Thomas P
@tpshea.bsky.social
Music, education, bicycles, live band karaoke, existential dread. thomaspshea on Discord in case bsky becomes untenable and you want to stay in touch
Reposted by Thomas P
LLM-powered chatbots need to be regulated for everyone, not just children
November 25, 2025 at 5:16 PM
LLM-powered chatbots need to be regulated for everyone, not just children
Reposted by Thomas P
The Fall-Winter 2025 legislative session is a full assault on municipalities, schools, pedestrians, cyclists, local democracy, and accountability.
Everything Ford does is to consolidate power, this sucks
There’s much chatter about Ford changing local government structure. What does it mean for Waterloo Region?
www.therecord.com/opinion/colu...
www.therecord.com/opinion/colu...
November 25, 2025 at 9:54 PM
The Fall-Winter 2025 legislative session is a full assault on municipalities, schools, pedestrians, cyclists, local democracy, and accountability.
Reposted by Thomas P
Holy effing shit. So long democracy.
November 25, 2025 at 9:50 PM
Holy effing shit. So long democracy.
I was gifted a class set of King's latest collection of poetry for my new NBE course, but having heard rumblings to this effect this summer I kept them in the box.
Not sure now what to do with them...double disappointed because I think it's his best work.
Not sure now what to do with them...double disappointed because I think it's his best work.
King's books, many of which i have read and enjoyed, are conspicuously absent from Bad Indians Book Club.
In case you were wondering if this was something a lot of us already knew.
In case you were wondering if this was something a lot of us already knew.
November 24, 2025 at 11:44 PM
I was gifted a class set of King's latest collection of poetry for my new NBE course, but having heard rumblings to this effect this summer I kept them in the box.
Not sure now what to do with them...double disappointed because I think it's his best work.
Not sure now what to do with them...double disappointed because I think it's his best work.
Dear World Socialist Website: the master's tools will never dismantle the master's house.
smh
www.wsws.org/en/articles/...
smh
www.wsws.org/en/articles/...
<em>World Socialist Web Site</em> to launch Socialism AI
This revolutionary tool will harness artificial intelligence for the development of socialist consciousness in the international working class.
www.wsws.org
November 24, 2025 at 11:55 AM
Dear World Socialist Website: the master's tools will never dismantle the master's house.
smh
www.wsws.org/en/articles/...
smh
www.wsws.org/en/articles/...
Proposed Scrabble variant:
If someone has played a blank tile and you hold the letter that it represents, on your turn you are allowed to pick up the blank, put down your corresponding letter, and score the new value of that word (no premiums).
If someone has played a blank tile and you hold the letter that it represents, on your turn you are allowed to pick up the blank, put down your corresponding letter, and score the new value of that word (no premiums).
November 24, 2025 at 12:50 AM
Proposed Scrabble variant:
If someone has played a blank tile and you hold the letter that it represents, on your turn you are allowed to pick up the blank, put down your corresponding letter, and score the new value of that word (no premiums).
If someone has played a blank tile and you hold the letter that it represents, on your turn you are allowed to pick up the blank, put down your corresponding letter, and score the new value of that word (no premiums).
@clareblackwood.bsky.social is a karaoke champ. honored to be her ukulelist (ukulelian? ukester?) for the evening.
I got to make the entire karaoke crowd sing "Okay Blue Jays" with me last night at a charity media event, so we can tick that one off the ol' bucket list!
November 24, 2025 at 12:46 AM
@clareblackwood.bsky.social is a karaoke champ. honored to be her ukulelist (ukulelian? ukester?) for the evening.
"So… imagination is a way of rejecting domination. But now I want to turn that on its head and say that domination is the enemy of imagination." 👩🍳💋
So I was invited to accept an award for "imagination in service to society." This forced me to think a bit about what "imagination," "service" and "society" mean to me.
Here's the speech I delivered last night:
buttondown.com/charliejane/...
Here's the speech I delivered last night:
buttondown.com/charliejane/...
"The Enemy of Imagination": Here's the Speech I Gave Last Night
I had such an incredible day yesterday, y’all. First I was at the Trans Day of Literature at George Mason University, talking with incredible authors...
buttondown.com
November 23, 2025 at 7:50 PM
"So… imagination is a way of rejecting domination. But now I want to turn that on its head and say that domination is the enemy of imagination." 👩🍳💋
Reposted by Thomas P
I think the shortest version of why LLMs are an anti education technology is that education is fundamentally about making shared context to understand ourselves, each other, and the world
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
November 23, 2025 at 12:57 PM
I think the shortest version of why LLMs are an anti education technology is that education is fundamentally about making shared context to understand ourselves, each other, and the world
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
We need more forceful ways to tell some people to go fuck themselves.
Opportunities abound for a whole new language of social disapprobation.
Opportunities abound for a whole new language of social disapprobation.
NEW: US senator Thom Tillis wants Canada to cough up a $300 billion “make up payment” for what he claims are Canada’s “shortfalls” on military spending over the past 20 years.
www.readthemaple.com/u-s-senator-...
www.readthemaple.com/u-s-senator-...
U.S. Senator Wants $300 Billion Military ‘Make Up’ Payment From Canada
Thom Tillis also suggested that Canadians should not criticize the lack of a universal public healthcare system in the U.S.
www.readthemaple.com
November 23, 2025 at 4:34 PM
We need more forceful ways to tell some people to go fuck themselves.
Opportunities abound for a whole new language of social disapprobation.
Opportunities abound for a whole new language of social disapprobation.
Counterpoint: we could support parents' ability to spend more conversational time with their toddlers and encase AI in a cement block we sink into the icy depths of Lake Superior.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Canadian researchers look into how AI can better understand toddler talk like 'doodidees' | CBC News
Two researchers at Western University in London, Ont., are studying how to improve the way artificial intelligence understands toddlers' speaking patterns. They're recruiting preschool-age children to...
www.cbc.ca
November 22, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Counterpoint: we could support parents' ability to spend more conversational time with their toddlers and encase AI in a cement block we sink into the icy depths of Lake Superior.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Nothing to worry about. It'll only kill older people.
And people with underlying health conditions.
Maybe children too? We don't know yet.
Probably won't kill you.
You'll be fine, right?
You're built different, right?
Astonishing levels of eugenic-tinted ableism on display here.
And people with underlying health conditions.
Maybe children too? We don't know yet.
Probably won't kill you.
You'll be fine, right?
You're built different, right?
Astonishing levels of eugenic-tinted ableism on display here.
BREAKING: Man from Washington state dies after being infected with H5N5 bird flu
November 22, 2025 at 5:10 PM
Nothing to worry about. It'll only kill older people.
And people with underlying health conditions.
Maybe children too? We don't know yet.
Probably won't kill you.
You'll be fine, right?
You're built different, right?
Astonishing levels of eugenic-tinted ableism on display here.
And people with underlying health conditions.
Maybe children too? We don't know yet.
Probably won't kill you.
You'll be fine, right?
You're built different, right?
Astonishing levels of eugenic-tinted ableism on display here.
Reposted by Thomas P
Rails to trails
🚫 Pits trains vs bikes and pedestrians
Highways to bikeways
✅ gets rid of cars
🚫 Pits trains vs bikes and pedestrians
Highways to bikeways
✅ gets rid of cars
November 22, 2025 at 4:37 PM
Rails to trails
🚫 Pits trains vs bikes and pedestrians
Highways to bikeways
✅ gets rid of cars
🚫 Pits trains vs bikes and pedestrians
Highways to bikeways
✅ gets rid of cars
Reposted by Thomas P
The lesser evil is still evil, and will always give way to a greater evil.
Gramsci:
Gramsci:
November 22, 2025 at 4:13 PM
The lesser evil is still evil, and will always give way to a greater evil.
Gramsci:
Gramsci:
Reposted by Thomas P
I'm looking forward to performing at this tonight! Anyone who knows me knows that the only thing I love more than journalism succeeding in the face of an increasingly volatile and underfunded climate full of bad actors who slander the free press in order to further their own goals...is karaoke
It's mostly been bad news for journalists this year/decade/century, but here's some good news: Newzapalooza, the live-band karaoke charity party for journalists and media folks, is back on Nov 22 at The Duke (Queen St E, Toronto). Party for a good cause.
www.tixtree.com/e/newzapaloo...
www.tixtree.com/e/newzapaloo...
November 22, 2025 at 3:27 PM
I'm looking forward to performing at this tonight! Anyone who knows me knows that the only thing I love more than journalism succeeding in the face of an increasingly volatile and underfunded climate full of bad actors who slander the free press in order to further their own goals...is karaoke
Good thing my tele is waterproof. If I don't get beer sprayed tonight, we're not doing it right. See you tonight, #toronto
This was a great moment from last year's Newzapalooza party - my drums still have the beer stains.
November 22, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Good thing my tele is waterproof. If I don't get beer sprayed tonight, we're not doing it right. See you tonight, #toronto
Reposted by Thomas P
It's mostly been bad news for journalists this year/decade/century, but here's some good news: Newzapalooza, the live-band karaoke charity party for journalists and media folks, is back on Nov 22 at The Duke (Queen St E, Toronto). Party for a good cause.
www.tixtree.com/e/newzapaloo...
www.tixtree.com/e/newzapaloo...
November 12, 2025 at 3:44 PM
It's mostly been bad news for journalists this year/decade/century, but here's some good news: Newzapalooza, the live-band karaoke charity party for journalists and media folks, is back on Nov 22 at The Duke (Queen St E, Toronto). Party for a good cause.
www.tixtree.com/e/newzapaloo...
www.tixtree.com/e/newzapaloo...
fast entering the running for "best pope ever"
(yes, i know how low that bar can be, thank you very much please let me enjoy this moment of clarity)
(yes, i know how low that bar can be, thank you very much please let me enjoy this moment of clarity)
November 22, 2025 at 4:19 PM
fast entering the running for "best pope ever"
(yes, i know how low that bar can be, thank you very much please let me enjoy this moment of clarity)
(yes, i know how low that bar can be, thank you very much please let me enjoy this moment of clarity)
re: roblox dude's interview crashout. the thing he wants to say but can't is "at scale, kids are gonna get hurt. that is the price for scale." the thing nobody wants to say out loud is "maybe scaling to a level where harm isn't manageable is bad, and scale should be contained"
November 22, 2025 at 2:44 AM
Reposted by Thomas P
Massive shoutout out to whoever handles the Royal Canadian Air Force’s social media account. They responded to every single comment on their already very solid Trans Day of Remembrance post and they responded like this…
November 22, 2025 at 1:03 AM
Massive shoutout out to whoever handles the Royal Canadian Air Force’s social media account. They responded to every single comment on their already very solid Trans Day of Remembrance post and they responded like this…
friendly reminder that this is only a news story in the same way an overturned clown car burning in a field off to the side of a busy highway is a traffic jam
In case you’re wondering:
The key people behind tomorrow’s planned nationwide Ostrich Convoy include an aging Burning Man attendee who drives a psychedelic school bus called the “Church of Bubbles” and a Dutch-born Gen Z social media marketer who imports maple syrup to Utrecht, Netherlands
The key people behind tomorrow’s planned nationwide Ostrich Convoy include an aging Burning Man attendee who drives a psychedelic school bus called the “Church of Bubbles” and a Dutch-born Gen Z social media marketer who imports maple syrup to Utrecht, Netherlands
Leaders of Canada’s Newest Convoy Worry Police Are Trying to Sabotage a Nationwide Protest Avenging a Flock of Dead Ostriches
Convoy organizers say they are at ‘war’ with the federal government, but insist they will remain ‘peaceful’
pressprogress.ca
November 22, 2025 at 12:16 AM
friendly reminder that this is only a news story in the same way an overturned clown car burning in a field off to the side of a busy highway is a traffic jam
Every time I hear Angels of the Silences I vow to form a Counting Crows cover band. I will die on the hill that this is the greatest rock song of the 1990s.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=OO3k...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=OO3k...
Counting Crows - Angels Of The Silences
YouTube video by CountingCrowsVEVO
www.youtube.com
November 22, 2025 at 12:07 AM
Every time I hear Angels of the Silences I vow to form a Counting Crows cover band. I will die on the hill that this is the greatest rock song of the 1990s.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=OO3k...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=OO3k...
I just don't understand the youth culture anymore.
Not a single one of my students appreciated my Ea-Nasir reference today.
Not a single one of my students appreciated my Ea-Nasir reference today.
a cartoon says hey everybody an old man 's talking while bart simpson looks on
ALT: a cartoon says hey everybody an old man 's talking while bart simpson looks on
media.tenor.com
November 21, 2025 at 1:38 AM
I just don't understand the youth culture anymore.
Not a single one of my students appreciated my Ea-Nasir reference today.
Not a single one of my students appreciated my Ea-Nasir reference today.
All of these traffic fatalities are not just "tragedies;" they are direct consequences of policy decisions.
We don't have to live like this.
We don't have to die like this.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
We don't have to live like this.
We don't have to die like this.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Senior walking dog killed by driver on Upper Ottawa Street, say Hamilton police | CBC News
An 83-year-old man is dead after being hit by a vehicle on Upper Ottawa Street on Thursday morning, while walking his dog, Hamilton police say.
www.cbc.ca
November 21, 2025 at 1:30 AM
All of these traffic fatalities are not just "tragedies;" they are direct consequences of policy decisions.
We don't have to live like this.
We don't have to die like this.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
We don't have to live like this.
We don't have to die like this.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
This city, man. Only two teams: dead or driving.
3rd pedestrian killed this week.
This story also includes a paragraph about 2 other hit-and-runs this week.
"A woman was also hit by an impaired driver that mistakenly drove on the rail trail in west #HamOnt."
"A woman was also hit by an impaired driver that mistakenly drove on the rail trail in west #HamOnt."
November 21, 2025 at 1:20 AM
This city, man. Only two teams: dead or driving.