MerTheLibrarian
@merthelibrarian.bsky.social
Just keep trying to do the next right thing.
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
A Chicago man originally from Bulgaria died in ICE custody this week after being arrested during Operation Midway Blitz.
blockclubchicago.org/2025/12/21/c...
blockclubchicago.org/2025/12/21/c...
December 22, 2025 at 12:19 AM
A Chicago man originally from Bulgaria died in ICE custody this week after being arrested during Operation Midway Blitz.
blockclubchicago.org/2025/12/21/c...
blockclubchicago.org/2025/12/21/c...
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
Now seems like a swell time to point out that Frontline just released this excellent 11-minute mini-documentary about what happened inside CECOT.
Surviving CECOT (full documentary) | Deported to a Maximum-Security Prison | FRONTLINE + ProPublica
YouTube video by FRONTLINE PBS | Official
m.youtube.com
December 21, 2025 at 10:26 PM
Now seems like a swell time to point out that Frontline just released this excellent 11-minute mini-documentary about what happened inside CECOT.
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
On this week’s @onthemedia.bsky.social I spoke with Stephen Witt about how AI tycoons have tied our economy up in knots and are demanding that we let them do significant harm to our planet:
Deep Fakes, Data Centers, and AI Slop — Are We Cooked? | On the Media | WNYC Studios
Donald Trump has signed an executive order limiting state regulation on artificial intelligence. On this week’s On the Media, Republicans spar over AI, and what deregulating the indus...
www.wnycstudios.org
December 21, 2025 at 1:57 PM
On this week’s @onthemedia.bsky.social I spoke with Stephen Witt about how AI tycoons have tied our economy up in knots and are demanding that we let them do significant harm to our planet:
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
CBP, DEA and local law enforcement agencies have created a massive surveillance dragnet targeting drivers on highways along the US-Mexico border. Here's how to spot automated license plate readers by the roadside. www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
How to Identify Automated License Plate Readers at the U.S.-Mexico
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and scores of state and local law enforcement agencies have installed a massive dragnet of automated license plate
www.eff.org
December 20, 2025 at 8:01 PM
CBP, DEA and local law enforcement agencies have created a massive surveillance dragnet targeting drivers on highways along the US-Mexico border. Here's how to spot automated license plate readers by the roadside. www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
Now there is an effective metaphor.
"AI is the asbestos in the walls of our technological society, stuffed there with wild abandon by a finance sector and tech monopolists run amok. We will be excavating it for a generation or more."
This piece on AI by Cory Doctorow is spectactular.
pluralistic.net/2025/12/05/p...
This piece on AI by Cory Doctorow is spectactular.
pluralistic.net/2025/12/05/p...
December 20, 2025 at 8:21 PM
Now there is an effective metaphor.
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
@stateline.org probes the deal the Justice Department has offered multiple states on their voter rolls. It would allow the federal government to identify voters to be dropped. That's unprecedented and dangerous. Our Eileen O'Connor weighs in. stateline.org/2025/12/18/t...
Trump’s DOJ offers states confidential deal to remove voters flagged by feds • Stateline
The U.S. Department of Justice has sent confidential draft agreements on voter data sharing to more than a dozen states, part of the Trump administration’s effort to obtain unredacted voter rolls, wit...
stateline.org
December 20, 2025 at 8:04 PM
@stateline.org probes the deal the Justice Department has offered multiple states on their voter rolls. It would allow the federal government to identify voters to be dropped. That's unprecedented and dangerous. Our Eileen O'Connor weighs in. stateline.org/2025/12/18/t...
Some great stuff entering public domain on Jan 1 2026! #PublicDomainDay
Public Domain Day 2026 | Duke University School of Law
January 1, 2026 is Public Domain Day: Works from 1930 are open to all, as are sound recordings from 1925! By Jennifer Jenkins and James Boyle[1] CC BY 4.0 Please note that this site is only about US l...
web.law.duke.edu
December 18, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Some great stuff entering public domain on Jan 1 2026! #PublicDomainDay
None of this is okay.
AI Surveillance Startup Caught Using Sweatshop Workers to Monitor US Residents — Futurism
Who's watching the watchers? Illustration by Tag Hartman-Simkins / Futurism. What does it take to become the most successful AI surveillance company in 2025? If you’re anything like Flock, the startup...
apple.news
December 7, 2025 at 11:25 PM
None of this is okay.
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
Do you hate the new Vaccines and Autism webpage revisions as much as we do? Yes? Great. Some action items:
1. Submit your concerns through CDC INFO: www.cdc.gov/cdc-info/for...
2. (if not a fed employee) Consider adding "vaccines do NOT cause autism" to your signature line 😈
1. Submit your concerns through CDC INFO: www.cdc.gov/cdc-info/for...
2. (if not a fed employee) Consider adding "vaccines do NOT cause autism" to your signature line 😈
Email CDC-INFO
Users can use this form to direct questions to the CDC.
www.cdc.gov
November 22, 2025 at 12:32 AM
Do you hate the new Vaccines and Autism webpage revisions as much as we do? Yes? Great. Some action items:
1. Submit your concerns through CDC INFO: www.cdc.gov/cdc-info/for...
2. (if not a fed employee) Consider adding "vaccines do NOT cause autism" to your signature line 😈
1. Submit your concerns through CDC INFO: www.cdc.gov/cdc-info/for...
2. (if not a fed employee) Consider adding "vaccines do NOT cause autism" to your signature line 😈
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
With ICE and border patrol goons spreading out across the country, I put together a resource guide for buying, printing, and distributing whistles, based on my own experience. Now is the time to whistle up, hope this helps. dansinker.com/posts/202…
November 21, 2025 at 9:35 PM
With ICE and border patrol goons spreading out across the country, I put together a resource guide for buying, printing, and distributing whistles, based on my own experience. Now is the time to whistle up, hope this helps. dansinker.com/posts/202…
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
Commentary: Halving the library’s collections budget will have immediate, real-world impacts. That means longer wait times for new books, fewer digital resources and a reduced ability to serve residents who depend on CPL for everything from résumé writing to after-school programs.
Ald. Samantha Nugent: Libraries in Chicago are essential. Why is the mayor cutting CPL’s budget?
Halving the Chicago library’s collections budget will mean longer wait times for new books and a reduced ability to serve residents.
trib.al
November 8, 2025 at 3:00 AM
Commentary: Halving the library’s collections budget will have immediate, real-world impacts. That means longer wait times for new books, fewer digital resources and a reduced ability to serve residents who depend on CPL for everything from résumé writing to after-school programs.
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
Senator Menendez is sitting in his cell at Allenwood right now because he took a 1kg gold bar from the Egyptians, among other forms of “lobbying.”
"It was tough to beat Apple, but the Swiss did it." said one administration official.
How the Swiss convinced Trump to drop tariffs with gifts of a Rolex desk clock and a 1 kg gold bar.
www.axios.com/2025/11/14/t...
How the Swiss convinced Trump to drop tariffs with gifts of a Rolex desk clock and a 1 kg gold bar.
www.axios.com/2025/11/14/t...
How to lobby Trump with Swiss precision: gifts, gold and gab
How the Swiss broke a diplomatic logjam on tariffs by arriving with tributes fit for a king.
www.axios.com
November 15, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Senator Menendez is sitting in his cell at Allenwood right now because he took a 1kg gold bar from the Egyptians, among other forms of “lobbying.”
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
I'm not quite sure how Vivian Nereim and Rebecca Ruiz found a way to avoid the words "corruption" or "emoluments" in this piece. "https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/15/world/middleeast/trump-organization-saudi-development-deal.html?smid=bs-share
Trump Organization Is Said to Be in Talks on a Saudi Government Real Estate Deal
www.nytimes.com
November 15, 2025 at 9:49 PM
I'm not quite sure how Vivian Nereim and Rebecca Ruiz found a way to avoid the words "corruption" or "emoluments" in this piece. "https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/15/world/middleeast/trump-organization-saudi-development-deal.html?smid=bs-share
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
@govpritzker.illinois.gov I want you to watch this video of me slammed to the ground- why are you allowing this to happen to people you know are on the right side of history. They tied my hands behind my back and when I asked them to be loosened because I was going numb they said, “STFU.”
at one point, i watched a cook county sheriff’s officer (who appears to be in charge) point out a priest in the crowd.
he and a couple officers then went into the crowd , dragged him into the street, and arrested him.
situation is still tense as crowd jostles with police to get into the street.
he and a couple officers then went into the crowd , dragged him into the street, and arrested him.
situation is still tense as crowd jostles with police to get into the street.
November 15, 2025 at 5:34 PM
@govpritzker.illinois.gov I want you to watch this video of me slammed to the ground- why are you allowing this to happen to people you know are on the right side of history. They tied my hands behind my back and when I asked them to be loosened because I was going numb they said, “STFU.”
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
Also in here: DHS responded to the faith-led protest yesterday, calling participants “violent rioters” and “imbecilic morons” who need to “get a job.”
Asked about the statement, one UMC pastor who participated in the protest told me: "This is our job." religionnews.com/2025/11/15/a...
Asked about the statement, one UMC pastor who participated in the protest told me: "This is our job." religionnews.com/2025/11/15/a...
November 15, 2025 at 7:58 PM
Also in here: DHS responded to the faith-led protest yesterday, calling participants “violent rioters” and “imbecilic morons” who need to “get a job.”
Asked about the statement, one UMC pastor who participated in the protest told me: "This is our job." religionnews.com/2025/11/15/a...
Asked about the statement, one UMC pastor who participated in the protest told me: "This is our job." religionnews.com/2025/11/15/a...
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
Devastating piece on the human toll of Kavanaugh Stops.
Especially infuriating to know that rich white guys like Brett K can simply close their eyes to the human suffering their racist jurisprudence has unleashed.
Especially infuriating to know that rich white guys like Brett K can simply close their eyes to the human suffering their racist jurisprudence has unleashed.
For two months, the U.S. government has been racial profiling as masked federal agents hunted for immigrants throughout Chicago. They’ve repeatedly snatched up U.S. citizens while traumatizing communities. “I felt like a piece of trash.” Here is our story www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/15/l...
Latino US citizens racially profiled by federal immigration agents in Chicago: ‘I felt like a piece of trash’
The Tribune spoke to U.S. citizens and green card holders who have either been questioned or detained during Trump’s Operation Midway Blitz.
www.chicagotribune.com
November 15, 2025 at 2:25 PM
Devastating piece on the human toll of Kavanaugh Stops.
Especially infuriating to know that rich white guys like Brett K can simply close their eyes to the human suffering their racist jurisprudence has unleashed.
Especially infuriating to know that rich white guys like Brett K can simply close their eyes to the human suffering their racist jurisprudence has unleashed.
Just a follow-up to say I am a massive music nerd, and I like Qobuz a lot and do not at all regret my decision to #CancelSpotify
I'm canceling my Spotify subscription until the ICE ads are removed. Streaming hate is a choice and I refuse to fund it. #CancelSpotify app.sosha.ai/s/joiSQnxm.
Qobuz (qobuz.com) is great, & I used soundiiz.com to transfer music easily - they have a free trial and they show what couldn't transfer.
Qobuz (qobuz.com) is great, & I used soundiiz.com to transfer music easily - they have a free trial and they show what couldn't transfer.
Don’t Stream Fascism: Cancel Spotify
app.sosha.ai
November 10, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Just a follow-up to say I am a massive music nerd, and I like Qobuz a lot and do not at all regret my decision to #CancelSpotify
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
That’s why I say keep calling.
I recognize this is, to some extent, cope/bargaining, but
this is the the first of several votes necessary to end the shutdown, right? so even the present unfathomable fecklessness doesn't mean it's over over, and there are multiple potential blockage points ahead to reject a no-concessions 'deal'?
this is the the first of several votes necessary to end the shutdown, right? so even the present unfathomable fecklessness doesn't mean it's over over, and there are multiple potential blockage points ahead to reject a no-concessions 'deal'?
November 10, 2025 at 3:02 AM
That’s why I say keep calling.
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
Thank you ! Just to clarify, bit.ly/LetterFundCPL is a letter writing tool that goes to the mayor, alderperson, and library commissioner Chris Brown.
No Layoffs or Cuts to Chicago Public Library!
It’s budget season! Do you love the Chicago Public Library? Tell the City of Chicago NO LAYOFFS, AND NO CUTS ! Chicago faces a 2026 budget deficit of over $1 billion. The Mayor has said that everythi...
bit.ly
November 8, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Thank you ! Just to clarify, bit.ly/LetterFundCPL is a letter writing tool that goes to the mayor, alderperson, and library commissioner Chris Brown.
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
The People Want to Read: on the massive budget cuts proposed for Chicago Public Library. What's at stake and what you can do, whether or not you live in Chicago.
buttondown.com/wellsourced/...
buttondown.com/wellsourced/...
The People Want To Read: On Massive Budget Cuts Proposed in Chicago
If passed, Chicago Public Library will lose half their budget for acquiring new books and materials.
buttondown.com
November 8, 2025 at 1:03 PM
The People Want to Read: on the massive budget cuts proposed for Chicago Public Library. What's at stake and what you can do, whether or not you live in Chicago.
buttondown.com/wellsourced/...
buttondown.com/wellsourced/...
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
The best way to think about SNAP is as a big corporate subsidy.
November 5, 2025 at 1:32 AM
The best way to think about SNAP is as a big corporate subsidy.
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
‼️ ICYMI: Amazon Ring announced a partnership with the notorious surveillance tech company Flock, which was recently exposed for secretly sharing camera data w/ ICE & law enforcement investigating people who travel for abortion care.
October 30, 2025 at 7:31 PM
‼️ ICYMI: Amazon Ring announced a partnership with the notorious surveillance tech company Flock, which was recently exposed for secretly sharing camera data w/ ICE & law enforcement investigating people who travel for abortion care.
I'm canceling my Spotify subscription until the ICE ads are removed. Streaming hate is a choice and I refuse to fund it. #CancelSpotify app.sosha.ai/s/joiSQnxm.
Qobuz (qobuz.com) is great, & I used soundiiz.com to transfer music easily - they have a free trial and they show what couldn't transfer.
Qobuz (qobuz.com) is great, & I used soundiiz.com to transfer music easily - they have a free trial and they show what couldn't transfer.
Don’t Stream Fascism: Cancel Spotify
app.sosha.ai
October 30, 2025 at 5:44 PM
I'm canceling my Spotify subscription until the ICE ads are removed. Streaming hate is a choice and I refuse to fund it. #CancelSpotify app.sosha.ai/s/joiSQnxm.
Qobuz (qobuz.com) is great, & I used soundiiz.com to transfer music easily - they have a free trial and they show what couldn't transfer.
Qobuz (qobuz.com) is great, & I used soundiiz.com to transfer music easily - they have a free trial and they show what couldn't transfer.
Reposted by MerTheLibrarian
The Register is reporting that OpenAI lost $11 billion in the last quarter. This company is a shambling monstrosity, financial insanity as a direct result with the markets’ obsession with growth.
www.theregister.com/2025/10/29/m...
www.theregister.com/2025/10/29/m...
Microsoft earnings suggest $11.5B OpenAI quarterly loss
: Satya has also delivered Sam most of the cash he promised
www.theregister.com
October 30, 2025 at 3:53 AM
The Register is reporting that OpenAI lost $11 billion in the last quarter. This company is a shambling monstrosity, financial insanity as a direct result with the markets’ obsession with growth.
www.theregister.com/2025/10/29/m...
www.theregister.com/2025/10/29/m...