Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Strangebird Valentine

Leah McElrath

@leahmcelrath.bsky.social

“Fourth graders spent the week building walls of snow at recess to protect their classmates from ICE” is a sentence that shouldn’t exist.

Jonathan C Slaght @jonathanslaght.com · Jan 15

My daughter's school in Richfield, MN (adjacent to Minneapolis) is closing tomorrow due of out-of-control federal agents. Fourth graders spent the week building walls of snow at recess to protect their classmates from ICE. This isn't about immigration enforcement, it's about terror.

January 15, 2026 at 3:21 PM

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Justice Committee

@justicecommittee.bsky.social

Justice Committee has #ICEWatch #CopWatch resources on our website and hosts both in-person (NYC) and virtual trainings. Follow & stay tuned for our next one!

www.justicecommittee.org/cop-ice-watch

Cop/ICE Watch Guide | justicecommittee

Learn more about Cop Watch and ICE Watch, the legal practice of monitoring and documenting law enforcement activity in order to deter or de-escalate abuse. Download our guide to recording the police &...

www.justicecommittee.org

January 15, 2026 at 3:21 PM

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CrimethInc. Ex-Workers' Collective

@crimethinc.com

Rather than permitting the Trump administration to frighten us out of resisting, we must understand this broad, vague, and performative executive order as an effort to intimidate.

It should catalyze us into urgent organizing, not paralyze us.

Only collective action can keep us safe and free.

DESIGNATING ANTIFA AS A DOMESTIC TERRORIST ORGANIZATION

Section 1. Antifa as a Terrorist Threat. Antifa is a militarist, anarchist enterprise that explicitly calls for the overthrow of the United States Government, law enforcement authorities, and our system of law. It uses illegal means to organize and execute a campaign of violence and terrorism nationwide to accomplish these goals. This campaign involves coordinated efforts to obstruct enforcement of Federal laws through armed standoffs with law enforcement, organized riots, violent assaults on Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other law enforcement officers, and routine doxing of and other threats against political figures and activists. Antifa recruits, trains, and radicalizes young Americans to engage in this violence and suppression of political activity, then employs elaborate means and mechanisms to shield the identities of its operatives, conceal its funding sources and operations in an effort to frustrate law enforcement, and recruit additional members. Individuals associated with and acting on behalf of Antifa further coordinate with other organizations and entities for the purpose of spreading, fomenting, and advancing political violence and suppressing lawful political speech. This organized effort designed to achieve policy objectives by coercion and intimidation is domestic terrorism.

Sec. 2. Designation as a Domestic Terrorist Organization. Because of the aforementioned pattern of political violence designed to suppress lawful political activity and obstruct the rule of law, I hereby designate Antifa as a “domestic terrorist organization.” All relevant executive departments and agencies shall utilize all applicable authorities to investigate, disrupt, and dismantle any and all illegal operations — especially those involving terrorist actions — conducted by Antifa or any person claiming to act on behalf of Antifa, or for which Antifa provided material support [...]

September 23, 2025 at 12:13 AM

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Robert Evans (the Only Robert Evans)

@iwriteok.bsky.social

i guess not I'm surprised that Ken Jennings is really good here, i just wouldn't have predicted the host of Jeopardy being a voice of moral courage on this specific issue.

Ken Jennings @kenjennings.bsky.social · Jul 17

This is correct. Any candidate cynically “triangulating” on trans kids is a non-starter, and now is the time to say so. There’s still so much time to advance candidates that DON’T suck.

Parker Molloy @parkermolloy.com · Jul 15

I will never, ever vote for Gavin Newsom. Ever, under any circumstances. I don't care if he becomes the Dem nominee, he's still not getting my vote.

September 18, 2025 at 3:19 AM

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Q. McLamore

@ghawinriver.bsky.social

I'd point out that Media had thousands of opportunities to care about incels, gamergate, Groypers, anti-trans movements, new conversion therapy, fascists, proud boys, and eugenicists, and that they had to ACTIVELY refuse to pay attention to not know all of this beforehand.

Corey Rayburn Yung @coreyryung.bsky.social · Sep 12

Media discovering groypers for the first time reminds me of when they first encountered incels. Those of us who study misogyny or followed Gamergate had been screaming about incel culture and violence for years. Coverage of hate groups is far too reactive.

September 12, 2025 at 8:56 PM

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Robert Evans (the Only Robert Evans)

@iwriteok.bsky.social

as soon as there's evidence the shooter's identity isn't easy to weaponize things magically become complicated

The Wall Street Journal @wsj.com · Sep 12

“I have no idea why he did this.” A young man's descent from model student to suspect in the killing of Charlie Kirk. on.wsj.com/48gbtoN

September 12, 2025 at 8:09 PM

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onion person

@junlper.beer

like this is the most irresponsible level of hysteria i’ve ever seen. most of these people are either paid by the republican party, or are high level advisors and allies. this is insane

September 12, 2025 at 5:53 PM

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J. C. Cantwell 🌻

@segfaultvicta.aludel.xyz

last night as i was trying to wind down for bed i had a unified theory of what the fuck just happened, and i wrote it down, and filed it under "well, i can't talk about this on main without sounding insane until and unless the perp gets caught and is provably a groyper"

anyways, great news! (1/X)

September 12, 2025 at 4:13 PM

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Ed Zitron

@edzitron.com

Newsletter: My 16,000 word opus - How To Argue With An AI Booster, a comprehensive guide to arguing with AI boosters, addressing both their bad faith debate style and their specific (and flimsy) arguments as to why generative AI is the future.

www.wheresyoured.at/how-to-argue...

How To Argue With An AI Booster

Editor's Note: For those of you reading via email, I recommend opening this in a browser so you can use the Table of Contents. This is my longest newsletter - a 16,000-word-long opus - and if you like...

www.wheresyoured.at

August 25, 2025 at 4:16 PM

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Amílcar Tavares

@amilcartavares.bsky.social

Here's a quick script:
share.google/sxOKnVqeKgsj...

GitHub - zoicware/RemoveWindowsAI: Force Remove Copilot, Recall and More in Windows 11

Force Remove Copilot, Recall and More in Windows 11 - zoicware/RemoveWindowsAI

share.google

August 27, 2025 at 5:12 AM

Reposted by Strangebird Valentine

Alexandra Lanes

@ajlanes.bsky.social

This, from the Quakers, is a pretty good example of how to resist pressure from bigot lobbying groups. Effectively “we legally can allow trans people to use the loo, we morally should, and we tried it and nothing bad happened”

www.quaker.org.uk

August 28, 2025 at 12:16 PM

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Faine Greenwood

@faineg.bsky.social

Here is Weizenbaum in 1976 clearly expressing my own view: using AI as a psychiatric tool to treat human beings is not just wrong, it is obscene.

I believe we should be using the term “obscene” far more often to describe these perverted uses of AI technology.

I would put all projects that propose to substitute a
computer system for a human function that involves interpersonal respect, understanding, and love in the same category. I therefore reject Colby's proposal that computers be installed as psychotherapists, not on the grounds that such a project might be technically infeasi-ble, but on the grounds that it is immoral. I have heard the defense that a person may get some psychological help from conversing with a computer even if the computer admittedly does not "understand" the person. One example given me was of a computer system designed to accept natural-language text via its typewriter console, and to respond to it with a randomized series of "yes" and
"no." A troubled patient "conversed" with this system, and was allegedly led by it to think more deeply about his problems and to arrive at certain allegedly helpful con-clusions. Until then he had just drifted in aimless worry.
In principle, a set of Chinese fortune cookies or a deck of cards could have done the same job. The computer, how-ever, contributed a certain aura - derived, of course, from science-that permitted the "patient" to believe in it where he might have dismissed fortune cookies and playing cards as instruments of superstition. The question then arises, and it answers itself, do we wish to encourage people to lead their lives on the basis of patent fraud, charlatanism, and unreality? And, more importantly, do we really believe that it helps people living in our already overly machine-like world to prefer the therapy administered by machines to that given by other people? Thave heard this latter question answered with the assertion that my position is nothing more than "let them eat cake."

It is said to ignore the shortage of good human psy-chotherapists, and to deny to troubled people what little help computers can now give them merely because presently available computers don't "yet" measure up to, say, the best psychoanalysis. But that objection misses the point entirely. The point is (Simon and Colby to the contrary notwithstanding) that there are some human functions for which computers ought not to be substituted. It has nothing to do with what computers can or cannot be made to do. Respect, understanding, and love are not technical problems.

August 28, 2025 at 10:34 PM

Reposted by Strangebird Valentine

Faine Greenwood

@faineg.bsky.social

There’s an enormous amount of stuff in this book I’d like to highlight, but start with:

“What emerges as the most elementary insight is that, since we do not now have any ways of making computers wise, we ought not now to give computers tasks that demand wisdom.”

What could be more obvious than the fact that, whatever intelligence a computer can muster, however it may be acquired, it must always and necessarily be absolutely alien to any and all authentic human concerns?
The very asking of the question, "What does a judge (or a psychiatrist) know that we cannot tell a computer?" is a monstrous obscenity. That it has to be put into print at all, even for the purpose of exposing its morbidity, is a sign of the madness of our times.
Computers can make judicial decisions, computers can make psychiatric judgments. They can flip coins in much more sophisticated ways than can the most patient human being. The point is that they ought not be given such tasks. They may even be able to arrive at "correct" decisions in some cases-but always and necessarily on bases no human being should be willing to accept.
There have been many debates on "Computers and Mind." What I conclude here is that the relevant issues are neither technological nor even mathematical; they are ethical. They cannot be settled by asking questions beginning with "can." The limits of the applicability of computers are ultimately statable only in terms of oughts. What emerges as the most elementary insight is that, since we do not now have any ways of making computers wise, we ought not now to give computers tasks that demand wisdom.

August 28, 2025 at 10:34 PM

Reposted by Strangebird Valentine

ACLU

@aclu.org

BREAKING: President Trump signed an executive order directing states to criminalize and institutionalize people experiencing homelessness, addiction, and mental health disabilities.

July 24, 2025 at 9:20 PM

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Robert Evans (the Only Robert Evans)

@iwriteok.bsky.social

i am always blown away by just how far ahead of its time DS9 was. really some of the most remarkable feats of writing in TV history. and the kind of show that could only have worked with 30+ episode seasons

July 21, 2025 at 12:43 AM

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mtsw

@mtsw.bsky.social

Noem let those girls die with search and rescue teams sitting on their hands waiting for authorization

Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · Jul 22

Head of FEMA Urban Search and Rescue branch resigns.
He told colleagues that TX delay was tipping point after months of admin efforts to dismantle the agency. DHS Sec Noem took 72 hours after TX flooding to authorize the deployment of FEMA’s search and rescue network
www.cnn.com/2025/07/21/p...

FEMA search and rescue chief resigns after frustration with Texas flood response | CNN Politics

The head of FEMA’s Urban Search and Rescue branch, which runs a network of teams stationed across the country that can swiftly respond to natural disasters, resigned on Monday.

www.cnn.com

July 22, 2025 at 3:26 AM

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Robert Evans (the Only Robert Evans)

@iwriteok.bsky.social

people who use AI as a replacement for thinking, learning and communicating should be shamed and punished. the same way we shame and punish drunk drivers, or people who negligently discharge firearms.

it is bad to misuse tools in a way that damages society

Nick Seaver @nickseaver.website · Jul 21

uh oh, things are happening dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/...

CHI
Al shaming is a social phenomenon in which negative judgements are associated with the use of Artificial Intelligence (Al). This includes comparing someone's work with Al-generated work as a means of disparagement, voicing suspicion or alleging that someone has used Al to undermine their reputation, or blaming the poor quality of an artefact on Al use.
Common justifications of Al shaming include recourse to Al's societal harms, its technical limitations, and lack of creativity. I argue that, more fundamentally than any of these, Al shaming arises from a class anxiety induced in middle class knowledge workers, and is a form of boundary work to maintain class solidarity and limit mobility into knowledge work. I discuss the role of Al shaming in protecting the privileged class of knowledge work and its attendant harms.

July 22, 2025 at 5:10 AM

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Trans News Network

@transnews.network

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July 21, 2025 at 2:34 PM

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Christopher Mathias

@letsgomathias.bsky.social

got this quote at a neo-Nazi event at the University of Florida in 2017, & in the nearly 8 years since it goes viral like this every few months — I suspect because it's a pretty good summation of where the GOP has gone

July 22, 2025 at 8:03 PM

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Prem Thakker ツ

@premthakker.bsky.social

Wow—the Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention (named after Raphael Lemkin, a Holocaust survivor who coined the term genocide) says plainly:

"No more discussions, meetings, reports, sessions, summits…IF YOU HAVE THE POWER, YOU MUST USE IT."

"HISTORY WILL DETERMINE THE RECTITUDE OF YOUR ACTIONS."

The
@LemkinInstitute
is calling on every leader in the world to step in immediately with measures that ensure food and water gets into Gaza right now.

No more discussions, meetings, reports, sessions, summits.

GET FOOD AND WATER INTO GAZA NOW.

IF YOU HAVE THE POWER, YOU MUST USE IT.

July 21, 2025 at 5:07 PM

Reposted by Strangebird Valentine

🏳️‍⚧️The Milkmaid of Human Kindness🎶

@josie.zone

Sleep well, king 👑

Twin Peaks:

And when you became Denise, I told all your colleagues, those clown comics, to fix their hearts or die.

January 16, 2025 at 6:17 PM

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Possible Worlds Games

@possibleworlds.bsky.social

Burnout is clinically understood as a combo of 6 factors—work overload, lack of control, insufficient rewards, breakdown in community, absence of fairness, & value conflicts—and only a fraction of it is under your control. Burnout is a systemic problem, so be kind to yourself and hard on the system.

Dillin Apelyan (mirror pronouns) @superdillin.bsky.social · Jul 13

Hey gang I've had to learn recently that the whole "burning out" thing is real so if you find yourself being panicked every waking second that you're not working on something, despite those seconds being very rare, you should maybe listen to the signals and take an intentional break before you crash

July 13, 2025 at 11:10 PM