Eric Sipple
@ericsipple.com
Author of BROKEN MAGIC, MIMESIS. Head of Engineering at Hey Jane. My brain is a beautiful rain of frogs. 🏳️⚧️ (they/them)
https://linktr.ee/saalon
https://linktr.ee/saalon
Pinned
Eric Sipple
@ericsipple.com
· Dec 9
The headline for the experience online that I cultivate is Cloud Yells At Old Man.
In times like this, it’s important to listen extra carefully to historians. Authoritarian projects rely greatly on your own fear making them stronger than they can be. History is what guides us in how to gauge their actual strength, and what to do about it as it builds or fail.
So to return to this: Mussolini had 200,000 blackshirts for the March on Rome in a country of ~35m. Hitler had 400,000 brownshirts in 1932 in Germany for a population of ~60m.
So around 0.6% of the population.
0.6% of 340m Americans is just over 2 million.
They do not have enough goons.
So around 0.6% of the population.
0.6% of 340m Americans is just over 2 million.
They do not have enough goons.
In 1932, on the eve of seizing power, the Nazi goon army - the Sturmabteiling or SA - numbered 400,000 members. By 1933, it was over two *million.*
DHS has 240,00 employees and lot of those are non-goons who have, you know, real jobs.
DHS has 240,00 employees and lot of those are non-goons who have, you know, real jobs.
January 10, 2026 at 12:53 AM
In times like this, it’s important to listen extra carefully to historians. Authoritarian projects rely greatly on your own fear making them stronger than they can be. History is what guides us in how to gauge their actual strength, and what to do about it as it builds or fail.
Reposted by Eric Sipple
🇺🇸 MINNEAPOLIS VETERAN: "They are terrorizing the population, in Afghanistan we never wore masks.” (From @statuscoupnews.bsky.social )
January 8, 2026 at 9:16 PM
🇺🇸 MINNEAPOLIS VETERAN: "They are terrorizing the population, in Afghanistan we never wore masks.” (From @statuscoupnews.bsky.social )
Reposted by Eric Sipple
boycott Spotify anyway.
variety.com/2026/digital...
And… we f-ing won another one! Keep it coming. Watch out Home Depot. Karma is a stink that stays on you.
And… we f-ing won another one! Keep it coming. Watch out Home Depot. Karma is a stink that stays on you.
Spotify Confirms ICE Recruitment Ads Are No Longer Running on Platform
Spotify has confirimed that ICE recruitment ads are no longer running on its platform following criticism from last year.
variety.com
January 8, 2026 at 9:27 PM
boycott Spotify anyway.
Darren is always cooking, but sometimes he’s really cooking.
#NowWatching "The Matrix Resurrections"
Honestly, one of the best legacy sequels, in large part because it uses its nostalgia with purpose.
It offers an expansion and reclamation of the original film, a work in conversation with not just "The Matrix", but its cultural legacy.
Honestly, one of the best legacy sequels, in large part because it uses its nostalgia with purpose.
It offers an expansion and reclamation of the original film, a work in conversation with not just "The Matrix", but its cultural legacy.
a close up of a man with long hair and a beard wearing a suit and tie .
ALT: a close up of a man with long hair and a beard wearing a suit and tie .
media.tenor.com
January 8, 2026 at 8:12 PM
Darren is always cooking, but sometimes he’s really cooking.
“Technically Correct”-ing yourself so close to the sun that you turn into that guy from Sunshine.
Co-signing this. Grok is out there making CSAM on request from pictures posted to the internet.
And if you posted pictures of your kids to Twitter, you LICENSED Grok to do that. Take those pics down NOW
And if you posted pictures of your kids to Twitter, you LICENSED Grok to do that. Take those pics down NOW
Parents, if you didn't have a problem until now of not posting pics of your kids on public social media, now might be a good time to start (and maybe scrub what's there already).
January 8, 2026 at 7:24 PM
“Technically Correct”-ing yourself so close to the sun that you turn into that guy from Sunshine.
My definitely not a bag of drugs label etc etc etc
Headline: Prior Lake woman arrested with bag of drugs labeled ‘Definitely not a bag full of drugs’
January 8, 2026 at 7:02 PM
My definitely not a bag of drugs label etc etc etc
Reposted by Eric Sipple
We want to keep Slate human!
We’ve come to some compromises, but there is still work to do. Slate still has not promised adequate protections against AI-related layoffs, they won’t agree on a definition of generative AI, and they want to be free to use our work to train AI without telling us.
We’ve come to some compromises, but there is still work to do. Slate still has not promised adequate protections against AI-related layoffs, they won’t agree on a definition of generative AI, and they want to be free to use our work to train AI without telling us.
January 8, 2026 at 6:47 PM
We want to keep Slate human!
We’ve come to some compromises, but there is still work to do. Slate still has not promised adequate protections against AI-related layoffs, they won’t agree on a definition of generative AI, and they want to be free to use our work to train AI without telling us.
We’ve come to some compromises, but there is still work to do. Slate still has not promised adequate protections against AI-related layoffs, they won’t agree on a definition of generative AI, and they want to be free to use our work to train AI without telling us.
The thing that’s even more infuriating to me than the lies is that even if this were true, we should still imprison any law enforcement officer who believes killing a civilian is a valid response to their own fear or simple inconvenience.
JD Vance accuses the slain Renee Good of perpetrating "an attack on federal law enforcement, an attack on law and order, and attack on the American people"
"That woman was there to interfere with a legitimate law enforcement operation," he adds, repeatedly referring to her as "that woman"
"That woman was there to interfere with a legitimate law enforcement operation," he adds, repeatedly referring to her as "that woman"
January 8, 2026 at 6:49 PM
The thing that’s even more infuriating to me than the lies is that even if this were true, we should still imprison any law enforcement officer who believes killing a civilian is a valid response to their own fear or simple inconvenience.
Reposted by Eric Sipple
The shooting in Minnesota is a reminder that while authoritarian governments may justify abuses of power by directing them at scapegoats or vulnerable populations, the goal is ultimately to deploy them against anyone they wish to www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
January 8, 2026 at 6:45 PM
The shooting in Minnesota is a reminder that while authoritarian governments may justify abuses of power by directing them at scapegoats or vulnerable populations, the goal is ultimately to deploy them against anyone they wish to www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
We does every politician still act like they’re dealing with good faith people in positions. Start calling these people intentional monsters. That’s the narrative. That’s the only narrative. Noem brushed it off because she likes it.
"You would think that the Homeland Security secretary would be the first to say, 'let's suspend judgment and look into it.' That's not what we saw," he said.
Ellison said Good was "anything but" a domestic terrorist, as Noem had described her.
Ellison said Good was "anything but" a domestic terrorist, as Noem had described her.
January 8, 2026 at 5:41 PM
We does every politician still act like they’re dealing with good faith people in positions. Start calling these people intentional monsters. That’s the narrative. That’s the only narrative. Noem brushed it off because she likes it.
Reposted by Eric Sipple
i firmly believe — like you would have to give me hard evidence to convince me otherwise — that they feed trump a steady diet of AI slop
man, did the viziers in the WH not actually show him the actual video?
January 8, 2026 at 3:42 PM
i firmly believe — like you would have to give me hard evidence to convince me otherwise — that they feed trump a steady diet of AI slop
Reposted by Eric Sipple
defining social dynamic of this administration
January 8, 2026 at 5:33 PM
defining social dynamic of this administration
Reposted by Eric Sipple
I‘m a bit skeptical of the rules-lawyering that ensues in response to this response.
No one *licensed* anyone to make CSAM of their kids, and the tech company that provides both the production technology and the distribution system should be prosecuted out of existence.
Co-signing this. Grok is out there making CSAM on request from pictures posted to the internet.
And if you posted pictures of your kids to Twitter, you LICENSED Grok to do that. Take those pics down NOW
And if you posted pictures of your kids to Twitter, you LICENSED Grok to do that. Take those pics down NOW
January 7, 2026 at 5:20 PM
I‘m a bit skeptical of the rules-lawyering that ensues in response to this response.
*firefly voice* you can't take free guy from me
January 8, 2026 at 6:41 AM
*firefly voice* you can't take free guy from me
this is the plot of every shrek movie
Abolish Shrek
Shrek is older than ICE
January 8, 2026 at 5:35 AM
this is the plot of every shrek movie
Reposted by Eric Sipple
important message to all bluesky users
January 7, 2026 at 7:53 PM
important message to all bluesky users
Reposted by Eric Sipple
what this should make clear to everyone in this country is that it does not matter who you are, there's no "it could never happen to me"
you can be a white woman who drives around with stuffed animals in her car, and they will still kill you in cold blood and call you a domestic terrorist
you can be a white woman who drives around with stuffed animals in her car, and they will still kill you in cold blood and call you a domestic terrorist
The murdered woman's glove compartment is filled with stuffed animals.
January 7, 2026 at 8:54 PM
what this should make clear to everyone in this country is that it does not matter who you are, there's no "it could never happen to me"
you can be a white woman who drives around with stuffed animals in her car, and they will still kill you in cold blood and call you a domestic terrorist
you can be a white woman who drives around with stuffed animals in her car, and they will still kill you in cold blood and call you a domestic terrorist
The first rule of secret tunnel is you do not sing about secret tunnel. The second rule of secret tunnel is you do not sing about secret tunnel.
January 7, 2026 at 9:09 PM
The first rule of secret tunnel is you do not sing about secret tunnel. The second rule of secret tunnel is you do not sing about secret tunnel.
Reposted by Eric Sipple
failure in every sense of the word, from top to bottom
“It would be fine to annex sovereign territory of NATO allies if food prices were lower” is not the banger messaging Democratic lawmakers and their consultants seem to think.
And their refusal to avail themselves of the legal means available to interfere with Trump’s expansionism is indefensible.
And their refusal to avail themselves of the legal means available to interfere with Trump’s expansionism is indefensible.
January 7, 2026 at 4:59 PM
failure in every sense of the word, from top to bottom
This is really hard for me, the Finale Connoisseur. Some stand outs:
Angel, even if you take away that they had to scramble due to cancelation, is fantastic. Adding that in and it’s impossible.
BSG’s “Daylight” is one of the best of the Big Epic Finales for my tastes.
Also Spartacus. Obvs.
Angel, even if you take away that they had to scramble due to cancelation, is fantastic. Adding that in and it’s impossible.
BSG’s “Daylight” is one of the best of the Big Epic Finales for my tastes.
Also Spartacus. Obvs.
Given that apparently the Stranger Things finale was meh (idk, didn't watch it, just the scuttlebutt) and we're not that far removed from the disastrous GOT finale that retroactively made everyone have never cared about the show:
What's the *best* ending to a show you've ever seen? Quote/reply etc
What's the *best* ending to a show you've ever seen? Quote/reply etc
January 7, 2026 at 2:37 PM
This is really hard for me, the Finale Connoisseur. Some stand outs:
Angel, even if you take away that they had to scramble due to cancelation, is fantastic. Adding that in and it’s impossible.
BSG’s “Daylight” is one of the best of the Big Epic Finales for my tastes.
Also Spartacus. Obvs.
Angel, even if you take away that they had to scramble due to cancelation, is fantastic. Adding that in and it’s impossible.
BSG’s “Daylight” is one of the best of the Big Epic Finales for my tastes.
Also Spartacus. Obvs.
Reposted by Eric Sipple
Scully let's split up. I'll interview this beautiful botanist and you go check out the sewer system full of human bones
January 7, 2026 at 1:37 PM
Scully let's split up. I'll interview this beautiful botanist and you go check out the sewer system full of human bones
In case anyone wasn’t aware, they call Alabama the Crimson Tide. Unrelated, I want a name when I lose.
January 7, 2026 at 5:19 AM
In case anyone wasn’t aware, they call Alabama the Crimson Tide. Unrelated, I want a name when I lose.
Ran down a hotel hallway and my mind involuntarily almost made me shout I’LL SHOW YOU THE LIFE OF THE MIND.
January 7, 2026 at 2:25 AM
Ran down a hotel hallway and my mind involuntarily almost made me shout I’LL SHOW YOU THE LIFE OF THE MIND.
This is how Chuck Schumer and Jeffries should be talking about Republican support for every single Trump thing. This is them! They want it! They love it! Everyone remember when this hurts us all that every single Republican legislator is horny for this stuff!
Walz is out of Fs: "Not a single Republican supported this, so every Minnesotan from here on, whoever uses this program, there is no bit of thanks that would go to the R legislators who did all they could to stop this ... our schools have money to pay their teachers? I'll take credit for that too."
January 7, 2026 at 12:03 AM
This is how Chuck Schumer and Jeffries should be talking about Republican support for every single Trump thing. This is them! They want it! They love it! Everyone remember when this hurts us all that every single Republican legislator is horny for this stuff!