David Moles
@chronodm.bsky.social
information unprofessional
speaking only for myself
speaking only for myself
Reposted by David Moles
Just a thing about this: a common statement in writing is that you can fix crap, but you can't fix a blank page.
I have heard AI apologists claim that this is why it's fine to generate a first draft.
Now, to be clear, fuck this.
But also: an AI draft is a fucking blank page.
I have heard AI apologists claim that this is why it's fine to generate a first draft.
Now, to be clear, fuck this.
But also: an AI draft is a fucking blank page.
I know I don’t talk about writing much. It is because I am writing so slowly.
But I want you to know that I am taking a part of this story that absolutely sucked and took me months to produce four of the worst chapters I have ever written and in the edit I figured out how to fix it.
But I want you to know that I am taking a part of this story that absolutely sucked and took me months to produce four of the worst chapters I have ever written and in the edit I figured out how to fix it.
December 24, 2025 at 3:55 AM
Just a thing about this: a common statement in writing is that you can fix crap, but you can't fix a blank page.
I have heard AI apologists claim that this is why it's fine to generate a first draft.
Now, to be clear, fuck this.
But also: an AI draft is a fucking blank page.
I have heard AI apologists claim that this is why it's fine to generate a first draft.
Now, to be clear, fuck this.
But also: an AI draft is a fucking blank page.
Reposted by David Moles
The point of writing crap is not that you should barf out anything.
It's that you should be aware as you are writing it what the flaws are, and you need to get through it the first time, because the act of doing so informs you what is wrong.
It's that you should be aware as you are writing it what the flaws are, and you need to get through it the first time, because the act of doing so informs you what is wrong.
December 24, 2025 at 3:59 AM
The point of writing crap is not that you should barf out anything.
It's that you should be aware as you are writing it what the flaws are, and you need to get through it the first time, because the act of doing so informs you what is wrong.
It's that you should be aware as you are writing it what the flaws are, and you need to get through it the first time, because the act of doing so informs you what is wrong.
Reposted by David Moles
Please, please, PLEASE watch this to the end
December 24, 2025 at 1:39 PM
Please, please, PLEASE watch this to the end
@bretdevereaux.bsky.social naive question re: acoup.blog/2025/12/18/i... — what’s the six-deep hastati line for (or the eight-deep non-orthodox phalanx) if not to facilitate trading out the front rank?
Intermission: Battle Pulses
This week we’re going to take a brief break from our series on hoplites (I, II, IIIa, IIIb) to address a broader question in how we understand the mechanics of warfare with contact weapons, w…
acoup.blog
December 23, 2025 at 6:50 PM
@bretdevereaux.bsky.social naive question re: acoup.blog/2025/12/18/i... — what’s the six-deep hastati line for (or the eight-deep non-orthodox phalanx) if not to facilitate trading out the front rank?
Reposted by David Moles
finally, we are returning to pre-dreadnought designs, no more woke all big gun designs
December 22, 2025 at 10:52 PM
finally, we are returning to pre-dreadnought designs, no more woke all big gun designs
Reposted by David Moles
When it comes to the national security implications of windmills, the military has of course a long history of rational suspicion and justified aggression.
December 22, 2025 at 3:59 PM
When it comes to the national security implications of windmills, the military has of course a long history of rational suspicion and justified aggression.
Reposted by David Moles
Worth noting, I guess, that inside of a year we've gone from administration officials taking selfies of themselves at CECOT and bragging about how it's hell on earth to now getting their horrible little media worms to kill stories about it
December 22, 2025 at 2:55 AM
Worth noting, I guess, that inside of a year we've gone from administration officials taking selfies of themselves at CECOT and bragging about how it's hell on earth to now getting their horrible little media worms to kill stories about it
Reposted by David Moles
Will they, even then? I have my doubts.
The other reporters in the White House press corps are apparently waiting until the president actually takes a swing at one of their female colleagues before they say anything
December 9, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Will they, even then? I have my doubts.
Reposted by David Moles
A not negligible number of people, when they think of Lithuania, think of pogroms. No one thinks that of France. Why?
December 9, 2025 at 12:11 PM
A not negligible number of people, when they think of Lithuania, think of pogroms. No one thinks that of France. Why?
Reposted by David Moles
Amusing that the main pitch for ChatGPT is telling everyone they are dumb idiots who can't possibly handle tasks on their own that humans have accomplished on their own since the dawn of time.
Jimmy Fallon: "And do you use ChatGPT when raising your baby?"
Sam Altman: "I cannot imagine figuring out how to raise a newborn without ChatGPT."
Sam Altman: "I cannot imagine figuring out how to raise a newborn without ChatGPT."
December 9, 2025 at 3:56 PM
Amusing that the main pitch for ChatGPT is telling everyone they are dumb idiots who can't possibly handle tasks on their own that humans have accomplished on their own since the dawn of time.
Reposted by David Moles
Again, the illegality of firing on shipwrecked mariners is so absurdly well established that it is used in the manual training material as the example of an order *so obviously illegal* that no further information would be required for a servicemember to be obligated to refuse it.
December 7, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Again, the illegality of firing on shipwrecked mariners is so absurdly well established that it is used in the manual training material as the example of an order *so obviously illegal* that no further information would be required for a servicemember to be obligated to refuse it.
Reposted by David Moles
This man did a photo opp of himself destroying homeless people's last possessions.
California Governor Gavin Newsom said on Thursday that the Democratic Party needed to be “more culturally normal” and “less judgmental.”
December 7, 2025 at 1:36 AM
This man did a photo opp of himself destroying homeless people's last possessions.
Reposted by David Moles
A really good (and hilarious) essay on the problems of people using AI as search engines
December 5, 2025 at 5:34 AM
A really good (and hilarious) essay on the problems of people using AI as search engines
Reposted by David Moles
This is unreal. The 2026 code4lib conference has been cancelled unilaterally by Carnegie Mellon University because the Department of Education raised issues with the diversity scholarships:
> An applicant must be a member of a group not well-represented within the code4lib community, including […]
> An applicant must be a member of a group not well-represented within the code4lib community, including […]
Original post on merveilles.town
merveilles.town
December 4, 2025 at 10:25 PM
This is unreal. The 2026 code4lib conference has been cancelled unilaterally by Carnegie Mellon University because the Department of Education raised issues with the diversity scholarships:
> An applicant must be a member of a group not well-represented within the code4lib community, including […]
> An applicant must be a member of a group not well-represented within the code4lib community, including […]
Reposted by David Moles
Franklin's Canadian publisher seems none too pleased:
bsky.app/profile/kids...
bsky.app/profile/kids...
December 2, 2025 at 4:06 AM
Franklin's Canadian publisher seems none too pleased:
bsky.app/profile/kids...
bsky.app/profile/kids...
Reposted by David Moles
The least awful thing here, but I can't help but notice that Hegseth is so incompetent and/or drunk that in celebrating his war crimes, he's picked an image of a Canadian children's book character firing a Russian RPG-7 for his 'American' war criminal.
This is what the so-called "Secretary of War" is tweeting amid reports that his department ordered a second strike to make sure they killed survivors of a boat they attacked that they allege with no proof carries drugs (which doesn't justify bombing them even it were true)
December 2, 2025 at 4:06 AM
The least awful thing here, but I can't help but notice that Hegseth is so incompetent and/or drunk that in celebrating his war crimes, he's picked an image of a Canadian children's book character firing a Russian RPG-7 for his 'American' war criminal.
Reposted by David Moles
On #GivingTuesday, there’s no better time to make a difference for the men and women who feed this country.
act.seiu.org/a/givingtues... #WeFeedYou
act.seiu.org/a/givingtues... #WeFeedYou
December 2, 2025 at 5:00 AM
On #GivingTuesday, there’s no better time to make a difference for the men and women who feed this country.
act.seiu.org/a/givingtues... #WeFeedYou
act.seiu.org/a/givingtues... #WeFeedYou
Reposted by David Moles
Check his hard drive
Texas Tech University System Chancellor Brandon Creighton on Monday imposed restrictions on how faculty discuss race, sex, gender identity and sexual orientation in classrooms and introduced a new course content approval process.
Texas Tech System restricts race and gender teaching
Tech, now the second Texas public university system to add similar teaching restrictions, had earlier directed faculty to follow state and federal guidance recognizing only two sexes.
www.texastribune.org
December 2, 2025 at 12:28 AM
Check his hard drive
Reposted by David Moles
I know the latter would be really bad for Texas Tech faculty - I've had a chance to meet more than a few - and I am sorry for that, I really am.
But the only way you have standards is to enforce standards and the standards should be enforced: this is no way to run a university.
But the only way you have standards is to enforce standards and the standards should be enforced: this is no way to run a university.
December 2, 2025 at 12:37 AM
I know the latter would be really bad for Texas Tech faculty - I've had a chance to meet more than a few - and I am sorry for that, I really am.
But the only way you have standards is to enforce standards and the standards should be enforced: this is no way to run a university.
But the only way you have standards is to enforce standards and the standards should be enforced: this is no way to run a university.
Reposted by David Moles
This is an obscene violation of both the first amendment (protections which have been held to apply to professors, Kyishian v. BoR (1967)) and general guidelines of academic freedom.
So long as that process remains, to be frank, Texas Tech should be both sued and lose accreditation.
So long as that process remains, to be frank, Texas Tech should be both sued and lose accreditation.
December 2, 2025 at 12:35 AM
This is an obscene violation of both the first amendment (protections which have been held to apply to professors, Kyishian v. BoR (1967)) and general guidelines of academic freedom.
So long as that process remains, to be frank, Texas Tech should be both sued and lose accreditation.
So long as that process remains, to be frank, Texas Tech should be both sued and lose accreditation.
Reposted by David Moles
now that it's officially december i would like to share my favorite holiday video with all of you:
December 1, 2025 at 10:18 PM
now that it's officially december i would like to share my favorite holiday video with all of you:
Reposted by David Moles
I think Frederick William III may be the most anti-woke politician on historical record. He had severe daddy issues AND rather than going to therapy he just didn't use personal pronouns AND the military stopped using personal pronouns as a result? Based.
!["Frederick William was born in Potsdam on 3 August 1770 as the son of Frederick William II of Prussia and Frederica Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt. He was considered to be a shy and reserved boy, which became noticeable in his particularly reticent conversations, distinguished by the lack of personal pronouns. This manner of speech subsequently came to be considered entirely appropriate for military officers.[1] He was neglected by his father during his childhood and suffered from an inferiority complex his entire life.[2"](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:b7nwyonilwymqnwhomv6yfvy/bafkreiahmfcbb3klpfkij4wa35o6ylztusf2v46vfcu527vuxtnhgu7hda@jpeg)
November 23, 2025 at 4:17 AM
I think Frederick William III may be the most anti-woke politician on historical record. He had severe daddy issues AND rather than going to therapy he just didn't use personal pronouns AND the military stopped using personal pronouns as a result? Based.
did MS Word for Mac break drag-and-drop in Outline mode? hey @microsoft.com, that was literally the ONE FEATURE that kept me using Word
November 21, 2025 at 4:29 PM
did MS Word for Mac break drag-and-drop in Outline mode? hey @microsoft.com, that was literally the ONE FEATURE that kept me using Word
Reposted by David Moles
But also maybe they should ruin his life?
A guy asking Epstein for advice on how to sexually harass a junior colleague knows exactly what Epstein was and was clearly OK with it. I am frankly OK with someone ruining his life.
Evidently it ought to have happened decades ago.
A guy asking Epstein for advice on how to sexually harass a junior colleague knows exactly what Epstein was and was clearly OK with it. I am frankly OK with someone ruining his life.
Evidently it ought to have happened decades ago.
Larry Summers is 70. Firing him is not ruining his life.
November 18, 2025 at 1:50 AM
But also maybe they should ruin his life?
A guy asking Epstein for advice on how to sexually harass a junior colleague knows exactly what Epstein was and was clearly OK with it. I am frankly OK with someone ruining his life.
Evidently it ought to have happened decades ago.
A guy asking Epstein for advice on how to sexually harass a junior colleague knows exactly what Epstein was and was clearly OK with it. I am frankly OK with someone ruining his life.
Evidently it ought to have happened decades ago.