Alex Cranz
@cranz.bsky.social
laser bong lyricist. tech critic.
absolutely fascinated by the political commercials on local TV in Texas atm. 80% of them are just people saying “Sharia law” or “Muslim” or “immigrants” in a scary voice. Talarico actually stands out with “I capped insulin prices and will fight for you” bit. It all feels cartoonishly on the nose.
February 2, 2026 at 12:05 AM
absolutely fascinated by the political commercials on local TV in Texas atm. 80% of them are just people saying “Sharia law” or “Muslim” or “immigrants” in a scary voice. Talarico actually stands out with “I capped insulin prices and will fight for you” bit. It all feels cartoonishly on the nose.
I lived away from Texas for more than 10 years so I was super surprised when I learned that not only is getting you license now by appointment only but no politician has made fixing it a platform.
February 1, 2026 at 7:34 PM
I lived away from Texas for more than 10 years so I was super surprised when I learned that not only is getting you license now by appointment only but no politician has made fixing it a platform.
Wambasganss spent a lot of time loudly flipping school board seats to the hard right which led to a lot of book bans and a notable drop in the quality of the schools in this district. I suspect that hurt as badly as the Trump connection--which is still the focal point of every GOP ad in Texas.
JUST IN: Democrats flip a red seat in the Texas Senate.
Taylor Rehmet wins against Leigh Wambsganss, a conservative activist who helped lead right-wing efforts to take over TX school boards.
With all early vote, and 95% of precincts, in, Dem up 57/43.
Trump won this seat by 17% in Tarrant County.
Taylor Rehmet wins against Leigh Wambsganss, a conservative activist who helped lead right-wing efforts to take over TX school boards.
With all early vote, and 95% of precincts, in, Dem up 57/43.
Trump won this seat by 17% in Tarrant County.
February 1, 2026 at 6:30 AM
Wambasganss spent a lot of time loudly flipping school board seats to the hard right which led to a lot of book bans and a notable drop in the quality of the schools in this district. I suspect that hurt as badly as the Trump connection--which is still the focal point of every GOP ad in Texas.
Saying it like Beyonce at the beginning of Daddy's Little Girl.
"Texas."
"Texas."
February 1, 2026 at 6:15 AM
Saying it like Beyonce at the beginning of Daddy's Little Girl.
"Texas."
"Texas."
Pre streaming if you lived in a rural area the only way you could get more than broadcast channels was if you had an antenna (pricey) or someone paid to run cable out to your property (more pricey). So many of us have little knowledge of Degrassi or Real World but know the Red Dwarf theme song by ❤️
“For families like mine in Wichita Falls, Texas, @pbs.org was oxygen,” writes @briangaar.bsky.social . “It was proof that humor could be silly, intellectual, and a little dangerous all at once.
thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/28/p...
thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/28/p...
PBS Was a ‘Cultural Life Vest’ for Kids Like Me Before the Internet. The Fight to Keep Public Media Alive Feels Personal.
From late-night “Doctor Who” to “Monty Python,” PBS beamed in the wider world to kids in Texas.
thebarbedwire.com
January 28, 2026 at 9:42 PM
Pre streaming if you lived in a rural area the only way you could get more than broadcast channels was if you had an antenna (pricey) or someone paid to run cable out to your property (more pricey). So many of us have little knowledge of Degrassi or Real World but know the Red Dwarf theme song by ❤️
Reposted by Alex Cranz
📡 Signal blasting for new followers: I wanna do a lil intro abt ROMchip: A Journal of Game Histories @romchip.bsky.social b/c we got an important fundraiser coming up in a few weeks.
It's a free, open-access journal dedicated to game history, and if you love games, here's why you should care 🕹️🎲🀄🎯
It's a free, open-access journal dedicated to game history, and if you love games, here's why you should care 🕹️🎲🀄🎯
January 22, 2026 at 4:27 PM
📡 Signal blasting for new followers: I wanna do a lil intro abt ROMchip: A Journal of Game Histories @romchip.bsky.social b/c we got an important fundraiser coming up in a few weeks.
It's a free, open-access journal dedicated to game history, and if you love games, here's why you should care 🕹️🎲🀄🎯
It's a free, open-access journal dedicated to game history, and if you love games, here's why you should care 🕹️🎲🀄🎯
playing video games with your godson is great until he asks you why you were playing until 3am in front of everyone.
January 19, 2026 at 9:40 PM
playing video games with your godson is great until he asks you why you were playing until 3am in front of everyone.
best portrait of me ever
January 16, 2026 at 2:29 AM
best portrait of me ever
still thinking about my godson telling me he didn’t want any of my mechanical keyboards because he wants one that’s really good and not mushy. i didn’t MEAN to flex on an 11 year old. But I did.
January 16, 2026 at 12:30 AM
still thinking about my godson telling me he didn’t want any of my mechanical keyboards because he wants one that’s really good and not mushy. i didn’t MEAN to flex on an 11 year old. But I did.
The world sucks, but Reddit's algorithim brought me to the Laundry Spa Day post and I now have a bunch of shirts I can wear in public again. Pit stains GONE. Oily residue ERADICATED. Clothes CLEAN. Cost CHEAP. (Unless you lack a washing machine. Then it will probably be much more annoying.)
January 15, 2026 at 10:02 PM
The world sucks, but Reddit's algorithim brought me to the Laundry Spa Day post and I now have a bunch of shirts I can wear in public again. Pit stains GONE. Oily residue ERADICATED. Clothes CLEAN. Cost CHEAP. (Unless you lack a washing machine. Then it will probably be much more annoying.)
take a break in screaming into the void about the collapse of democracy and America to appreciate this incredible tardigrade my brother’s MIL made me.
January 14, 2026 at 5:58 PM
take a break in screaming into the void about the collapse of democracy and America to appreciate this incredible tardigrade my brother’s MIL made me.
Elon is right that this is a not great consolidation (break em up!!!!) but he doing way too many designer drugs if he thinks that mean anyone should partner with xAI in its current state. Shit’s like Patrick Stewart in Extras just whipping clothes off every person people upload a photo of.
Elon is upset Apple didn’t pick his MechaHitler CSAM machine to power Siri.
January 12, 2026 at 7:45 PM
Elon is right that this is a not great consolidation (break em up!!!!) but he doing way too many designer drugs if he thinks that mean anyone should partner with xAI in its current state. Shit’s like Patrick Stewart in Extras just whipping clothes off every person people upload a photo of.
we used to be a society!!! we used to have good remotes!!!
It’s wild to me that Logitech, fucking Logitech, was leagues ahead of everyone else in both home audio streaming (ala Sonos) and universal remote controls and dropped both because they’re dumb as rocks.
January 9, 2026 at 11:03 PM
we used to be a society!!! we used to have good remotes!!!
Greg Grandin unfortunately wrote one of the most prescient books about our times and it came out last year and you should listen to him!
January 9, 2026 at 6:38 PM
Greg Grandin unfortunately wrote one of the most prescient books about our times and it came out last year and you should listen to him!
Other things that happened exactly five years ago that I will never forget:
I got my new couch.
I got my new couch.
January 6, 2026 at 10:55 PM
Other things that happened exactly five years ago that I will never forget:
I got my new couch.
I got my new couch.
stephen miller governing is like when you don’t take out Montezuma FIRST THING in Civ.
"By what right does Denmark assert control over Greenland?"
The implied answer is obviously "by force" and if we're going to pick a fight with the entire world, that will eventually mean testing our military strength against literally everyone.
The implied answer is obviously "by force" and if we're going to pick a fight with the entire world, that will eventually mean testing our military strength against literally everyone.
TAPPER: Can you rule out the US is going to take Greenland by force?
MILLER: Greenland should be part of the US. By what right does Denmark assert control over Greenland? The US is the power of NATO
T: So force is on the table?
M: Nobody is gonna fight the US militarily over future of Greenland
MILLER: Greenland should be part of the US. By what right does Denmark assert control over Greenland? The US is the power of NATO
T: So force is on the table?
M: Nobody is gonna fight the US militarily over future of Greenland
January 5, 2026 at 11:42 PM
stephen miller governing is like when you don’t take out Montezuma FIRST THING in Civ.
I truly love that @vicmsong.bsky.social has been covering this thing since it was just a bandaid on a mannequin taint and now it’s a real product.
For those with a male perineum, there’s MOR, a device that can gently zap the area to either delay or intensify ejaculation.
January 5, 2026 at 10:52 PM
I truly love that @vicmsong.bsky.social has been covering this thing since it was just a bandaid on a mannequin taint and now it’s a real product.
my semi monthly request that everyone read America, América about the very different but similar political cultures of Latin America and the US. came out last year and besides being a terrific primer for our today it also clearly explains why this was the stupidest possible fucking move.
January 5, 2026 at 12:59 AM
my semi monthly request that everyone read America, América about the very different but similar political cultures of Latin America and the US. came out last year and besides being a terrific primer for our today it also clearly explains why this was the stupidest possible fucking move.
there’s often this assumption in the US that companies will “do the right thing” and through our monocultural media system and political saber rattling that used to be true! but now you can just ignore outcry and pay the right political party and carry on.
Remember:
When Tylenol was poisoned *by an outsider* and killed people, the company recalled all their products & redesigned them.
When Intel’s Pentium had a bug so obscure it affected 1 in _9 billion_ long division calculations, they recalled their chips.
ChatGPT was made deadly *by its team*.
When Tylenol was poisoned *by an outsider* and killed people, the company recalled all their products & redesigned them.
When Intel’s Pentium had a bug so obscure it affected 1 in _9 billion_ long division calculations, they recalled their chips.
ChatGPT was made deadly *by its team*.
i don’t see how any of the benefits of chatgpt and other consumer-facing LLMs can possibly outweigh their incredible ability to induce suicides
December 28, 2025 at 7:01 PM
there’s often this assumption in the US that companies will “do the right thing” and through our monocultural media system and political saber rattling that used to be true! but now you can just ignore outcry and pay the right political party and carry on.
Reposted by Alex Cranz
another robot highlight for 2025: man wearing humanoid mocap suit kicks himself in the balls
December 27, 2025 at 5:27 PM
another robot highlight for 2025: man wearing humanoid mocap suit kicks himself in the balls
Reposted by Alex Cranz
My mom is mad because we keep making the gingerbread man cookies into Minions
December 23, 2025 at 9:38 PM
My mom is mad because we keep making the gingerbread man cookies into Minions
Reposted by Alex Cranz
An additional part of this is that the audience that will pay for journalism instead of listening to a kind of stupid person plagiarize an article on TikTok is almost exclusively this website and three subreddits.
While I do agree that this place is 35 years old, I think that’s mostly because it’s a website and those mostly got replaced with discords, comments sections under videos, and group chats you send funny TikToks to.
December 23, 2025 at 6:06 AM
An additional part of this is that the audience that will pay for journalism instead of listening to a kind of stupid person plagiarize an article on TikTok is almost exclusively this website and three subreddits.
gentle reminder to everyone saying CBS employees should quit—the job market is bad and people need to pay their bills and have health insurance. simply walking away is a luxury and a privilege and many people can’t afford it.
December 22, 2025 at 3:30 AM
gentle reminder to everyone saying CBS employees should quit—the job market is bad and people need to pay their bills and have health insurance. simply walking away is a luxury and a privilege and many people can’t afford it.
absolute queen shit from the note obtained by NYT from Alfonsi, the corespondent who worked on the story.
December 22, 2025 at 3:26 AM
absolute queen shit from the note obtained by NYT from Alfonsi, the corespondent who worked on the story.
60 Minutes is the GOAT at covering all sides of a hot political topic fairly. Their recent coverage of Israel is a pristine example of that and should legit be studied in j-school. Bari putting her finger on the scale is atrocious.
CBS News EIC Bari Weiss had concerns about the CECOT piece, I’m told. The network decided to hold the segment pending, among other things, comment or an interview with White House officials next year…
An Editor’s Note from 60 Minutes
December 22, 2025 at 2:35 AM
60 Minutes is the GOAT at covering all sides of a hot political topic fairly. Their recent coverage of Israel is a pristine example of that and should legit be studied in j-school. Bari putting her finger on the scale is atrocious.