Maureen West
@genea-maureen.bsky.social
Genealogist, family historian, researcher, teacher - New Zealand, England, Ireland, USA & POWs in Italy and Germany.
http://makingconnectionsgenealogy.blogspot.co.nz/
http://makingconnectionsgenealogy.blogspot.co.nz/
Reposted by Maureen West
Exciting day today. Not only is it Halloween, but my crowdfunding campaign is also live! Please support me by making a pledge and/or sharing on all your socials and with your friends, family, and colleagues. Thanks to everyone offering rewards. You rock! www.pledgeme.co.nz/projects/852...
Support Dr Siouxsie After She Supported Us! | PledgeMe
Support Dr Siouxsie to recover some of the money she spent fighting her legal case to protect employees experiencing online abuse
www.pledgeme.co.nz
October 30, 2025 at 6:57 PM
Exciting day today. Not only is it Halloween, but my crowdfunding campaign is also live! Please support me by making a pledge and/or sharing on all your socials and with your friends, family, and colleagues. Thanks to everyone offering rewards. You rock! www.pledgeme.co.nz/projects/852...
Reposted by Maureen West
"AI is the asbestos we are shoveling into the walls of our society and our descendants will be digging it out for generations."
pluralistic.net/2025/09/27/e...
pluralistic.net/2025/09/27/e...
Pluralistic: The real (economic) AI apocalypse is nigh (27 Sep 2025) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow
pluralistic.net
September 28, 2025 at 7:59 PM
"AI is the asbestos we are shoveling into the walls of our society and our descendants will be digging it out for generations."
pluralistic.net/2025/09/27/e...
pluralistic.net/2025/09/27/e...
Reposted by Maureen West
David Letterman is right: you can't appease a tyrant.
September 18, 2025 at 11:06 PM
David Letterman is right: you can't appease a tyrant.
This needs reposting a thousand times - read, digest, buy the book and apply the lessons. Well said disobedient thinker Welby Ings. So many memories of teaching reading in junior classes in NZ and London.
“I still have James’s letter. It became my conscience. It reminded me not to walk away from something I should be fixing. He asked me to come back, and I didn’t.” — Professor Welby Ings remembers a seven-year-old student he had taught in Ōtara 50 years ago.
Invisible intelligence | E-Tangata
“I still have James’s letter. It became my conscience. It reminded me not to walk away from something I should be fixing. He asked me to come back, and I didn’t.” — Professor Welby Ings remembers a se...
e-tangata.co.nz
August 23, 2025 at 9:45 PM
This needs reposting a thousand times - read, digest, buy the book and apply the lessons. Well said disobedient thinker Welby Ings. So many memories of teaching reading in junior classes in NZ and London.
Reposted by Maureen West
A new, HUGE reason nobody who does genealogy should be putting ANYTHING CLOSE to sensitive information into LLMs.
Holy liability, Batman. #genealogy
Holy liability, Batman. #genealogy
Well this is bad. Google is indexing ChatGPT conversations exposing sensitive user data
I tried a few quick searches. I found someone's chat where I can see their api key
I found some building their resume. Their name, email and phone numbers are exposed.
www.fastcompany.com/91376687/goo...
I tried a few quick searches. I found someone's chat where I can see their api key
I found some building their resume. Their name, email and phone numbers are exposed.
www.fastcompany.com/91376687/goo...
Exclusive: Google is indexing ChatGPT conversations, potentially exposing sensitive user data
Thousands of shared ChatGPT chats are now appearing in Google search results.
www.fastcompany.com
August 2, 2025 at 2:06 AM
A new, HUGE reason nobody who does genealogy should be putting ANYTHING CLOSE to sensitive information into LLMs.
Holy liability, Batman. #genealogy
Holy liability, Batman. #genealogy
Reposted by Maureen West
Dr Hilary Stace
Historian and Disability Advocate Extraordinaire
1954 – 2025 💔
Historian and Disability Advocate Extraordinaire
1954 – 2025 💔
July 4, 2025 at 5:53 AM
Dr Hilary Stace
Historian and Disability Advocate Extraordinaire
1954 – 2025 💔
Historian and Disability Advocate Extraordinaire
1954 – 2025 💔
Reposted by Maureen West
Statement from many cultural organisations protesting the cutting of history and production staff at Manatū Taonga, Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou! @publicaddress.bsky.social @davidfarrier.bsky.social @tzemingdynasty.bsky.social @mattnippert.bsky.social
June 18, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Statement from many cultural organisations protesting the cutting of history and production staff at Manatū Taonga, Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou! @publicaddress.bsky.social @davidfarrier.bsky.social @tzemingdynasty.bsky.social @mattnippert.bsky.social
Reposted by Maureen West
Relatedly, if you haven't been in an archives you have no idea just how much historical material is not online, not even a digital record of it. An LLM cannot research data it doesn't have. It can't even extrapolate where to find that material.
June 16, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Relatedly, if you haven't been in an archives you have no idea just how much historical material is not online, not even a digital record of it. An LLM cannot research data it doesn't have. It can't even extrapolate where to find that material.
Reposted by Maureen West
Henry Louis Gates, Jr.’s New York Times cover featured Pope Leo VIX’s family lineage.
It’s a fascinating romp into both #Genealogy #FamilyHistory and culture. I think I just may have an association. You just might too!
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
It’s a fascinating romp into both #Genealogy #FamilyHistory and culture. I think I just may have an association. You just might too!
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
We Traced Pope Leo XIV’s Ancestry Back 500 Years. Here’s What We Found. (Gift Article)
Noblemen, enslaved people, freedom fighters, slaveowners: what the complex family tree of the first American pontiff reveals.
www.nytimes.com
June 15, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Henry Louis Gates, Jr.’s New York Times cover featured Pope Leo VIX’s family lineage.
It’s a fascinating romp into both #Genealogy #FamilyHistory and culture. I think I just may have an association. You just might too!
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
It’s a fascinating romp into both #Genealogy #FamilyHistory and culture. I think I just may have an association. You just might too!
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Reposted by Maureen West
One of the last Desert War #WW2 veterans has passed away: his unit later supported 5/Northants at Montegabione in June 1944, where my old pal John Dray fought.
www.thetimes.com/article/31b2...
www.thetimes.com/article/31b2...
Kenneth Batt obituary: El Alamein trooper
Territorial horseman who saw action in north Africa and became the oldest veteran of the Second World War by date of enlistment, dies aged 103
www.thetimes.com
May 19, 2025 at 7:28 PM
One of the last Desert War #WW2 veterans has passed away: his unit later supported 5/Northants at Montegabione in June 1944, where my old pal John Dray fought.
www.thetimes.com/article/31b2...
www.thetimes.com/article/31b2...
Reposted by Maureen West
Inspired by that conversation about parents not reading to children, I put my original posts from here, into a blog. With some editing.
aotearoaworldofchildrensbooks.blogspot.com/2025/05/read...
aotearoaworldofchildrensbooks.blogspot.com/2025/05/read...
Reading with children: the 'problem' with parents
This piece is inspired by a couple of news articles shared around recently. I’ve seen a Guardian article : Most Parents Don't Enjoy Reading...
aotearoaworldofchildrensbooks.blogspot.com
May 18, 2025 at 11:22 PM
Inspired by that conversation about parents not reading to children, I put my original posts from here, into a blog. With some editing.
aotearoaworldofchildrensbooks.blogspot.com/2025/05/read...
aotearoaworldofchildrensbooks.blogspot.com/2025/05/read...
Reposted by Maureen West
May 7, 2025 at 3:04 AM
Reposted by Maureen West
If everyone could please repost this and share it on ur social media please….
Until we figure out how to link it from our website main page…
This is absolutely everything the women need right now - furniture etc…
aunties.co.nz/pages/wants-...
Until we figure out how to link it from our website main page…
This is absolutely everything the women need right now - furniture etc…
aunties.co.nz/pages/wants-...
Wants and Needs
This is our current list of wants and needs (May 2025). Please message Jackie at [email protected] and she'll put you directly in contact with the woman who needs whatever you have. We are ab...
aunties.co.nz
May 7, 2025 at 3:10 AM
If everyone could please repost this and share it on ur social media please….
Until we figure out how to link it from our website main page…
This is absolutely everything the women need right now - furniture etc…
aunties.co.nz/pages/wants-...
Until we figure out how to link it from our website main page…
This is absolutely everything the women need right now - furniture etc…
aunties.co.nz/pages/wants-...
Reposted by Maureen West
My ancestor was on the other side of Lexington Green vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/on-the-other... #Rev250 #Genealogy @americanancestors.bsky.social
On the Other Side of Lexington Green—April 19, 1775
David Lambert reflects on his ties to the Revolution—Patriots who marched on the Alarm, and a Loyalist ancestor who stood with the British at Lexington.
vitabrevis.americanancestors.org
April 20, 2025 at 2:12 AM
My ancestor was on the other side of Lexington Green vitabrevis.americanancestors.org/on-the-other... #Rev250 #Genealogy @americanancestors.bsky.social
Reposted by Maureen West
Social norms and rules are often less about moral standards and more about social control.
April 15, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Social norms and rules are often less about moral standards and more about social control.
Reposted by Maureen West
When I first started #genealogy I found so many resources! Public trees, free websites. It was a dream come true.
I wanted to help others - so I kept my tree public.
Now, after many years, I advise keeping your tree private!
Why?
Here are four reasons: ourhiddendepths.substack.com/p/four-reaso...
I wanted to help others - so I kept my tree public.
Now, after many years, I advise keeping your tree private!
Why?
Here are four reasons: ourhiddendepths.substack.com/p/four-reaso...
Four reasons your tree should be private
Think about it a minute.
ourhiddendepths.substack.com
April 15, 2025 at 4:39 PM
When I first started #genealogy I found so many resources! Public trees, free websites. It was a dream come true.
I wanted to help others - so I kept my tree public.
Now, after many years, I advise keeping your tree private!
Why?
Here are four reasons: ourhiddendepths.substack.com/p/four-reaso...
I wanted to help others - so I kept my tree public.
Now, after many years, I advise keeping your tree private!
Why?
Here are four reasons: ourhiddendepths.substack.com/p/four-reaso...
Reposted by Maureen West
Can someone politely ask Avelo CEO Andrew Levy if he would have approved the flight to deport his own great-grandparents, who lived in Philadelphia for 25 years without ever becoming citizens? K thanks. #resistancegenealogy
April 10, 2025 at 5:29 PM
Can someone politely ask Avelo CEO Andrew Levy if he would have approved the flight to deport his own great-grandparents, who lived in Philadelphia for 25 years without ever becoming citizens? K thanks. #resistancegenealogy
Reposted by Maureen West
Reposted by Maureen West
"The right to remember the past: Opening Chinese immigration records in Canada’s national archives" #FamilyHistory #genealogy
activehistory.ca/blog/2025/03...
activehistory.ca/blog/2025/03...
The right to remember the past: Opening Chinese immigration records in Canada’s national archives
“C.I.30 certificate of Dere Mee Gim.” The Paper Trail collection, UBC Library Rare Books and Special Collections, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. Courtesy of the Dar Woon Family.…
activehistory.ca
March 30, 2025 at 1:20 AM
"The right to remember the past: Opening Chinese immigration records in Canada’s national archives" #FamilyHistory #genealogy
activehistory.ca/blog/2025/03...
activehistory.ca/blog/2025/03...
Reposted by Maureen West
In this article Eugene Dunphy tells how an American who settled in Sligo penned a romantic ballad about Breifne.
Link in bio to read more!
dashboard.irelandxo.com/ireland/cava...
Link in bio to read more!
dashboard.irelandxo.com/ireland/cava...
March 28, 2025 at 6:26 PM
In this article Eugene Dunphy tells how an American who settled in Sligo penned a romantic ballad about Breifne.
Link in bio to read more!
dashboard.irelandxo.com/ireland/cava...
Link in bio to read more!
dashboard.irelandxo.com/ireland/cava...
Reposted by Maureen West
Tomorrow is release day! My library obtained the ebook a bit earlier so I downloaded my chapter, ‘"Strangers at home"
Stalag Luft III’s Kriegies Return'. The book is hideously expensive so I know no one will buy it. If you would like to read my chapter, let me know and I will email it through.
Stalag Luft III’s Kriegies Return'. The book is hideously expensive so I know no one will buy it. If you would like to read my chapter, let me know and I will email it through.
March 27, 2025 at 5:18 AM
Tomorrow is release day! My library obtained the ebook a bit earlier so I downloaded my chapter, ‘"Strangers at home"
Stalag Luft III’s Kriegies Return'. The book is hideously expensive so I know no one will buy it. If you would like to read my chapter, let me know and I will email it through.
Stalag Luft III’s Kriegies Return'. The book is hideously expensive so I know no one will buy it. If you would like to read my chapter, let me know and I will email it through.
Reposted by Maureen West
🗃️ Read @hidehirota.bsky.social: "The words, labels, or categories that lawmakers use to describe different immigrant groups shape public support or disapproval. Those labels....are often arbitrary and do not match the realities of the groups, to the detriment of the immigrants & the rule of law."
March 26, 2025 at 11:25 PM
🗃️ Read @hidehirota.bsky.social: "The words, labels, or categories that lawmakers use to describe different immigrant groups shape public support or disapproval. Those labels....are often arbitrary and do not match the realities of the groups, to the detriment of the immigrants & the rule of law."
Reposted by Maureen West
Reposted by Maureen West
A cautionary tale of ‘AI’:
I was helping a friend with his #genealogy, finally having found the 1875 marriage record of a pair of ancestors of his. As usual for a marriage record from Congress Poland in the 1870s, it is almost entirely in Russian, in rather difficult cursive Cyrillic.
1/4
I was helping a friend with his #genealogy, finally having found the 1875 marriage record of a pair of ancestors of his. As usual for a marriage record from Congress Poland in the 1870s, it is almost entirely in Russian, in rather difficult cursive Cyrillic.
1/4
March 24, 2025 at 2:07 AM
A cautionary tale of ‘AI’:
I was helping a friend with his #genealogy, finally having found the 1875 marriage record of a pair of ancestors of his. As usual for a marriage record from Congress Poland in the 1870s, it is almost entirely in Russian, in rather difficult cursive Cyrillic.
1/4
I was helping a friend with his #genealogy, finally having found the 1875 marriage record of a pair of ancestors of his. As usual for a marriage record from Congress Poland in the 1870s, it is almost entirely in Russian, in rather difficult cursive Cyrillic.
1/4