Darth Macintosh
@talesofaflaneur.bsky.social
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that."
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
what i can appreciate about claude code in the terminal versus the chatbot stuff is that i feel i am talking to computer to make it do computer. whereas the chatbot stuff feels much more like a thing pretending to be human. feels more like using a power tool than going to therapy if that makes sense
Spending more time with Claude Code tonight and I do think one basic reality is that AI skeptics need to update their priors: Plenty of cause for concern, plenty of room to hit these companies for unethical behavior, resource demands, etc, but we are so, so far past the era of "stochastic parrots"
Move Over, ChatGPT
You are about to hear a lot more about Claude Code.
www.theatlantic.com
January 29, 2026 at 4:38 AM
what i can appreciate about claude code in the terminal versus the chatbot stuff is that i feel i am talking to computer to make it do computer. whereas the chatbot stuff feels much more like a thing pretending to be human. feels more like using a power tool than going to therapy if that makes sense
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
Kristen Radtke remembers Alex Pretti. “I didn’t realize, in the hours before his name was released to the public, that the man millions of people had seen lying facedown on the pavement from multiple angles…was my childhood best friend.” [theverge.com]
I grew up with Alex Pretti
The kind-hearted ICU nurse shot by federal agents was my childhood best friend.
www.theverge.com
January 28, 2026 at 1:28 PM
Kristen Radtke remembers Alex Pretti. “I didn’t realize, in the hours before his name was released to the public, that the man millions of people had seen lying facedown on the pavement from multiple angles…was my childhood best friend.” [theverge.com]
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
ICE murdered Renée Good in broad daylight. Less than 3 weeks later, they killed Alex Pretti, shooting him 10 times. Every day, we watch as people are ripped from their cars, their homes, their lives.
We can't allow ourselves to look away from this cruelty. Abolish ICE.
We can't allow ourselves to look away from this cruelty. Abolish ICE.
January 26, 2026 at 10:14 PM
ICE murdered Renée Good in broad daylight. Less than 3 weeks later, they killed Alex Pretti, shooting him 10 times. Every day, we watch as people are ripped from their cars, their homes, their lives.
We can't allow ourselves to look away from this cruelty. Abolish ICE.
We can't allow ourselves to look away from this cruelty. Abolish ICE.
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
They kill us for their sport.
January 26, 2026 at 5:50 PM
They kill us for their sport.
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
The killing of Alex Pretti is a heartbreaking tragedy. It should also be a wake-up call to every American, regardless of party, that many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under assault.
January 25, 2026 at 5:39 PM
The killing of Alex Pretti is a heartbreaking tragedy. It should also be a wake-up call to every American, regardless of party, that many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under assault.
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
it is absolutely backwards that the ostensible professionals paid to mount a massive armed escalation of force on an unsuspecting community are held to lower standards than the ordinary people they're descending on
It doesn’t matter if Alex Pretti had a gun
Nonviolence is a double standard.
www.theverge.com
January 25, 2026 at 6:31 PM
it is absolutely backwards that the ostensible professionals paid to mount a massive armed escalation of force on an unsuspecting community are held to lower standards than the ordinary people they're descending on
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
Charles Simic 🖤
January 25, 2026 at 5:39 AM
Charles Simic 🖤
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
“A flock of ring-necked parakeets that were filmed feasting on the wall of a 19th Century barn were echoing Amazonian feeding habits…near Welwyn in Hertfordshire.” [bbc.com]
Parakeets feeding on Welwyn barn wall display Amazonian behaviour
Ornithologist Jack Baddams says the video is “really cool”.
www.bbc.com
January 21, 2026 at 3:22 PM
“A flock of ring-necked parakeets that were filmed feasting on the wall of a 19th Century barn were echoing Amazonian feeding habits…near Welwyn in Hertfordshire.” [bbc.com]
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
things are bad! (gift link)
Opinion | Trump’s ‘Dear Jonas’ Letter Is No Prize
www.nytimes.com
January 21, 2026 at 3:25 PM
things are bad! (gift link)
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
Jason @snell.zone at Six Colors very kindly asked me to explain how I plan and write an interactive novel like Can You Solve the Murder?. It's not easy! 😅 But helped by using good digital tools, as I explain:
sixcolors.com/post/2026/01...
sixcolors.com/post/2026/01...
Can you chart a murder? How to build an interactive novel
[Editor’s Note: I asked Antony to detail the process by which he created his interactive crime novel, Can You Solve The Murder?, which required some specific tools and a lot of intricate plan…
sixcolors.com
January 21, 2026 at 6:04 PM
Jason @snell.zone at Six Colors very kindly asked me to explain how I plan and write an interactive novel like Can You Solve the Murder?. It's not easy! 😅 But helped by using good digital tools, as I explain:
sixcolors.com/post/2026/01...
sixcolors.com/post/2026/01...
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
sure, you can "celebrate Presidents' Day," or you can come to @paristheaternyc.bsky.social on Feb 15, see a 35mm print of Barton Fink, and watch me interview John Turturro while trying not to tell him how the movie changed my life
Paris Theater - Barton Fink
35mm | Q&A with actor John Turturro, moderated by NYFCC member Sam Adams
www.paristheaternyc.com
January 20, 2026 at 9:13 PM
sure, you can "celebrate Presidents' Day," or you can come to @paristheaternyc.bsky.social on Feb 15, see a 35mm print of Barton Fink, and watch me interview John Turturro while trying not to tell him how the movie changed my life
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
As Homeland Security’s siege on Minneapolis enters its third week, locals are volunteering for patrol shifts, protesting in the streets, and keeping one another up to date in group texts.
Read more from @scottmeslow.bsky.social in Minneapolis:
Read more from @scottmeslow.bsky.social in Minneapolis:
It’s worse than it looks in Minneapolis
But locals are organizing to keep each other safe from ICE agents.
www.theverge.com
January 20, 2026 at 2:01 PM
As Homeland Security’s siege on Minneapolis enters its third week, locals are volunteering for patrol shifts, protesting in the streets, and keeping one another up to date in group texts.
Read more from @scottmeslow.bsky.social in Minneapolis:
Read more from @scottmeslow.bsky.social in Minneapolis:
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
Great post, and an excellent example of the Bitter Lesson of AI: generalized models are always over time going to beat specialized models. substack.com/home/post/p-...
Gemini 3 Solves Handwriting Recognition and it’s a Bitter Lesson
Testing shows that Gemini 3 has effectively solved handwriting on English texts, one of the oldest problems in AI, achieving expert human levels of performance.
substack.com
January 19, 2026 at 10:29 PM
Great post, and an excellent example of the Bitter Lesson of AI: generalized models are always over time going to beat specialized models. substack.com/home/post/p-...
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
Four GOP Senators.
At most four Repubs in the House.
Together they could stop nearly all the mad-king's rampages. They would be known to history as Profiles in Courage. They might/would lose the next election. But people have sacrificed a lot more, for a lot less.
At most four Repubs in the House.
Together they could stop nearly all the mad-king's rampages. They would be known to history as Profiles in Courage. They might/would lose the next election. But people have sacrificed a lot more, for a lot less.
I can't repeat this enough.
I've said this before and I'll say it again.
It would only take a tiny handful of Republican Congress members or senators to stop the slide of America toward authoritarian fascism, but nope. They're all in.
It would only take a tiny handful of Republican Congress members or senators to stop the slide of America toward authoritarian fascism, but nope. They're all in.
January 17, 2026 at 8:41 PM
Four GOP Senators.
At most four Repubs in the House.
Together they could stop nearly all the mad-king's rampages. They would be known to history as Profiles in Courage. They might/would lose the next election. But people have sacrificed a lot more, for a lot less.
At most four Repubs in the House.
Together they could stop nearly all the mad-king's rampages. They would be known to history as Profiles in Courage. They might/would lose the next election. But people have sacrificed a lot more, for a lot less.
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
"Whenever I worry about where the Internet is headed, I remember that this example of the collective generosity and goodness of people still exists." anildash.com/2026/01/15/w...
Wikipedia at 25: What the web can be - Anil Dash
A blog about making culture. Since 1999.
anildash.com
January 17, 2026 at 11:11 AM
"Whenever I worry about where the Internet is headed, I remember that this example of the collective generosity and goodness of people still exists." anildash.com/2026/01/15/w...
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.
January 15, 2026 at 4:58 PM
In April 2024, Spotify implemented a new scheme: songs with less than 1k streams per year would no longer receive royalties.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.
The data for 2025 was just released via Luminate, and 88% of songs have been demonetized.
Read it again: 88% of songs on Spotify have been demonetized.
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
A new NYT video analysis by confirms that Renee Good's vehicle did not run over Jonathan Ross and did not strike him. It's possible that it brushed up against him, but that remains unclear. Ross should be under arrest. This is a gift link. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/v...
Video Analysis of ICE Shooting Sheds Light on Contested Moments
www.nytimes.com
January 16, 2026 at 12:24 PM
A new NYT video analysis by confirms that Renee Good's vehicle did not run over Jonathan Ross and did not strike him. It's possible that it brushed up against him, but that remains unclear. Ross should be under arrest. This is a gift link. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/v...
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
Portishead's Dummy is one of my top ten albums of all time. I am so lucky I discovered it early, when I am usually late to the party on everything (see: The Warning).
If you love it like I do, you'll enjoy this video.
If you love it like I do, you'll enjoy this video.
How Portishead Sampled Themselves to Make a Genre Defining Album
YouTube video by El Train | Loop Kitchen
youtu.be
January 14, 2026 at 7:40 PM
Portishead's Dummy is one of my top ten albums of all time. I am so lucky I discovered it early, when I am usually late to the party on everything (see: The Warning).
If you love it like I do, you'll enjoy this video.
If you love it like I do, you'll enjoy this video.
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
We've got a new batch of Verge stories that are completely free to read for the day. First, from Sheon Han:
With vibe-coding, anyone can become a coder. But can they grow into a software engineer?
With vibe-coding, anyone can become a coder. But can they grow into a software engineer?
Is AI the end of software engineering or the next step in its evolution?
With vibe-coding, what I find most useful isn’t even writing code but understanding it.
www.theverge.com
January 14, 2026 at 6:39 PM
We've got a new batch of Verge stories that are completely free to read for the day. First, from Sheon Han:
With vibe-coding, anyone can become a coder. But can they grow into a software engineer?
With vibe-coding, anyone can become a coder. But can they grow into a software engineer?
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
Video message from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KckG...
www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/s...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KckG...
www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/s...
Statement by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell
YouTube video by Federal Reserve
www.youtube.com
January 12, 2026 at 12:35 AM
Video message from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KckG...
www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/s...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KckG...
www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/s...
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
From John Berger's "Ways of Seeing". Rather depressing, not to mention distressing, how relevant this passage remains more than 50 years later.
("Publicity" here is shorthand for the advertising and marketing canon of western consumerist capitalism)
("Publicity" here is shorthand for the advertising and marketing canon of western consumerist capitalism)
January 11, 2026 at 6:00 PM
From John Berger's "Ways of Seeing". Rather depressing, not to mention distressing, how relevant this passage remains more than 50 years later.
("Publicity" here is shorthand for the advertising and marketing canon of western consumerist capitalism)
("Publicity" here is shorthand for the advertising and marketing canon of western consumerist capitalism)
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
The “if she had complied, she’d still be alive” line that we’re hearing from ICE defenders is the mantra of apologists for security forces in dictatorships through the ages.
January 11, 2026 at 12:42 AM
The “if she had complied, she’d still be alive” line that we’re hearing from ICE defenders is the mantra of apologists for security forces in dictatorships through the ages.
Reposted by Darth Macintosh
new video up on the youtube page youtu.be/N1DVvGlzGEs?...
Everything is Gender
YouTube video by Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie
youtu.be
January 11, 2026 at 1:06 PM
new video up on the youtube page youtu.be/N1DVvGlzGEs?...