingrassia is calculated to cause maximum harm to his promising career — and torpedo his nomination for Special Counsel. This vexatious political attack masquerading as "journalism" is defamatory and will be addressed in forthcoming litigation.
To be 100% crystal clear, so that there is zero room for doubt: Mr. Ingrassia did not engage in any wrongdoing in connection with the matters reported. As POLITICO itself reported: "The woman, whom POLITICO is not naming, said in a statement that she 'never felt uncomfortable' about Ingrassia's behavior and said she had never made a complaint." This is one of the only accurate parts of POLITICO's otherwise fantastical and fictional partisan fairy tale.
Accordingly, one last time, I call upon POLITICO to publicly apologize and issue a full retraction of this disgraceful and partisan sludge.
/s/ Edward Andrew Paltzik
taylordykema.com

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Dumbledoresarmy @atlantadem.bsky.social · 17h

I will be at one of the protests with 100 senior citizens from my in-laws retirement home. I am not being paid by George Soros. In fact, I am paying a couple hundred dollars to create signs and poster boards for the event.

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Aaron Fritschner @fritschner.bsky.social · 17h

A few minutes ago in the House:

- Speaker Mike Johnson officially cancels votes next week, extending the House recess through a fourth week

- House Republicans block Democrats from passing a bill to pay the troops during the shutdown, ensuring they will miss paychecks next week

House Press Gallery: During today's pro forma session, the Clerk read a message from the Speaker designating Tuesday, October 14 through Sunday, October 19 as a district work period.

Punchbowl's Briana Reilly: House gaveled in and out of its pro forma just now w/o recognizing Rep Elfreth, who was seeking to UC a mil pay bill from Rep Sykes.

Elfreth told reporters after that House Dems stand “ready and willing to take” up standalone legislation to pay troops.

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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 15h

George was just trying to get to work.

ICE pepper-sprayed him, dragged him from his car, locked him in a detention center, and placed him on suicide watch. He even missed his young daughter’s birthday in the process.

This man is a veteran and American citizen. Don't look away.

The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 16h

"They put me on suicide watch and they put me in the cell, I'm naked, in like a hospital dress and just a concrete bed with like a mattress, like a thin mattress and, they leave the light on 24/7."

@timmiller.bsky.social talked to a veteran who ICE wrongly detained and brutalized

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Jason Dogwood 💙 🏳️‍🌈 🌱 @jasondogwood.bsky.social · 14h

In under-the-radar news: a GOP-aligned former election official just bought Dominion Voting. He wants to mirror trump’s election directives. His other company, KnowInk, has been tied to multiple voting failures. Now he controls the machinery & our votes. That should scare everyone.

Former Republican election official buys Dominion Voting — a target of 2020 conspiracy theories

Voting equipment company Dominion Voting Systems, a target of false conspiracy theories since the 2020 election, has been bought by a firm run by a former Republican elections official.

apnews.com

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JA Westenberg @joanwestenberg.com · 13h

it just turns out that when you give everyone a button that says “show me more stuff like this” they keep pressing it until they end up somewhere insane. This is called “progress”

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Goblin Gower, PhD (the Ph is for Phantasm) @medievaliste.bsky.social · 1d

the girlfriend of one of the founders of antifa

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Krime @krime.bsky.social · 1d

Portland keeping it real 🐸

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ryan cooper @ryanlcooper.com · 21h

this is correct. and while you would get a nontrivial one off sum from a billionaire tax (not enough for a welfare state, but a lot), the ongoing point of that tax would be prevent billionaires from existing

Liberal Currents @liberalcurrents.com · 1d

“The problem with billionaires isn’t that they’re hoarding money that would otherwise pay for a Scandinavian social utopia. It’s that their money has become a source of wildly distorted political power that allows a few men with extremist views to wreak havoc on the rest of us.”

Billionaires Are Hoarding Power, Not Money

Billionaire money has become a source of wildly distorted political power that allows a few men with extremist views to wreak havoc on the rest of us.

www.liberalcurrents.com

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The Saturday Paper @thesaturdaypaper.com.au · 21h

“They all criticised Dutton’s command-and-control nature in the national right,” says a moderate Liberal. “Clearly, they needed it, because since he’s been gone they haven’t been able to pull together.”

Inside the battle for the future of the Liberal Party. satpa.pe/wSDNoyy

Exclusive: Abbott ‘disappointed’ by Andrew Hastie as right splinters

A fracturing of the Liberal right faction has created chaos within the party, leading to what MPs have called ‘incredible ... damage’ to the Coalition’s reputation and prospects.

satpa.pe

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competentposter @competentposter.bsky.social · 6d

wizard frog is insane

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Patrick Chovanec @prchovanec.bsky.social · 2d

I want to be the antifa frog when I grow up.

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Lindsay Beyerstein @beyerstein.bsky.social · 21h

Let all the poisons that lurk in the mud hatch out!

The Oregonian @oregonian.com · 1d

Things are happening at Portland's ICE facility tonight.

Read more of our protest coverage here: www.oregonlive.com/crime/2025/1...

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-C-M-F- @chrispps.bsky.social · 21h

it's been said by others already but I am happy to see the frog being reclaimed from the far right as a political symbol

The Oregonian @oregonian.com · 1d

Things are happening at Portland's ICE facility tonight.

Read more of our protest coverage here: www.oregonlive.com/crime/2025/1...

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󠀁󠁿⁢⁢⁤⁤⁢⁢⁢⁤⁢⁢⁤⁤⁢⁢⁤⁤⁢⁢⁤⁤⁢⁢⁤⁤⁢⁢⁤⁤⁢⁤⁤⁤⁤⁤⁤⁤⁢⁢⁢⁢⁤⁢👻 @0x0.boo · 21h

Oh no, terrorist Trump didn't win the Nobel Peace Prize, try not to be sad

Trump only really wanted to win the Nobel Peace Prize for one reason: Obama

President loses out to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado as his dream of surpassing Barack Obama’s achievements continues to elude him

go.stonking.com

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NetBlocks @netblocks.org · 21h

⚠️ Update: Metrics show a decline in internet connectivity in multiple regions of #Ukraine, as authorities impose emergency power shutdowns amid Russian shelling targeting energy infrastructure overnight 🔌📉

Graph from NetBlocks showing network connectivity by region in Ukraine from October 2, 2025, to October 10, 2025. The y-axis represents normalized connectivity, ranging from 0% to 100%, and the x-axis represents the dates. The graph indicates connectivity disruptions in the Ukraine starting on the early morning of October 10. The drop in connectivity aligns with a drone attack from Russia. The minimum and current connectivity levels are indicated as 84% and 86%, respectively.The chart has a dark background and connectivity lines for each region are color-coded. Sumy (67% / 78%), Kirovohrad Oblast (69% / 79%), Poltava Oblast (64% / 82%), Kharkiv (72% / 86%), Kyiv City (84% / 91%), Dnipropetrovsk Oblast (87% / 91%)

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David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · 21h

Glowing shark and hidden crab found deep off Australia

In a stunning glimpse into the mysteries of the deep, scientists have uncovered two new marine species off Western Australia—a glowing lanternshark and a tiny porcelain crab. The discoveries, made…

www.sciencedaily.com

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☠️deadward niedermurder☠️ @niedermeyer.online · 21h

so it goes... another day, another example of elon musk being inexplicably let off the hook for crimes

ProPublica @propublica.org · 22h

NEW: Nevada could’ve fined Elon Musk’s Boring Co. more than $3 million, but regulators are seeking a reduced penalty of $242,800, citing an “extraordinary number of violations.”

Elon Musk’s Boring Co. Accused of Nearly 800 Environmental Violations on Las Vegas Project

Nevada could’ve fined the company more than $3 million, but regulators are seeking a reduced penalty of $242,800, citing an “extraordinary number of violations.”

www.propublica.org

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LOLGOP ❌👑❌ @thefarce.org · 1d

Given how disproportionately these groups are staffed by, supported by, and representative of American Jews, yeah, I'm going to go ahead and call this antisemitism.

Trump’s Domestic Crackdown: Inside the Plan to Investigate Liberal Groups and Reshape Dissent

The roots of this campaign trace back to Trump’s “law and order” rhetoric during the 2020 protests, where he labeled left-wing demonstrators as “domestic terrorists.”

moderndiplomacy.eu

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Van Badham @vanbadham.bsky.social · 1d

What is a “Portland Frog” and why should Australians pay attention to it? I went on ABC radio today to talk about the evolution of hilarious (and ingenious) protest tactics against Trumpism.

www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...

Why are these US protesters in Oregon dressing up as frogs and cartoon mascots? - ABC listen

Judges in California and Oregon this week ruled that President Trump violated the law by taking control of the National Guard in those states.

www.abc.net.au

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