JD Long
@jdlong.cerebralmastication.com
CTO at a specialty insurance company. Perpetual cocktail party host, open source fan, econometrician, agricultural economist, and OReilly Author.
I didn’t know Palantir hired anyone with a self reflective instinct. Interesting. Their HR screening hyperparameters must need tuning.
“In a Saturday thread on Slack discussing [Alex] Pretti’s killing, Palantir workers questioned both the ethics and the business logic of continuing the company’s work with ICE,” while Palantir’s internal wiki states their commitment to providing “the best software for the job.”
Palantir Defends Work With ICE to Staff Following Killing of Alex Pretti
“In my opinion ICE are the bad guys. I am not proud that the company I enjoy so much working for is part of this,” one worker wrote on Slack.
www.wired.com
January 27, 2026 at 5:07 PM
I didn’t know Palantir hired anyone with a self reflective instinct. Interesting. Their HR screening hyperparameters must need tuning.
Really good point by Davis. LLMs can increase quality. Of course as a CTO I’m like <whynotboth.gif> 🤣
I get really frustrated by people pushing faster code velocity as the reason to use LLMs. To me that's the wrong objective altogether. Push for higher code quality instead. That pays long term dividends and is the real force multiplier.
January 27, 2026 at 5:03 PM
Really good point by Davis. LLMs can increase quality. Of course as a CTO I’m like <whynotboth.gif> 🤣
Reposted by JD Long
I’m seeking photos and videos of drones used by ICE, like these. Please send any you have my way - trying to better understand the patterns.
There are numerous reports across the Twin Cities on ICE monitoring pages of drones circling apartment buildings. What valid law enforcement reason could there be for this?
January 20, 2026 at 4:39 AM
I’m seeking photos and videos of drones used by ICE, like these. Please send any you have my way - trying to better understand the patterns.
Yup. This right here.
Working with LLMs is a skill that is often based on what you enjoyed about your work. People who love the outcome vs people who love the process.
If you enjoy the process of writing, coding, etc then you’ll hate working with LLMs but if you most enjoyed the finished product then they’re a good tool
If you enjoy the process of writing, coding, etc then you’ll hate working with LLMs but if you most enjoyed the finished product then they’re a good tool
January 27, 2026 at 3:54 PM
Yup. This right here.
goddam. brutal. also hilarious.
For sale: Nazi coat, gently worn
(Size small)
(Size small)
January 27, 2026 at 2:35 AM
goddam. brutal. also hilarious.
my 83 yo mom has set up a chair so her Weiner Dog mutt mix can absolutely give em hell at the birds in the feeder. See that chicken to the left? I put easter eggs in that bad bitch when I was 7.
January 27, 2026 at 2:23 AM
my 83 yo mom has set up a chair so her Weiner Dog mutt mix can absolutely give em hell at the birds in the feeder. See that chicken to the left? I put easter eggs in that bad bitch when I was 7.
Reposted by JD Long
Here's a regular white guy (literally "Chad") not a protester. because, "It seemed pointless, or just a way for people to expiate their sense of guilt." Chad witnessed something shattering. And, that all changed in a moment.
Excellent article!
Excellent article!
January 26, 2026 at 4:33 AM
Here's a regular white guy (literally "Chad") not a protester. because, "It seemed pointless, or just a way for people to expiate their sense of guilt." Chad witnessed something shattering. And, that all changed in a moment.
Excellent article!
Excellent article!
welcome to the fold, kids.
As an older tech person, it's legit heartwarming watching the TikTok generation discover why we all hate Oracle.
January 26, 2026 at 7:42 PM
welcome to the fold, kids.
sales folks: Not only is it OK to say, "I don't know" when faced with a technical question; if you don't say that and try to just talk around it or not answer the question you burn trust and frustrate the potential client. I just watched a sales call go bad bc a rep refused to say, "I don't know"
January 26, 2026 at 7:34 PM
sales folks: Not only is it OK to say, "I don't know" when faced with a technical question; if you don't say that and try to just talk around it or not answer the question you burn trust and frustrate the potential client. I just watched a sales call go bad bc a rep refused to say, "I don't know"
Same.
I got a coping saw but its not helping
January 25, 2026 at 11:28 PM
Same.
Hell yeah, Chicago!
The march has begun. I've been standing at this vantage here recording for a full three minutes and still can't see the end of the column.
I *can* see still more people joining the march a few blocks south.
I *can* see still more people joining the march a few blocks south.
January 25, 2026 at 8:26 PM
Hell yeah, Chicago!
Reposted by JD Long
Gov. Walz: "What side do you want to be on? The side of an all-powerful federal government that can kill, injure, menace, and kidnap its citizens off the street, or the side of a nurse for a VA hospital who died bearing witness to such government?"
January 25, 2026 at 8:01 PM
Gov. Walz: "What side do you want to be on? The side of an all-powerful federal government that can kill, injure, menace, and kidnap its citizens off the street, or the side of a nurse for a VA hospital who died bearing witness to such government?"
Reposted by JD Long
We're horrified & outraged: Immigration agents have once again committed cold-blooded murder of a public observer who posed no threat to them.
This time, they've executed a fellow nurse, Alex Pretti. We demand justice and accountability. Abolish ICE, now! https://bit.ly/4big77u
This time, they've executed a fellow nurse, Alex Pretti. We demand justice and accountability. Abolish ICE, now! https://bit.ly/4big77u
National Nurses United outraged by murder of VA registered nurse by immigration agents, demand abolition of ICE
NNU issued the following statement in response to the murder of Alex Pretti, RN: “The nation’s nurses, who make it their mission to care for and save human lives, are horrified and outraged that immig...
bit.ly
January 25, 2026 at 5:06 AM
We're horrified & outraged: Immigration agents have once again committed cold-blooded murder of a public observer who posed no threat to them.
This time, they've executed a fellow nurse, Alex Pretti. We demand justice and accountability. Abolish ICE, now! https://bit.ly/4big77u
This time, they've executed a fellow nurse, Alex Pretti. We demand justice and accountability. Abolish ICE, now! https://bit.ly/4big77u
Reposted by JD Long
I was a sensitive kid. I loved cats. I had OCD, undiagnosed.
When I was 9, a fraternity brother tortured a cat to death in my hometown. The details even now are beyond imagination. archive.is/xdmUL
I was traumatized for years from reading the news story.
The torturer? Now the head of the NRA.
When I was 9, a fraternity brother tortured a cat to death in my hometown. The details even now are beyond imagination. archive.is/xdmUL
I was traumatized for years from reading the news story.
The torturer? Now the head of the NRA.
January 25, 2026 at 4:55 AM
I was a sensitive kid. I loved cats. I had OCD, undiagnosed.
When I was 9, a fraternity brother tortured a cat to death in my hometown. The details even now are beyond imagination. archive.is/xdmUL
I was traumatized for years from reading the news story.
The torturer? Now the head of the NRA.
When I was 9, a fraternity brother tortured a cat to death in my hometown. The details even now are beyond imagination. archive.is/xdmUL
I was traumatized for years from reading the news story.
The torturer? Now the head of the NRA.
We need this so bad.
It just now strikes me that the United States, unlike every other democracy in the world, has never ever ever had an early presidential election. This seems like a problem? Like you need to have an institutionalized path for designating an entire administration illegitimate and voting for a new one?
January 25, 2026 at 3:29 AM
We need this so bad.
Reposted by JD Long
Videos verified by The New York Times show the man federal agents shot and killed in Minneapolis on Saturday was holding a phone, not a gun, before the agents took him to the ground and shot him. At least 10 shots appear to have been fired within five seconds. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
January 25, 2026 at 3:21 AM
Videos verified by The New York Times show the man federal agents shot and killed in Minneapolis on Saturday was holding a phone, not a gun, before the agents took him to the ground and shot him. At least 10 shots appear to have been fired within five seconds. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
There ya go. That’s the message.
January 25, 2026 at 1:35 AM
There ya go. That’s the message.
Reposted by JD Long
An incredibly moving statement from the parents of Alex Pretti.
January 25, 2026 at 1:07 AM
An incredibly moving statement from the parents of Alex Pretti.
Reposted by JD Long
Performative lying is a hallmark of authoritarian regimes
Noem: "Our operations are being conducted in a manner that is historic for accuracy for taking care of people and doing so safely"
January 24, 2026 at 10:54 PM
Performative lying is a hallmark of authoritarian regimes
They ARE lying fucks but this date issue seems to be an artifact of how Google dates social media posts in search results. The images get the date of the start of the thread.
January 24, 2026 at 10:55 PM
They ARE lying fucks but this date issue seems to be an artifact of how Google dates social media posts in search results. The images get the date of the start of the thread.
Terrible idea, brilliantly executed. These are my people.
January 24, 2026 at 6:13 PM
Terrible idea, brilliantly executed. These are my people.
We kidnapped a kid. But his parents didn’t do exactly what we asked so we fed the child. As you can see, we, the kidnappers, are clearly the good guys. We will not take any questions.
ICE spokesperson Marcos Charles: "My officers stayed with the child. They cared for him. Took him to get something to eat from a drive-thru restaurant and spent hours ensuring he was taken care of. Again, my officers did that, not his father ... his family refused to open the door and take him back"
January 24, 2026 at 2:39 AM
We kidnapped a kid. But his parents didn’t do exactly what we asked so we fed the child. As you can see, we, the kidnappers, are clearly the good guys. We will not take any questions.
Reposted by JD Long
Today’s Minnesota Star Tribune front page will be hung in museums in future.
Every headline, every inch of it documenting a failed state; a descent into authoritarianism.
Every headline, every inch of it documenting a failed state; a descent into authoritarianism.
January 23, 2026 at 11:05 AM
Today’s Minnesota Star Tribune front page will be hung in museums in future.
Every headline, every inch of it documenting a failed state; a descent into authoritarianism.
Every headline, every inch of it documenting a failed state; a descent into authoritarianism.
Reposted by JD Long
Judging by the poor quality of biomarker research I see reported in biomedical journals, my article "How to Do Bad Biomarker Research" must have been hugely influential: www.fharrell.com/post/badb/in... #Statistics #StatsSky #EpiSky
How to Do Bad Biomarker Research – Statistical Thinking
This article covers some of the bad statistical practices that have crept into biomarker research, including setting the bar too low for demonstrating that biomarker information is new, believing that...
www.fharrell.com
January 23, 2026 at 12:41 PM
Judging by the poor quality of biomarker research I see reported in biomedical journals, my article "How to Do Bad Biomarker Research" must have been hugely influential: www.fharrell.com/post/badb/in... #Statistics #StatsSky #EpiSky