Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

Ottawa miniatures and war game fans; we have space for you at CanGames 2026 and would love if you would consider running some sessions at the con on the May Long Weekend!https://cangames.ca/

CanGames Tabletop Game Convention – Friendly Mayhem Since 1977

cangames.ca

February 14, 2026 at 4:40 PM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

A second edition of Good Society from @storybrewersroleplaying.com is on the way? We are most fortunate to be granted such a bounty by creators refined in both countenance and wisdom. www.kickstarter.com/projects/sto...

Coming soon: Good Society: A Jane Austen RPG – 2nd Edition

Navigate the pitfalls of romance, reputation, manners, and marriage in the sumptuous new edition of this award-winning regency rpg.

www.kickstarter.com

February 11, 2026 at 4:00 AM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

A pile of PDFs have gone out the door to backers of Songfall Survivors and most of the hard copies have gone out. I hope to send out the remaining physical rewards and shipping invoices shortly so we can wrap this up.

February 11, 2026 at 3:23 AM

Reposted by Jason Pitre

Rascal News

@rascal.news

[Update] This piece has been amended to add new details from Jay Dragon, along with other corrections and clarifications, including the removal of all pull quotes.

Rascal News @rascal.news · 29d

Five creators who worked on Yazeba's Bed & Breakfast have spent the past year fighting a legal battle against Possum Creek Games and Steve Jackson Games. Neither the tabletop RPG nor their working relationships survived the fallout.

Battle over Yazeba’s Bed & Breakfast contracts leaves the book, relationships, torn apart

Creative collaborators clash with Jay Dragon and Steve Jackson Games over unfair treatment.

www.rascal.news

February 10, 2026 at 12:07 PM

Reposted by Jason Pitre

Nick Pettigrew

@nick-pettigrew.bsky.social

I'm convinced AI is our generation's radium - a discovery with genuinely useful applications in specific, controlled circumstances that we stupidly put in everything from kid's toys to toothpaste until we realised the harm far too late where future generations will ask if we were out of our minds.

Dan Nguyen @dancow.bsky.social · 8d

VC, founder, dumbass

@Nick_Davidov
Asked Claude Cowork organize my wife's desktop, it stated doing it, asked for a permission to delete temp office files, I granted it, and then it goes "ooops"
Turns out it tried renaming and accidentally deleted a folder with all of the photos my wife made on her camera for the last 15 years. All photos of kids, their illustrations, friends' weddings, travel, everything.
It's not in trash, it was done via terminal It's not in iCloud, it already synced the new file structure.
She didn't have Time Machine.
Disc recovery tools can't see anything.
I called Apple and they pointed me to a feature in iCloud allowing to retrieve files that were saved before but are no longer on iCloud Drive (they keep them for 30 days).
I'm now watching it load tens of thousands of files. I nearly had a heart attack.

Nick Davidov • @Nick_Davidov
VC, founder, DVC.ai - backing repeat founders with a community of 200 engineers. e/acc/OSS. Perplexity, Higgsfield, Animation, Etched. Husband to @msdavidova

February 8, 2026 at 10:23 PM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

This entire thread is valuable insight into the messy math of RPG publishing. Thanks @rdonoghue.bsky.social

Rob Donoghue @rdonoghue.bsky.social · 9d

It used to be that the difference between gross and net was well known enough to be an effective punchline, but I feel like that knowledge has faded, at least within RPG publishing.

Part of what made this common knowledge was its importance in moviemaking.

February 8, 2026 at 4:13 PM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

Look at me researching old warhammer vehicle designs instead of reconciling my business records for tax purposes.

February 7, 2026 at 10:49 PM

Reposted by Jason Pitre

Avery Alder, Buried Without Ceremony

@lackingceremony.bsky.social

Democratizing the arts looks like universal income, low-barrier grants for both emerging and working artists, well-funded municipal arts & recreation programs, vibrant third spaces, and a well-funded public school system with progressive curriculum.

Not a free pass for corporate-owned slop engines.

Gretchen Felker-Martin 🍉 @scumbelievable.bsky.social · 11d

Every instance of "AI democratizes the arts, you're classist and ableist and a gatekeeper for trying to stop it" is a slap in the face to the literally centuries of poor, disabled people making art on the margins and a crass lie in service of a machine that strips down and regurgitates dreams

February 7, 2026 at 12:58 AM

Reposted by Jason Pitre

Omg. WTF is Happening?

@lalahaenzy.com

Sir Ian McKellen performing a monologue from Shakespeare’s Sir Thomas More on the Stephen Colbert show. Never have I heard this monologue performed with such a keen sense of prescience. Nor have I ever been in this exact historical moment.TY Sir Ian, for reaching us once again.
#Pinks #ProudBlue

February 5, 2026 at 11:50 AM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

I am not sure all my non-Canadian friends are as comfortable as me walking round in a leather coat, no gloves or hat, at -12c / 10f

February 4, 2026 at 1:36 PM

Reposted by Jason Pitre

Steve Vladeck

@stevevladeck.bsky.social

Even if you don't have time to read all 83 pages of Judge Reyes's opinion barring the Trump administration from rescinding Temporary Protected Status for 350,000+ Haitians, please at least check out the four-page introduction.

It's a tour de force:

storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

"On December 2, 1783, then-Commander-in-Chief George Washington penned: “America is open to receive not only the Opulent & respected Stranger, but the oppressed & persecuted of all Nations & Religions.”1
More than two centuries later, Congress reaffirmed President Washington’s vision by establishing the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program. See 8 U.S.C. § 1254a (TPS statute). It provides humanitarian relief to foreign nationals in the United States who come from disaster-stricken countries. It also brings in substantial revenue, with TPS holders generating $5.2 billion in taxes annually. See Part VI.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem has a different take. [screenshot of tweet].

So says the official responsible for overseeing the TPS program. And one of those (her word) “damn” countries is Haiti. Relevant here, three days before making the above post, Secretary Noem announced she would terminate Haiti’s TPS designation as of February 3, 2026. See 90
Fed. Reg. 54733 (Nov. 28, 2025) (Termination).

Plaintiffs are five Haitian TPS holders. They are not, it emerges, “killers, leeches, or entitlement junkies.” They are instead: Fritz Emmanuel Lesly Miot, a neuroscientist researching Alzheimer’s disease, Dkt. 90 (Second Am. Compl. (SAC)) ¶ 1; Rudolph Civil, a software engineer at a national bank, id. ¶ 2; Marlene Gail Noble, a laboratory assistant in a toxicology department, id. ¶ 3; Marica Merline Laguerre, a college economics major, id. ¶ 4; and Vilbrun Dorsainvil, a full-time registered nurse, id. ¶ 5. They claim that Secretary Noem’s decision violates the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. § 706(2), and the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The Government counters that the Court does not have jurisdiction, and, in any case, the Secretary did not violate the law.

Plaintiffs seek to stay the Secretary’s decision under 5 U.S.C. § 705 pending the outcome of this litigation. See Dkt. 81 (§ 705 Mot.). To decide their motion, the Court considers first whether it has jurisdiction. It does. See Part II. It then considers: whether Plaintiffs have a substantial likelihood of success on the merits; whether they will be irreparably harmed absent a stay; and whether a merged balance of the equities and public interest analysis favors a stay. See Part III. Each element favors Plaintiffs. See Parts IV, V, and VI.

Plaintiffs charge that Secretary Noem preordained her termination decision and did so because of hostility to nonwhite immigrants. This seems substantially likely. Secretary Noem

has terminated every TPS country designation to have reached her desk—twelve countries up,
twelve countries down. See Section IV.A.2. Her conclusion that Haiti (a majority nonwhite
country) faces merely “concerning” conditions cannot be squared with the “perfect storm of
suffering” and “staggering” “humanitarian toll” described in page-after-page of the Certified
Administrative Record (CAR). See Section IV.A.3.a. She ignored Congress’s requirement that
she “review the conditions” in Haiti only “after” consulting “with appropriate agencies.” 8
U.S.C. § 1254a(b)(3)(A); see Section IV.A.1. Indeed, she did not consult other agencies at all.
See id. Her “national interest” analysis focuses on Haitians outside the United States or here
illegally, ignoring that Haitian TPS holders already live here, and legally so. See Section
IV.A.3.b. And though she states that the analysis must include “economic considerations,” she
ignores altogether the billions Haitian TPS holders contribute to the economy. See id.
The Government’s primary response is that the TPS statute gives the Secretary
unbounded discretion to make whatever determination she wants, any way she wants. And, yes,
the statute does grant her some discretion. But not unbounded discretion. To the contrary,
Congress passed the TPS statute to standardize the then ad hoc temporary protection system—to
replace executive whim with statutory predictability. See Section I.A.
As to irreparable harm, the Government contends that, at most, the harms to Haitian TPS
holders are speculative. But the Department of State (State) warns [screenshot]

Dkt. 100 (§ 705 Reply) at 20–21.4 “Do not travel to Haiti for any reason” does not exactly
scream, as Secretary Noem concluded, suitable for return. And so, the Government studiously
does not argue that Plaintiffs will suffer no harm if removed to Haiti. Instead, it argues Plaintiffs
will not certainly suffer irreparable harm because DHS might not remove them. But this fails to
take Secretary Noem at her word: “WE DON’T WANT THEM. NOT ONE.” See Section
IV.B.2.b.
Finally, the balance of equities and public interest favor a stay. The Government does not
cite any reason termination must occur post haste. Secretary Noem complains of strains
unlawful immigrants place on our immigration-enforcement system. Her answer? Turn 352,959
lawful immigrants into unlawful immigrants overnight. She complains of strains to our
economy. Her answer? Turn employed lawful immigrants who contribute billions in taxes into
the legally unemployable. She complains of strains to our healthcare system. Her answer? Turn
the insured into the uninsured. This approach is many things—in the public interest is not one of
them.
For the reasons below, the Court GRANTS Plaintiffs’ Renewed Motion for a Stay Under
5 U.S.C. § 705, Dkt. 81.

February 3, 2026 at 1:06 AM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

Songfall Survivors hard copies are on the way and I am still working away at some missions for digital releases.

February 2, 2026 at 5:58 PM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

Ok, I am still very skeptical of AI / Machine Learning but there is some fascinating academic research here: gail.wharton.upenn.edu/prompt-libra...

Prompt Library

gail.wharton.upenn.edu

January 28, 2026 at 1:41 AM

Reposted by Jason Pitre

Avery Alder, Buried Without Ceremony

@lackingceremony.bsky.social

The Quiet Year is now back in stock no matter where you live!

The Quiet Year is an award-winning map-making game about building community after the collapse. It comes in a little box with everything you need to play. And it's back in stock in the US!

store.buriedwithoutceremony.com/products/the...

The Quiet Year (box set)

The Quiet Year is a map game. You define the struggles of a community living after the collapse of civilization, and attempt to build something good within their quiet year. Every decision and every a...

store.buriedwithoutceremony.com

January 26, 2026 at 6:43 PM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

I am quite proud that I was able to make the print copies of After the War match despite 7+ years passing and changing publishing software.

Spine photos of After the War and Songfall Survivors.

Cover photos of After the War and Songfall Survivors.

January 26, 2026 at 12:52 PM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

The latest episode of the RPG Design Panelcast features Curt Covert of @smirkanddagger.bsky.social dispensing some brilliant advice for anyone considering self-publishing games. Check it out!

Episode 389: Self Publishing - Should I | RPG Design Panelcast

Recorded at Metatopia 2024 Presented by Curt Covert Self-Publishing is not for everyone, nor is opening a small business as a board game publisher. We will discuss why this is the case and then, for t...

genesisoflegend.podbean.com

January 26, 2026 at 5:07 AM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

If you want to pick up a POD copy of Songfall Survivors, our massive expansion for After the War, it's now available! www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...

Songfall Survivors - Genesis of Legend Publishing | DriveThruRPG

It's been ten years since the war After the War is a tabletop roleplaying game of memetic horror, where you play some of the few survivors of a brutal galactic war against an alien hivemind called The...

www.drivethrurpg.com

January 25, 2026 at 9:04 PM

Reposted by Jason Pitre

Mezentine

@mezentine.bsky.social

I think one of the single most impactful goals we should aspire to is rebuilding generalized public awareness of the nuts and bolts of civic operation. So many of our problems are downstream of people not understanding the work that undergirds their day-to-day experience of living in a society.

Anil Dash @anildash.com · 23d

One of the hardest things to do is bring campaign-level communications to the work of governance, and snowstorms are notoriously one of the biggest litmus tests that less-engaged voters use to judge mayoral administrations. This is an excellent way to communicate.

January 25, 2026 at 5:47 PM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

If RPGs aren't your thing? Please sign up to run your favourite board-game that you don't get to the table enough, or use it as an excuse to take something down from the shelf of shame (tm). Show folks these awesome games they might not otherwise discover.

CanGames Tabletop Game Convention – Friendly Mayhem Since 1977

cangames.ca

January 25, 2026 at 6:41 PM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

If anyone wants to run games at CanGames 2026 in Ottawa, now is the perfect time to submit your events. We would love to see more indie designers and publishers at the show! cangames.ca

CanGames Tabletop Game Convention – Friendly Mayhem Since 1977

cangames.ca

January 25, 2026 at 6:37 PM

Jason Pitre

@genesisoflegend.bsky.social

I am happy to report that the Print on Demand copies of Songfall Survivors are now available to order. We are quite proud of what we have come up with. www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...