Birb_at_Arms
@birblib.bsky.social
Skeets about history, politics, martial arts, birbs and post-Soviet space. He/Him
I think the biggest problem with AI is that it has been the subject of a marketing campaign to promote it way beyond its actual merits. The obvious solution is to make AI compete in the market on an even playing field and assess it with clearer eyes.
Harassing strangers who use AI is just psychotic.
Harassing strangers who use AI is just psychotic.
February 7, 2026 at 9:23 PM
I think the biggest problem with AI is that it has been the subject of a marketing campaign to promote it way beyond its actual merits. The obvious solution is to make AI compete in the market on an even playing field and assess it with clearer eyes.
Harassing strangers who use AI is just psychotic.
Harassing strangers who use AI is just psychotic.
People are sometimes surprised to learn that Adam Smith - often considered the father of capitalism - was very critical of landlords.
What surprised me more was realizing just how hard it was to find a mainstream economist who actually liked landlords.
What surprised me more was realizing just how hard it was to find a mainstream economist who actually liked landlords.
February 6, 2026 at 1:38 PM
People are sometimes surprised to learn that Adam Smith - often considered the father of capitalism - was very critical of landlords.
What surprised me more was realizing just how hard it was to find a mainstream economist who actually liked landlords.
What surprised me more was realizing just how hard it was to find a mainstream economist who actually liked landlords.
Proposed compromise: rename *part* of Penn Station and Dulles Airport after Trump.
For example, a bathroom.
For example, a bathroom.
President Donald Trump told Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer last month that he was finally prepared to drop his freeze on billions of dollars in funding for a major New York infrastructure project.
But there was a condition. https://cnn.it/4qDJXYd
But there was a condition. https://cnn.it/4qDJXYd
February 6, 2026 at 2:45 AM
Proposed compromise: rename *part* of Penn Station and Dulles Airport after Trump.
For example, a bathroom.
For example, a bathroom.
So, the USAF obviously named the F-47 after Trump because they understood that this was a surefire way to convince him to give them $3 billion. They also tried to hedge their bets and say "uh, we also named it after the P-47, our famous WWII fighter" which is bullshit.
like ugh f-47 and sentinel might be turbo-expensive but also they're can't-fail projects
February 5, 2026 at 5:10 AM
So, the USAF obviously named the F-47 after Trump because they understood that this was a surefire way to convince him to give them $3 billion. They also tried to hedge their bets and say "uh, we also named it after the P-47, our famous WWII fighter" which is bullshit.
Reposted by Birb_at_Arms
Love when things line up
February 4, 2026 at 10:12 PM
Love when things line up
"Masked fascist stormtroopers attacked my city, kidnapped my neighbors and executed people in cold blood. I knew the time for peaceful protest was over, so I did the one thing I knew would surely send them running:
I punched Will Stancil."
I punched Will Stancil."
One of the most admirable qualities of anarchists is a proportionally high degree of physical bravery. A substantial portion of them are willing to get into fist fights with actual cops sometimes.
This guy punched Will Stancil.
This guy punched Will Stancil.
February 4, 2026 at 3:18 AM
"Masked fascist stormtroopers attacked my city, kidnapped my neighbors and executed people in cold blood. I knew the time for peaceful protest was over, so I did the one thing I knew would surely send them running:
I punched Will Stancil."
I punched Will Stancil."
Reposted by Birb_at_Arms
it's fascinating how we haven't been able to move past these dynamics
February 3, 2026 at 1:59 PM
it's fascinating how we haven't been able to move past these dynamics
Disco Elysium ass headline
📢 “A huge amount of men between the age of 15 and 50 will not pass on their genes. They will effectively die out of the gene pool ... Should society intervene?” Steven Bartlett asked last year.
Two top podcasters have identified a global decline. The problem, they say, is women
www.smh.com.au
February 3, 2026 at 12:29 PM
Disco Elysium ass headline
I think in cases like this a (legit!) concern with the UK's libel laws can dovetail with a cultural preference for indirect comments.
For example, here's a wartime quote from Arthur Harris about an aircraft manufacturer he wasn't happy with.
For example, here's a wartime quote from Arthur Harris about an aircraft manufacturer he wasn't happy with.
February 2, 2026 at 2:27 PM
I think in cases like this a (legit!) concern with the UK's libel laws can dovetail with a cultural preference for indirect comments.
For example, here's a wartime quote from Arthur Harris about an aircraft manufacturer he wasn't happy with.
For example, here's a wartime quote from Arthur Harris about an aircraft manufacturer he wasn't happy with.
People call tear gas a "chemical weapon" or a "riot control agent," and arguably it's both those things. I would say *functionally* it's like a magic wand that lets you punch an entire crowd of people in the face at the same time - even if you aren't any good at punching people. So OFC ICE likes it.
February 1, 2026 at 3:56 AM
People call tear gas a "chemical weapon" or a "riot control agent," and arguably it's both those things. I would say *functionally* it's like a magic wand that lets you punch an entire crowd of people in the face at the same time - even if you aren't any good at punching people. So OFC ICE likes it.
My hot take on billionaires is that they are a largely unavoidable byproduct of a market economy where individuals can start private ventures, in much the same way as eating a delicious burrito occasionally produces a bout of explosive diarrhea.
They are the economic equivalent of indigestion.
They are the economic equivalent of indigestion.
February 1, 2026 at 3:15 AM
My hot take on billionaires is that they are a largely unavoidable byproduct of a market economy where individuals can start private ventures, in much the same way as eating a delicious burrito occasionally produces a bout of explosive diarrhea.
They are the economic equivalent of indigestion.
They are the economic equivalent of indigestion.
Reposted by Birb_at_Arms
I guess that explains a few things
January 30, 2026 at 11:23 PM
I guess that explains a few things
There needs to be a reaction image of a Mossad agent being like "did you know that you can shoot brown people *dramatic pause* with your gun?" while a US police officer wearing reading glasses furiously takes notes.
"The IDF is training the US on how to oppress minorities" folks the US was oppressing minorities when Israel was part of Ottoman Syria.
January 30, 2026 at 4:51 PM
There needs to be a reaction image of a Mossad agent being like "did you know that you can shoot brown people *dramatic pause* with your gun?" while a US police officer wearing reading glasses furiously takes notes.
This looks like they made a movie out of the 1 second AI video clips from pop-history bot accounts that keep showing up on your Facebook feed no matter how many times you hit "not interested"
First trailer for Darren Aranofsky's new AI animated series 'On This Day... 1776'
• Tells short narrative stories about the Revolutionary War
• Uses Gen AI tools, including tech made by Google DeepMind
• Has SAG voice actors
• Tells short narrative stories about the Revolutionary War
• Uses Gen AI tools, including tech made by Google DeepMind
• Has SAG voice actors
January 30, 2026 at 3:01 PM
This looks like they made a movie out of the 1 second AI video clips from pop-history bot accounts that keep showing up on your Facebook feed no matter how many times you hit "not interested"
If you take a political science course, you will be told at some point that politics is the "art of compromise"
You may not be told that a compromise is a "thing that everyone says they want but that nobody actually wants."
I think that's relevant to a lot of the discourse on here.
You may not be told that a compromise is a "thing that everyone says they want but that nobody actually wants."
I think that's relevant to a lot of the discourse on here.
January 29, 2026 at 4:42 PM
If you take a political science course, you will be told at some point that politics is the "art of compromise"
You may not be told that a compromise is a "thing that everyone says they want but that nobody actually wants."
I think that's relevant to a lot of the discourse on here.
You may not be told that a compromise is a "thing that everyone says they want but that nobody actually wants."
I think that's relevant to a lot of the discourse on here.
Reposted by Birb_at_Arms
god bless none of this is true for the vast, vast majority of Chinese workers.
Then they should deliver China's employelment benefits with it.
Your vacation days follow you throughout your career.
The company is required to pay for your 5 mandatory social insurances: medical maternity, retirement, unemployment, and workplace injury.
You get a House fund.
etc
Your vacation days follow you throughout your career.
The company is required to pay for your 5 mandatory social insurances: medical maternity, retirement, unemployment, and workplace injury.
You get a House fund.
etc
January 29, 2026 at 2:43 PM
god bless none of this is true for the vast, vast majority of Chinese workers.
A very simple rule of thumb that applies to the 19th century French Army: if a particular French infantry doctrine seems dumb, backwards or otherwise confusing *yet* seems to have somehow worked, the secret ingredient is "artillery."
The enemy cannot repel your bayonet charge if they are dead.
The enemy cannot repel your bayonet charge if they are dead.
This is a pretty good lecture on the subject, IMO, though I think the speaker's asides about contemporary French doctrinal development suffers a little as he glosses over the role of artillery. www.youtube.com/watch?v=8u70...
The Tactical Influence of the Rifle-Musket 1849-1866: a nerdy musketry deep dive!
YouTube video by Paper Cartridges
www.youtube.com
January 29, 2026 at 2:42 PM
A very simple rule of thumb that applies to the 19th century French Army: if a particular French infantry doctrine seems dumb, backwards or otherwise confusing *yet* seems to have somehow worked, the secret ingredient is "artillery."
The enemy cannot repel your bayonet charge if they are dead.
The enemy cannot repel your bayonet charge if they are dead.
There is a certain point where stupidity and incompetence loop back around into being basically magic, and I think that point comes when you manage to start an international incident in *Minneapolis*
1/27/2026 - Minneapolis
ICE just attempted an illegal entry into the ECUADORIAN CONSULATE to abduct someone
They did not have a warrant
ICE just attempted an illegal entry into the ECUADORIAN CONSULATE to abduct someone
They did not have a warrant
January 28, 2026 at 1:35 PM
There is a certain point where stupidity and incompetence loop back around into being basically magic, and I think that point comes when you manage to start an international incident in *Minneapolis*
A major downside to Canada buying the Gripen that nobody seems to talk about is that SAAB designed it around an American engine. The US could therefore block the sale under ITAR.
But if the US ambassador is going to talk shit like this, we should probably make the Americans go through the trouble.
But if the US ambassador is going to talk shit like this, we should probably make the Americans go through the trouble.
Another diplomatic masterpiece by Hoekstra: reacting to a review of the F-35 purchase triggered by fears of the US being a security threat by threatening Canadian security with US F-35s operating in Canadian airspace without our consent to "fill gaps" if we do not purchase it
ANALYSIS | NORAD would be 'altered' if Canada doesn’t buy F-35 jets, warns U.S. ambassador | CBC News
U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra is warning of consequences to the continental defence pact if Canada does not move forward with the purchase of 88 F-35 fighter jets.
www.cbc.ca
January 28, 2026 at 5:30 AM
A major downside to Canada buying the Gripen that nobody seems to talk about is that SAAB designed it around an American engine. The US could therefore block the sale under ITAR.
But if the US ambassador is going to talk shit like this, we should probably make the Americans go through the trouble.
But if the US ambassador is going to talk shit like this, we should probably make the Americans go through the trouble.
It has been brought to my attention that Library and Archives Canada has a Creekranian dictionary from 1954.
In case you read that and thought you were having a stroke, it's basically a dictionary of vernacular terms used by First Nations and Eastern Europeans employed by Canadian National Railways.
In case you read that and thought you were having a stroke, it's basically a dictionary of vernacular terms used by First Nations and Eastern Europeans employed by Canadian National Railways.
January 27, 2026 at 4:39 AM
It has been brought to my attention that Library and Archives Canada has a Creekranian dictionary from 1954.
In case you read that and thought you were having a stroke, it's basically a dictionary of vernacular terms used by First Nations and Eastern Europeans employed by Canadian National Railways.
In case you read that and thought you were having a stroke, it's basically a dictionary of vernacular terms used by First Nations and Eastern Europeans employed by Canadian National Railways.
Minnesotans have all "studied the playbook."
January 26, 2026 at 8:03 PM
Minnesotans have all "studied the playbook."
Are US libs going to get the *Second* amendment in the national divorce now too?
Federal law enforcement agents shot and killed a man in Minneapolis on Jan. 24 according to local police officials. DHS told Fox News that the man was “armed with a gun”. A video of the shooting appears to show that a gun was taken from the man before the first shot was fired. x.com/BillMelugin_...
January 24, 2026 at 8:57 PM
Are US libs going to get the *Second* amendment in the national divorce now too?
Reposted by Birb_at_Arms
PR in Canada looks like Germany. PR in the U.S. looks like India fucked the Netherlands.
January 24, 2026 at 3:34 PM
PR in Canada looks like Germany. PR in the U.S. looks like India fucked the Netherlands.
There's a profile purporting to belong to former Google AI designer Tony Aubé that I'm roughly 90% sure is fake.
The real Tony's profile directory does not list a Bluesky account, and the profile on Bluesky is the only one where his name is spelled without an accent aigu. www.tonyaube.com/find-me
The real Tony's profile directory does not list a Bluesky account, and the profile on Bluesky is the only one where his name is spelled without an accent aigu. www.tonyaube.com/find-me
Find Me • Tony Aube
Where to find me outside of social media.
www.tonyaube.com
January 24, 2026 at 2:34 PM
There's a profile purporting to belong to former Google AI designer Tony Aubé that I'm roughly 90% sure is fake.
The real Tony's profile directory does not list a Bluesky account, and the profile on Bluesky is the only one where his name is spelled without an accent aigu. www.tonyaube.com/find-me
The real Tony's profile directory does not list a Bluesky account, and the profile on Bluesky is the only one where his name is spelled without an accent aigu. www.tonyaube.com/find-me