Dan Bongard
@danbongard.bsky.social
Software engineer, video game enthusiast, guinea pig owner, exiled Californian, anti-fascist. Pronouns he/him, or "that nerd" if you went to school with me.
Of course they are people, but it is still important to refute Trump's claim that they are *bad* people.
December 3, 2025 at 7:41 AM
Of course they are people, but it is still important to refute Trump's claim that they are *bad* people.
I have yet to hear a non-racist explanation as to why I, a "white" person, should be bothered by my descendants not being purely "white".
It is just a skin tone. No culture, knowledge, skills or morals go with it.
It is just a skin tone. No culture, knowledge, skills or morals go with it.
December 3, 2025 at 7:37 AM
I have yet to hear a non-racist explanation as to why I, a "white" person, should be bothered by my descendants not being purely "white".
It is just a skin tone. No culture, knowledge, skills or morals go with it.
It is just a skin tone. No culture, knowledge, skills or morals go with it.
Observing that a thing is true in reality is not a "justification" for including it in a game, particularly when paired with a statement that I think it is a pointless rule and don't use it. Learn to read.
As for "citation needed", this is settled science.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_dif...
As for "citation needed", this is settled science.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_dif...
Sex differences in humans - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
December 3, 2025 at 5:36 AM
Observing that a thing is true in reality is not a "justification" for including it in a game, particularly when paired with a statement that I think it is a pointless rule and don't use it. Learn to read.
As for "citation needed", this is settled science.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_dif...
As for "citation needed", this is settled science.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_dif...
Also, "college professor and social worker" isn't "solidly upper-middle class". I make more than a college professor and I'm just an engineer.
December 3, 2025 at 5:06 AM
Also, "college professor and social worker" isn't "solidly upper-middle class". I make more than a college professor and I'm just an engineer.
But he could blame the lack of tariffs for any economic woes we have. The vast majority of his base (and a not-insignificant percentage of other people) are ignorant enough to think that tariffs are good for the US economy.
December 3, 2025 at 4:44 AM
But he could blame the lack of tariffs for any economic woes we have. The vast majority of his base (and a not-insignificant percentage of other people) are ignorant enough to think that tariffs are good for the US economy.
It obviously still needs to be reviewed (and usually corrected), but that still typically takes less time than creating something from scratch. This assumes the model is trained on decent data, of course.
If quality matters more than time and effort, LLMs aren't a good solution.
If quality matters more than time and effort, LLMs aren't a good solution.
December 3, 2025 at 2:59 AM
It obviously still needs to be reviewed (and usually corrected), but that still typically takes less time than creating something from scratch. This assumes the model is trained on decent data, of course.
If quality matters more than time and effort, LLMs aren't a good solution.
If quality matters more than time and effort, LLMs aren't a good solution.
Produce a slide detailing the role of plea bargaining in the justice system. You have five seconds.
Times up. Your slide is a blank page with "THE UNDOC" written at the top; the LLM's is what you see above. The latter is far more accurate.
The LLM is impressive because of time savings.
Times up. Your slide is a blank page with "THE UNDOC" written at the top; the LLM's is what you see above. The latter is far more accurate.
The LLM is impressive because of time savings.
December 3, 2025 at 2:57 AM
Produce a slide detailing the role of plea bargaining in the justice system. You have five seconds.
Times up. Your slide is a blank page with "THE UNDOC" written at the top; the LLM's is what you see above. The latter is far more accurate.
The LLM is impressive because of time savings.
Times up. Your slide is a blank page with "THE UNDOC" written at the top; the LLM's is what you see above. The latter is far more accurate.
The LLM is impressive because of time savings.
"What a fascinating modern age we live in" remains one of my favorite lines.
December 3, 2025 at 2:44 AM
"What a fascinating modern age we live in" remains one of my favorite lines.
Aubrey was the role Crowe was born to play, in my opinion. One of my favorite films.
December 3, 2025 at 2:43 AM
Aubrey was the role Crowe was born to play, in my opinion. One of my favorite films.
One of the smartest and nicest women I've ever worked with is Somali. Republicans represent the absolute worst of America.
December 3, 2025 at 2:41 AM
One of the smartest and nicest women I've ever worked with is Somali. Republicans represent the absolute worst of America.
My elderly mother gets essentially all of her "news" from The Five.
She is a wonderful mother and a kind and generous person. One of the really depressing things about the Trump era is realizing that things like that don't preclude support for fascism.
She is a wonderful mother and a kind and generous person. One of the really depressing things about the Trump era is realizing that things like that don't preclude support for fascism.
December 3, 2025 at 2:36 AM
My elderly mother gets essentially all of her "news" from The Five.
She is a wonderful mother and a kind and generous person. One of the really depressing things about the Trump era is realizing that things like that don't preclude support for fascism.
She is a wonderful mother and a kind and generous person. One of the really depressing things about the Trump era is realizing that things like that don't preclude support for fascism.
I generate stuff for my D&D campaign using Stable Diffusion. Mediocre, janky art -- but delivered for pennies, in seconds. With those time and money constraints, the best you get from a human artist is stick figures.
LLMs are good if quality is less important than time and money.
LLMs are good if quality is less important than time and money.
December 3, 2025 at 2:33 AM
I generate stuff for my D&D campaign using Stable Diffusion. Mediocre, janky art -- but delivered for pennies, in seconds. With those time and money constraints, the best you get from a human artist is stick figures.
LLMs are good if quality is less important than time and money.
LLMs are good if quality is less important than time and money.
Exactly. Getting into arguments over whether or not the people were really smuggling drugs is playing into MAGA's hands. This is *completely illegal* under American and international law even if every single one of those boats was full of fentanyl.
December 3, 2025 at 2:11 AM
Exactly. Getting into arguments over whether or not the people were really smuggling drugs is playing into MAGA's hands. This is *completely illegal* under American and international law even if every single one of those boats was full of fentanyl.
I think he stumbled in the sense of accidentally saying what he was thinking. I don't think he stumbled over choosing between "migrants" and "immigrants", though, because neither "migrant" nor "immigrant" starts with a sound anything like "nih".
December 3, 2025 at 1:46 AM
I think he stumbled in the sense of accidentally saying what he was thinking. I don't think he stumbled over choosing between "migrants" and "immigrants", though, because neither "migrant" nor "immigrant" starts with a sound anything like "nih".
Maduro is basically Trump, only brown and ruling a smaller country. He is guilty of a hell of a lot more than having oil -- murdering thousands of people without trial, for example.
That still doesn't justify waging war on Venezuela.
That still doesn't justify waging war on Venezuela.
December 3, 2025 at 1:37 AM
Maduro is basically Trump, only brown and ruling a smaller country. He is guilty of a hell of a lot more than having oil -- murdering thousands of people without trial, for example.
That still doesn't justify waging war on Venezuela.
That still doesn't justify waging war on Venezuela.
My hope is that most of the military recognizes Hegseth as the drunken poseur that he is.
December 3, 2025 at 12:31 AM
My hope is that most of the military recognizes Hegseth as the drunken poseur that he is.
This is purely anecdotal, but the One Guy in my gaming group who loves complaining about "wokeness" is also the one guy who hasn't stepped up to DM a campaign in over twenty years.
December 2, 2025 at 10:03 PM
This is purely anecdotal, but the One Guy in my gaming group who loves complaining about "wokeness" is also the one guy who hasn't stepped up to DM a campaign in over twenty years.
I literally said I had no argument with the idea that the mechanic was included for sexist reasons and that I never used the mechanic.
It takes a special kind of stupid to get "justifying sexism" out of that.
It takes a special kind of stupid to get "justifying sexism" out of that.
December 2, 2025 at 9:56 PM
I literally said I had no argument with the idea that the mechanic was included for sexist reasons and that I never used the mechanic.
It takes a special kind of stupid to get "justifying sexism" out of that.
It takes a special kind of stupid to get "justifying sexism" out of that.
Goldberg left NR during the first Trump administration, presumably because his refusal to support the MAGAfication of the Right didn't sit well with its leadership.
December 2, 2025 at 9:52 PM
Goldberg left NR during the first Trump administration, presumably because his refusal to support the MAGAfication of the Right didn't sit well with its leadership.
In my experience, if you push them on this is always boils down to "I'm not against it, I just want less of it".
At which point, depending on my mood, I either gently point out that "I want less of that" means you're against it, or just tell them to buy a fucking dictionary.
At which point, depending on my mood, I either gently point out that "I want less of that" means you're against it, or just tell them to buy a fucking dictionary.
December 2, 2025 at 9:48 PM
In my experience, if you push them on this is always boils down to "I'm not against it, I just want less of it".
At which point, depending on my mood, I either gently point out that "I want less of that" means you're against it, or just tell them to buy a fucking dictionary.
At which point, depending on my mood, I either gently point out that "I want less of that" means you're against it, or just tell them to buy a fucking dictionary.
There wasn't a strength penalty or charisma bonus, but there was a cap on maximum strength. Males and females do have different upper limits on strength, but if you wanted to argue "there's no non-sexist reason to insist on that game mechanic" I wouldn't argue with you. We always ignored it.
December 2, 2025 at 9:34 PM
There wasn't a strength penalty or charisma bonus, but there was a cap on maximum strength. Males and females do have different upper limits on strength, but if you wanted to argue "there's no non-sexist reason to insist on that game mechanic" I wouldn't argue with you. We always ignored it.
Being a crooked politician is one thing. Hating popular musicians and making groceries more expensive hits people where they live.
December 2, 2025 at 9:07 PM
Being a crooked politician is one thing. Hating popular musicians and making groceries more expensive hits people where they live.
I don't think that's accurate. Gygax wasn't routinely bigoted in his professional writing. That's why people quote a 1975 gaming 'zine and not, say, Dragon or the DMG. Red box and AD&D 1e aren't bigoted works the way HPL's writing is.
December 2, 2025 at 9:03 PM
I don't think that's accurate. Gygax wasn't routinely bigoted in his professional writing. That's why people quote a 1975 gaming 'zine and not, say, Dragon or the DMG. Red box and AD&D 1e aren't bigoted works the way HPL's writing is.
The existence of actors who wish to harm us is not fiction. The existence of highly skilled US government employees who stop that from happening, on the other hand, has always been almost entirely fictional.
We're not unique in that regard. Terrorist attacks are virtually impossible to prevent.
We're not unique in that regard. Terrorist attacks are virtually impossible to prevent.
December 2, 2025 at 8:56 PM
The existence of actors who wish to harm us is not fiction. The existence of highly skilled US government employees who stop that from happening, on the other hand, has always been almost entirely fictional.
We're not unique in that regard. Terrorist attacks are virtually impossible to prevent.
We're not unique in that regard. Terrorist attacks are virtually impossible to prevent.
Honestly, anyone who ever read the first edition DMG pretty much thought "I would not want to play in one of his games". It is full of advice on how to make players' lives miserable.
It is still one of the best gaming books ever written, IMO, but Gygax himself was... a lot.
It is still one of the best gaming books ever written, IMO, but Gygax himself was... a lot.
December 2, 2025 at 8:38 PM
Honestly, anyone who ever read the first edition DMG pretty much thought "I would not want to play in one of his games". It is full of advice on how to make players' lives miserable.
It is still one of the best gaming books ever written, IMO, but Gygax himself was... a lot.
It is still one of the best gaming books ever written, IMO, but Gygax himself was... a lot.