This Ain’t Michael
@micheil.bsky.social
Digital ecosystems, information systems, physicist, bulldog dad since 1996.
Chicago. Silicon Valley. Scottsdale. Denver.
Opinions and insights do not reflect any organization I am affiliated with.
Chicago. Silicon Valley. Scottsdale. Denver.
Opinions and insights do not reflect any organization I am affiliated with.
Pinned
This Ain’t Michael
@micheil.bsky.social
· Jun 22
Mr Wrinkles is always down for a photo op. Or two.
Hope everyone is staying cool! 🥵
Hope everyone is staying cool! 🥵
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
No, Trump didn’t tell Congress before launching a large-scale operation in Venezuela. But he did tell U.S. oil companies.
Trump seemed to have no reservations that his government isn’t a democracy at all—it’s an oligarchy, where companies come first and are already cashing in. trib.al/T6IK2Dv
Trump seemed to have no reservations that his government isn’t a democracy at all—it’s an oligarchy, where companies come first and are already cashing in. trib.al/T6IK2Dv
January 5, 2026 at 2:33 PM
No, Trump didn’t tell Congress before launching a large-scale operation in Venezuela. But he did tell U.S. oil companies.
Trump seemed to have no reservations that his government isn’t a democracy at all—it’s an oligarchy, where companies come first and are already cashing in. trib.al/T6IK2Dv
Trump seemed to have no reservations that his government isn’t a democracy at all—it’s an oligarchy, where companies come first and are already cashing in. trib.al/T6IK2Dv
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
look at some point you gotta face the fact that not everything is a distraction from everything else and there’s just a lot of bad stuff going on all the time
Schumer: "It makes you think that maybe to Trump he wants to distract the American people, as he always does, from the skyrocketing costs they are facing, from the Epstein files."
January 3, 2026 at 10:30 PM
look at some point you gotta face the fact that not everything is a distraction from everything else and there’s just a lot of bad stuff going on all the time
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
Donald Trump now claiming the United States hasn’t just illegally kidnapped the Venezuelan president and his wife, but also that it carried out a coup and will run the country until the US government chooses a new leader for Venezuela.
There’s no way the world can let this stand.
There’s no way the world can let this stand.
January 3, 2026 at 5:11 PM
Donald Trump now claiming the United States hasn’t just illegally kidnapped the Venezuelan president and his wife, but also that it carried out a coup and will run the country until the US government chooses a new leader for Venezuela.
There’s no way the world can let this stand.
There’s no way the world can let this stand.
I cannot take @carnage4life.bsky.social seriously any longer and will be unfollowing.
Postings are increasingly clickbait; lacking introspection and critical thought.
Postings are increasingly clickbait; lacking introspection and critical thought.
I still can’t get used to Marjorie Taylor Greene being the person in Congress that’s most meeting the moment.
January 3, 2026 at 8:01 PM
I cannot take @carnage4life.bsky.social seriously any longer and will be unfollowing.
Postings are increasingly clickbait; lacking introspection and critical thought.
Postings are increasingly clickbait; lacking introspection and critical thought.
"We had trouble with hallucinations, regardless of the model..."
Nobody saw that coming!
🫠
www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-ne...
Nobody saw that coming!
🫠
www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-ne...
Alaska's court system built an AI chatbot. It didn’t go smoothly.
A yearlong effort to build an AI probate assistant reveals the limits of government chatbot development.
www.nbcnews.com
January 3, 2026 at 6:52 PM
"We had trouble with hallucinations, regardless of the model..."
Nobody saw that coming!
🫠
www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-ne...
Nobody saw that coming!
🫠
www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-ne...
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
THREAD: I'll fact-check all the viral misinformation about the US military operation in Venezuela in this thread
This image, purporting to show the US military arresting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, is AI-generated.
According to Google's SynthID detector, it was created using Google AI.
This image, purporting to show the US military arresting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, is AI-generated.
According to Google's SynthID detector, it was created using Google AI.
January 3, 2026 at 5:55 PM
THREAD: I'll fact-check all the viral misinformation about the US military operation in Venezuela in this thread
This image, purporting to show the US military arresting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, is AI-generated.
According to Google's SynthID detector, it was created using Google AI.
This image, purporting to show the US military arresting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, is AI-generated.
According to Google's SynthID detector, it was created using Google AI.
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
This image is real btw. It looks like a photoshopped joke but it’s real.
January 3, 2026 at 6:22 PM
This image is real btw. It looks like a photoshopped joke but it’s real.
“Anyone who thinks about the future must live in fear and terror.”
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein
January 3, 2026 at 6:18 PM
“Anyone who thinks about the future must live in fear and terror.”
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
Among the many reasons you don’t kidnap a foreign head of state at gunpoint even if you have the capability, is that it sparks consequences you can neither control nor anticipate.
January 3, 2026 at 10:27 AM
Among the many reasons you don’t kidnap a foreign head of state at gunpoint even if you have the capability, is that it sparks consequences you can neither control nor anticipate.
EVERY country should pull out of FIFA and the Olympics.
Weak-ass statement.
If he’s allowed to do this what will stop him from attacking Greenland? Mexico?
What happens when he attacks us?
If he’s allowed to do this what will stop him from attacking Greenland? Mexico?
What happens when he attacks us?
#BREAKING: Canada calls on ‘all parties’ to uphold international law after U.S. capture of Venezuelan president
January 3, 2026 at 5:38 PM
EVERY country should pull out of FIFA and the Olympics.
"Trump's pleasure is the bold, bright colors and clean lines of Garbage Pail Kids and Al animation."
Fucking brilliant. The Garbage Pail Kids aesthetic is spot on.
Fucking brilliant. The Garbage Pail Kids aesthetic is spot on.
It’s gonna be weird when this thing comes out in like 2029.
January 3, 2026 at 5:26 PM
"Trump's pleasure is the bold, bright colors and clean lines of Garbage Pail Kids and Al animation."
Fucking brilliant. The Garbage Pail Kids aesthetic is spot on.
Fucking brilliant. The Garbage Pail Kids aesthetic is spot on.
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
1. Headlines everywhere today read "Grok apologizes."
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
January 3, 2026 at 12:12 AM
1. Headlines everywhere today read "Grok apologizes."
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
Truly enjoyed this episode; have listened to it several times over the holiday! While I wait for Marichal's book, I've found him on a few recent podcasts - well worth a listen!
@melhogan.bsky.social's gracious, informed, conversational podcast is an a gem. It's the "Unplugged" of tech podcasts.
@melhogan.bsky.social's gracious, informed, conversational podcast is an a gem. It's the "Unplugged" of tech podcasts.
Please enjoy this episode!
José Marichal is exceptionally good at making the case for why we should all become algorithmic problems…
pca.st/episode/e984...
José Marichal is exceptionally good at making the case for why we should all become algorithmic problems…
pca.st/episode/e984...
Predictable, with José Marichal
pca.st
January 2, 2026 at 11:21 PM
Truly enjoyed this episode; have listened to it several times over the holiday! While I wait for Marichal's book, I've found him on a few recent podcasts - well worth a listen!
@melhogan.bsky.social's gracious, informed, conversational podcast is an a gem. It's the "Unplugged" of tech podcasts.
@melhogan.bsky.social's gracious, informed, conversational podcast is an a gem. It's the "Unplugged" of tech podcasts.
It is very weird that publications are quoting the promoted Grok “apology” as if it is an official statement as opposed to a word salad designed to statistically patterned to fulfill a request.
January 2, 2026 at 6:22 PM
Foreshadowing of the impending Disney smut cook off on OpenAI’s platforms…
🫠
🫠
(•_•)
<) )╯get
/ \
(•_•)
\( (> off
/ \
(•_•)
<) )╯twitter
/ \
<) )╯get
/ \
(•_•)
\( (> off
/ \
(•_•)
/ \
what’s happening with grok and nudity spam requests should be a global wake up call about AI image gen and instead very few media outlets have even covered it yet
January 2, 2026 at 6:15 PM
Foreshadowing of the impending Disney smut cook off on OpenAI’s platforms…
🫠
🫠
Is it me or... does seeing a projection on the Washington Monument just seem really, really... misguided?
PHOTOS: President Trump's initiative to commemorate the 250th year of the founding of the U.S. kicked off tonight with the projection of images on the Washington Monument during New Year's Eve celebrations in D.C.
NYE Washington Monument illumination kicks off Trump's yearlong America 250 celebration
Organizers hail "world's tallest birthday candle in honor of our Nation's 250th birthday."
www.axios.com
January 1, 2026 at 2:09 AM
Is it me or... does seeing a projection on the Washington Monument just seem really, really... misguided?
I did not know the entire US is *seeking* the flu.
The United States is seeking a massive surge in flu cases this winter.
Here's what to know.
Here's what to know.
"Super flu" surge: What to know about spiking flu cases and the surging "Super K" variant
The flu is back and joins COVID and norovirus as diseases hitting the US this month.
www.axios.com
December 30, 2025 at 6:00 PM
I did not know the entire US is *seeking* the flu.
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
we're also coming up to the 4 year point of Starlink's big deployment push (see 2022 on that chart) which means not only does SpaceX need to spend capital on growth, they're hitting replacement CapEx cycles with no profitability. The business model is busted as the existing fleet falls from the sky
December 28, 2025 at 7:25 PM
we're also coming up to the 4 year point of Starlink's big deployment push (see 2022 on that chart) which means not only does SpaceX need to spend capital on growth, they're hitting replacement CapEx cycles with no profitability. The business model is busted as the existing fleet falls from the sky
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
After the dotcom bubble collapsed, Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy had this to say about the (at the time) eye popping 10x revenue threshold many frothy companies exceeded:
December 20, 2025 at 12:34 AM
After the dotcom bubble collapsed, Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy had this to say about the (at the time) eye popping 10x revenue threshold many frothy companies exceeded:
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
Sinatra has gone woke
![Civil rights activism
From the 1940s Sinatra refused to perform for segregated audiences. In Las Vegas he forced the Sands to serve Nat King Cole in the dining room and, with Sammy Davis Jr., ended Jim Crow policies in Nevada hotels and casinos by
1961. 9! He headlined Carnegie Hall for Martin Luther King Jr. in 1961, led Rat Pack boycotts, donated heavily to SCLC and voter registration, and was praised by Vice President Humphrey after the Watts riots for teaching tolerance."] Orson Welles witnessed Sinatra physically
threaten a restaurant owner who refused service to a Black musician.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:of56nmyuqzvjta7qlf7gwht6/bafkreihcwqha74luvn5td5tugqr4welplshkdqtabytg7ohgc23we7aedm@jpeg)
December 28, 2025 at 3:34 AM
Sinatra has gone woke
Wanna drive me crazy in one very simple step?
Call a software developer an "engineer".
Call a software developer an "engineer".
Tech is in an interesting place where some of the most accomplished engineers in the industry now say their job is now just telling AI to write all the code, debug it and fix the bugs.
Some of this is marketing hype from people who are selling AI tools (Boris works on Claude Code) but it rings true
Some of this is marketing hype from people who are selling AI tools (Boris works on Claude Code) but it rings true
December 28, 2025 at 7:08 PM
Wanna drive me crazy in one very simple step?
Call a software developer an "engineer".
Call a software developer an "engineer".
There are people who argue that human language is the singular defining characteristic of intelligence and sentience 🤷🏽♂️
There are still people who argue that nonhuman animals don‘t have cultures 🤷♂️.
2025 Headline of the Year nominee (June)
December 28, 2025 at 4:39 PM
There are people who argue that human language is the singular defining characteristic of intelligence and sentience 🤷🏽♂️
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
Not to mention the stalling confidence in US tech.
The lack of confidence is not limited to the US dollar: it's in the US, full stop.
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/u-s-...
The lack of confidence is not limited to the US dollar: it's in the US, full stop.
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/u-s-...
U.S. Investors Are Going Big on China AI Despite Concerns in Congress
Investors are plowing money into Chinese companies involved in AI despite growing competition between Washington and Beijing over the technology.
www.wsj.com
December 28, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Not to mention the stalling confidence in US tech.
The lack of confidence is not limited to the US dollar: it's in the US, full stop.
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/u-s-...
The lack of confidence is not limited to the US dollar: it's in the US, full stop.
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/u-s-...
Reposted by This Ain’t Michael
That's a wrap for the 2025 Allstate CTA Holiday Fleet 🎁
Every year, Santa and his elves join us in bringing joy to thousands of riders and delivering food baskets to charitable agencies throughout the city.
Every year, Santa and his elves join us in bringing joy to thousands of riders and delivering food baskets to charitable agencies throughout the city.
December 23, 2025 at 11:02 PM
That's a wrap for the 2025 Allstate CTA Holiday Fleet 🎁
Every year, Santa and his elves join us in bringing joy to thousands of riders and delivering food baskets to charitable agencies throughout the city.
Every year, Santa and his elves join us in bringing joy to thousands of riders and delivering food baskets to charitable agencies throughout the city.
When software devs and tech bros call themselves "engineers" or "architects", I point to the rigor of ACTUAL engineering professions.
🤷🏽♂️
🤷🏽♂️
A USC architecture student has reportedly become the first nationwide to complete all six ARE exams before graduating. The student must, however, still finish his degree, log experience, and pass a CA exam to be licensed. #ArchitectureAcademia
archinect.com/news/article...
archinect.com/news/article...
USC student becomes first to complete ARE before Bachelors graduation
A student in the Bachelor of Architecture program at the University of Southern California has become the first nationwide to complete all architecture licensing exams before graduation. Aaron Chang h...
archinect.com
December 26, 2025 at 6:07 PM
When software devs and tech bros call themselves "engineers" or "architects", I point to the rigor of ACTUAL engineering professions.
🤷🏽♂️
🤷🏽♂️