mbrewer 🏳️🌈
@smalladventures.net
Retired FOSS nerd DIYer left-leaning rural-living outdoor enthusiast in Vermont.
Criminal organizations on the dark web largely agree CSAM is too horrible to allow. Putting out hits on people? Sure. CSAM, oh HELL no. Tracers In The Dark goes into this in detail.
But CSAM made by a rich guy? Visa and Mastercard say "eh, it's fine".
But CSAM made by a rich guy? Visa and Mastercard say "eh, it's fine".
wrote about an apparent policy change in the payments industry www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
Payment processors were against CSAM until Grok started making it
“The industry is no longer willing to self-regulate.”
www.theverge.com
January 27, 2026 at 2:26 PM
Criminal organizations on the dark web largely agree CSAM is too horrible to allow. Putting out hits on people? Sure. CSAM, oh HELL no. Tracers In The Dark goes into this in detail.
But CSAM made by a rich guy? Visa and Mastercard say "eh, it's fine".
But CSAM made by a rich guy? Visa and Mastercard say "eh, it's fine".
For the anti-ICE movement we need a short list of clear demands. I think "Prosecute Law Enforcement" is the cry. The goal should be members of a brown-shirt organization get prosecuted.
To do that we need to make terrible acts by law enforcement prosecutable via liability and proof standards.
To do that we need to make terrible acts by law enforcement prosecutable via liability and proof standards.
January 27, 2026 at 1:52 PM
For the anti-ICE movement we need a short list of clear demands. I think "Prosecute Law Enforcement" is the cry. The goal should be members of a brown-shirt organization get prosecuted.
To do that we need to make terrible acts by law enforcement prosecutable via liability and proof standards.
To do that we need to make terrible acts by law enforcement prosecutable via liability and proof standards.
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
“This will result in the largest ever accumulation of power and wealth in the hands of a diminishing few, while the legitimate needs of the people…are met with ‘let them eat chatbots’. That *is* the intent and why AI is a project of class domination.” — disjunctionsmag.com/articles/why...
Why I'm Leaving Big Tech
A tech worker's reflections
disjunctionsmag.com
January 26, 2026 at 9:53 PM
“This will result in the largest ever accumulation of power and wealth in the hands of a diminishing few, while the legitimate needs of the people…are met with ‘let them eat chatbots’. That *is* the intent and why AI is a project of class domination.” — disjunctionsmag.com/articles/why...
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
This thread. They've *always* been trash. Which we knew they would be WHEN THEY WERE CREATED. DHS should never have been spun off, and ICE is the bottom of the DHS barrel, which is a deep hole.
I’ve now seen three different people, in different contexts, say that ICE used to be a good organization that did important law-enforcement work.
But that’s not true. Even setting aside issues about law-enforcement in general, ICE has been behaving badly for a long time.
1/
But that’s not true. Even setting aside issues about law-enforcement in general, ICE has been behaving badly for a long time.
1/
January 26, 2026 at 9:03 PM
This thread. They've *always* been trash. Which we knew they would be WHEN THEY WERE CREATED. DHS should never have been spun off, and ICE is the bottom of the DHS barrel, which is a deep hole.
I had a hard time explaining to folks in Vermont why I didn't go to the Vigil for Renee Good. This explains it. No-one here held vigils for all the folks before her.
Holding a vigil only then and not sooner felt too wrong. I'm still torn about making ICE, vs. law enforcement, signs for protests.
Holding a vigil only then and not sooner felt too wrong. I'm still torn about making ICE, vs. law enforcement, signs for protests.
It's worth noting that ICE and CBP shot more of those vulnerable neighbors *in-between* Good and Pretti. And yet...
You know what nevermind.
bsky.app/profile/atru...
You know what nevermind.
bsky.app/profile/atru...
Needless to say that Renee Good and Alex Pretti will go down as heroes here in Minnesota and nationally, their names synonymous with sacrifice and caring for vulnerable neighbors even at the risk of your own life. And hopefully no more innocent lives are lost.
January 26, 2026 at 8:33 PM
I had a hard time explaining to folks in Vermont why I didn't go to the Vigil for Renee Good. This explains it. No-one here held vigils for all the folks before her.
Holding a vigil only then and not sooner felt too wrong. I'm still torn about making ICE, vs. law enforcement, signs for protests.
Holding a vigil only then and not sooner felt too wrong. I'm still torn about making ICE, vs. law enforcement, signs for protests.
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
Hey y’all remember on Jan 6th when women got on Tinder in DC and honeypotted all those rioters and sent a good clutch of ‘em to jail based on shit they admitted to in the DMs? Look I’m just saying they got Tinder in MN.
January 26, 2026 at 1:55 AM
Hey y’all remember on Jan 6th when women got on Tinder in DC and honeypotted all those rioters and sent a good clutch of ‘em to jail based on shit they admitted to in the DMs? Look I’m just saying they got Tinder in MN.
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
OK I take it back maybe training will help
Federal officer clenches a loaded shotgun in his thighs and waggles his boomstick strapon in the direction of reporters and protestors in front of a hotel while he fumbles with a tear gas greande, jfc.
January 26, 2026 at 6:04 AM
OK I take it back maybe training will help
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
to deal with a lack of local control over police, eventually, a politician is going to have to ADMIT that they don't have control over their police.
so it's all ultimately an argument of when we think that should happen.
so it's all ultimately an argument of when we think that should happen.
January 24, 2026 at 5:07 PM
to deal with a lack of local control over police, eventually, a politician is going to have to ADMIT that they don't have control over their police.
so it's all ultimately an argument of when we think that should happen.
so it's all ultimately an argument of when we think that should happen.
This is awesome. Kudos to all the folks fighting the good fight in the twin cities.
January 23, 2026 at 1:17 PM
This is awesome. Kudos to all the folks fighting the good fight in the twin cities.
Jeffries: "You think 18% approval is low? Hold my beer!"
Photo by Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune
Photo by Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune
January 22, 2026 at 2:04 AM
Jeffries: "You think 18% approval is low? Hold my beer!"
Photo by Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune
Photo by Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune
Why do people post the screencap rather than link to the damn article? I don't want to have to hunt down the stupid article just to verify it really exists, and so I can read it to see if the content matches the headline or the headline is functional lie. Just give the stupid link.
January 21, 2026 at 10:40 PM
Why do people post the screencap rather than link to the damn article? I don't want to have to hunt down the stupid article just to verify it really exists, and so I can read it to see if the content matches the headline or the headline is functional lie. Just give the stupid link.
Pick up the nearest book. Turn to page 42 and post the second sentence.
"In its shadow is a young forest: red maple, white birch, and white pine standing like soldiers, their trunks uniform and straight."
"In its shadow is a young forest: red maple, white birch, and white pine standing like soldiers, their trunks uniform and straight."
Pick up the nearest book. Turn to page 42 and post the second sentence.
"You gain a +2 status bonus to attack
rolls against the target of your Exploit Vulnerability."
"You gain a +2 status bonus to attack
rolls against the target of your Exploit Vulnerability."
Pick up the nearest book. Turn to page 42 and post the second sentence.
"Its fluted, merlot-colored blossoms suggest a Victorian lady’s crinoline ballgown."
"Its fluted, merlot-colored blossoms suggest a Victorian lady’s crinoline ballgown."
January 21, 2026 at 9:24 PM
Pick up the nearest book. Turn to page 42 and post the second sentence.
"In its shadow is a young forest: red maple, white birch, and white pine standing like soldiers, their trunks uniform and straight."
"In its shadow is a young forest: red maple, white birch, and white pine standing like soldiers, their trunks uniform and straight."
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
I'm gonna wear out the wikipedia article at this rate
![Obama administration (2014–2016)
Homan was appointed by President Barack Obama as Immigration and Customs Enforcement's executive associate director of enforcement and removal operations in 2013.[7]
By 2014, under the Obama administration, Homan began to argue that separating children from their caregivers would be an effective way to discourage illegal border crossings. The journalist Caitlin Dickerson has called him the "intellectual father" of the policy, which he outlined years before the Trump administration adopted it. "Most parents don't want to be separated", Homan told Dickerson. He argued that this makes separation an effective tool for immigration enforcement: "I'd be lying to you if I didn't think that would have an effect."[9]
In 2015, Obama awarded him a Presidential Rank Award as a Distinguished Executive. The Washington Post wrote, "Thomas Homan deports people. And he's really good at it."[10][11]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:wfy4l5sl22lgb2lakf6kwqvw/bafkreiblfxy5luf5t3csxibb7mni5gaevwlkfxypd4sgkrvnjkq2nvtp7e@jpeg)
January 20, 2026 at 9:07 PM
I'm gonna wear out the wikipedia article at this rate
Earlier today someone asked why Ring is an issue, and I dug up the emergency clause on Amazon's site and explained how law enforcement could abuse that loophole, especially with the sort of bad faith we can expect from ICE.
It seems the clause is being used.
www.eff.org/nb/deeplinks...
It seems the clause is being used.
www.eff.org/nb/deeplinks...
Ring Reveals They Give Videos to Police Without User Consent or a Warrant
Amazon’s Ring devices are not just personal security cameras. They are also police cameras—whether you want them to be or not. The company now admits there are “emergency” instances when police can ge...
www.eff.org
January 20, 2026 at 11:18 PM
Earlier today someone asked why Ring is an issue, and I dug up the emergency clause on Amazon's site and explained how law enforcement could abuse that loophole, especially with the sort of bad faith we can expect from ICE.
It seems the clause is being used.
www.eff.org/nb/deeplinks...
It seems the clause is being used.
www.eff.org/nb/deeplinks...
A simple volume pulseaudio script for #linux. I use this heavily. Getting it to work reliably is tricky, so I thought I'd share. It uses "wob" to display a % bar on wayland. The argument is "+X" or "-X" to change by X percent. "mute" will mute.
The script is in the alt text for copy/paste.
The script is in the alt text for copy/paste.
![#!/bin/bash
change=0
mute="0"
if [[ "$1" == "mute" ]]; then
mute="1"
else
change=$1
fi
device=$(pactl get-default-sink)
cur_vol=$(pactl get-sink-volume ${device} | awk '/front-left:/{gsub("%",""); print $5}')
new_vol=$((cur_vol + ${change}))
pactl list sinks | awk '/Name:/{print $2}' |
while read SINK; do
pactl set-sink-volume $SINK ${new_vol}%
pactl set-sink-mute ${SINK} ${mute}
done
(echo ${new_vol}; sleep 0.5) | wob](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:jhhxcruzymppqqwsdrs5vkoy/bafkreidknrnjctgfmfjxg3ezxdfe35kiouvyuq3ghed6hof6tipbmzkjte@jpeg)
January 20, 2026 at 9:20 PM
A simple volume pulseaudio script for #linux. I use this heavily. Getting it to work reliably is tricky, so I thought I'd share. It uses "wob" to display a % bar on wayland. The argument is "+X" or "-X" to change by X percent. "mute" will mute.
The script is in the alt text for copy/paste.
The script is in the alt text for copy/paste.
Ours are discussions of what we can do, what we are doing, what state we'd be in if a few more folks were doing everything we're doing, how else can we prepare, should we give up and bail to another country, and a bit of mentally preparing to die.
Literally that's ~70% of what we talk about.
Literally that's ~70% of what we talk about.
our kitchen table conversations generally revolve around how long we think we're going to survive the camps just saying
January 20, 2026 at 1:54 PM
Ours are discussions of what we can do, what we are doing, what state we'd be in if a few more folks were doing everything we're doing, how else can we prepare, should we give up and bail to another country, and a bit of mentally preparing to die.
Literally that's ~70% of what we talk about.
Literally that's ~70% of what we talk about.
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
good afternoon skeeters, happy monday
- drink water
- take your meds
- everyone looks good in a crop top
- support & share mutual aid
- pay sex workers
- be kind to yourself and others
- be excellent to each other
- drink water
- take your meds
- everyone looks good in a crop top
- support & share mutual aid
- pay sex workers
- be kind to yourself and others
- be excellent to each other
January 19, 2026 at 8:57 PM
good afternoon skeeters, happy monday
- drink water
- take your meds
- everyone looks good in a crop top
- support & share mutual aid
- pay sex workers
- be kind to yourself and others
- be excellent to each other
- drink water
- take your meds
- everyone looks good in a crop top
- support & share mutual aid
- pay sex workers
- be kind to yourself and others
- be excellent to each other
I poke at the LinuxOS (Not Android/Linux) cellphone situation again every so often. I'm close to making it workable.
Except I absolutely require wifi calling, and for now you have to hack together a VOIP provider multiplexing to SIP. I've tried and never got that to be reliable.
LineageOS for now
Except I absolutely require wifi calling, and for now you have to hack together a VOIP provider multiplexing to SIP. I've tried and never got that to be reliable.
LineageOS for now
January 19, 2026 at 7:53 PM
I poke at the LinuxOS (Not Android/Linux) cellphone situation again every so often. I'm close to making it workable.
Except I absolutely require wifi calling, and for now you have to hack together a VOIP provider multiplexing to SIP. I've tried and never got that to be reliable.
LineageOS for now
Except I absolutely require wifi calling, and for now you have to hack together a VOIP provider multiplexing to SIP. I've tried and never got that to be reliable.
LineageOS for now
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
Hilarious fact about this document:
James Earl Ray assassinated MLK jr. When asked if he acted alone, or was part of a larger conspiracy:
*66% of white folk say conspiracy
*100% of Black folk say conspiracy
100%.
Because *some* white folk know about this FBI squad, but *most* Black folk do.
James Earl Ray assassinated MLK jr. When asked if he acted alone, or was part of a larger conspiracy:
*66% of white folk say conspiracy
*100% of Black folk say conspiracy
100%.
Because *some* white folk know about this FBI squad, but *most* Black folk do.
January 19, 2026 at 5:26 PM
Hilarious fact about this document:
James Earl Ray assassinated MLK jr. When asked if he acted alone, or was part of a larger conspiracy:
*66% of white folk say conspiracy
*100% of Black folk say conspiracy
100%.
Because *some* white folk know about this FBI squad, but *most* Black folk do.
James Earl Ray assassinated MLK jr. When asked if he acted alone, or was part of a larger conspiracy:
*66% of white folk say conspiracy
*100% of Black folk say conspiracy
100%.
Because *some* white folk know about this FBI squad, but *most* Black folk do.
Marshaled (or... peacekeepered?) my first protest today. Mostly ensuring no-one blocked a driveway.
Protest was a honk-and-wave style in Waitsfield and it went well. One person I talked to counted 178 people at one point, and figured that wasn't quite peak.
The purpose here is to build momentum.
Protest was a honk-and-wave style in Waitsfield and it went well. One person I talked to counted 178 people at one point, and figured that wasn't quite peak.
The purpose here is to build momentum.
January 19, 2026 at 7:16 PM
Marshaled (or... peacekeepered?) my first protest today. Mostly ensuring no-one blocked a driveway.
Protest was a honk-and-wave style in Waitsfield and it went well. One person I talked to counted 178 people at one point, and figured that wasn't quite peak.
The purpose here is to build momentum.
Protest was a honk-and-wave style in Waitsfield and it went well. One person I talked to counted 178 people at one point, and figured that wasn't quite peak.
The purpose here is to build momentum.
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
I'm not sure where this idea comes from that ICE and Border Patrol couldn't hack it in the "real" military. The data does not support this; in fact both of these agencies recruit heavily from the military. A very large number of Border Patrol agents and Deportation Officers are former infantry.
January 18, 2026 at 12:30 AM
I'm not sure where this idea comes from that ICE and Border Patrol couldn't hack it in the "real" military. The data does not support this; in fact both of these agencies recruit heavily from the military. A very large number of Border Patrol agents and Deportation Officers are former infantry.
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
For @msnownews.bsky.social, I wrote an article about how ICE Watch is grounded in sociological theories of violence prevention.
The reality is that most men will only commit public violence in extremely specific scenarios and ICE Watch disrupts the conditions necessary for escalation.
The reality is that most men will only commit public violence in extremely specific scenarios and ICE Watch disrupts the conditions necessary for escalation.
Opinion | I'm a Minneapolis sociologist who studies violence. Here's how ICE observers are helping.
Research into how violence occurs shows that disapproval from the people around you can help reduce it.
www.ms.now
January 16, 2026 at 6:55 PM
For @msnownews.bsky.social, I wrote an article about how ICE Watch is grounded in sociological theories of violence prevention.
The reality is that most men will only commit public violence in extremely specific scenarios and ICE Watch disrupts the conditions necessary for escalation.
The reality is that most men will only commit public violence in extremely specific scenarios and ICE Watch disrupts the conditions necessary for escalation.
I read a book on forestry, went on a snowshoe hike through the forest with Angie and made it to our friends' house, hung out for a bit and played with their dog, snowshoed home, made icecream with home-made mint extract, and cooked a nice dinner.
Enjoying life between fighting and processing.
Enjoying life between fighting and processing.
January 17, 2026 at 12:58 AM
I read a book on forestry, went on a snowshoe hike through the forest with Angie and made it to our friends' house, hung out for a bit and played with their dog, snowshoed home, made icecream with home-made mint extract, and cooked a nice dinner.
Enjoying life between fighting and processing.
Enjoying life between fighting and processing.
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
The Black Panthers in Philadelphia have initiated armed community defense initiatives to counter ICE kidnapping raids within the city. (January 15, 2026) ✊🏽✊🏿✊🏾
January 15, 2026 at 11:32 PM
The Black Panthers in Philadelphia have initiated armed community defense initiatives to counter ICE kidnapping raids within the city. (January 15, 2026) ✊🏽✊🏿✊🏾
Reposted by mbrewer 🏳️🌈
