Old Fucking Punk @lwriemen@librem.one

EFF will continue to work with community groups to keep ALPRs off their streets, and urge judges and state legislators to impose enforceable restraints on this mass surveillance. https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/08/effs-policy-position-alpr-surveillance-eliminate-it-and-reduce-its-harms

Amazon already runs more than a million warehouse robots, and they're about to outnumber the humans. The dexterity gap that once protected blue-collar work is closing fast. https://inthesetimes.com/article/ai-is-coming-for-all-of-our-jobs

Trump, flanked by crypto industry executives, held a press conference in which he urged Congress to pass the Clarity Act. The executives who stood behind him represented firms that have collectively given nearly $60 million to his campaign.

#crypto #cryptocurrency #USpol #USpolitics #CitationNeededNewsletter

Next week, Tuesday, September 8, at 6:00 PM, join us with Bargaining for the Common Good for a virtual panel featuring organizers from the Chicago Teachers Union, Connecticut Tenants Union, House Our Neighbors, Kentucky Tenants Union, and Reclaim Rhode Island to explore how organized tenants and workers can team up to win big.

https://www.allyoufascistsboundtolose.com/calendar/home-is-where-the-union-is

That feeling when PayPal thinks your IP address is in Ireland so won’t let you log in unless it’s in a private tab on your phone over 5g

At least this year’s geoip clusterfuck almost has the country right. Only off by an R

@Elizafox And it's fine for people not to take pride in software. It's fine for it to just be a job for them.

But companies and governments should not be allowed to put people's safety at the mercy of software written that way.

And we should not be surrendering free software to corporations who want their employees to take over our projects and run them that way.

Any gotchas I should look out for migrating from #Linux to #NetBSD? Or suggestions for helpful guides?

#AskFedi

I am begging people, please just make *websites*. Not Instagram feeds, not X posts, not Squarespace slop, not e-mail newsletters, *websites*.

You know, those things that I can view without needing an account, a specialized app, shittons of spyware, etc.

(Yes, this is too salty, sorry.)

There's a cafe just down the street that serves all your favourite dishes and every hot and cold drink you could imagine. Every day, you walk in and they give you your usual order. By the end of the first month you know all of their names and they all know yours. You're there so often that they give you an account you can deposit into, so you don't have to keep paying for your second and third drinks. The table in the corner by the wall outlet is basically yours.
And then you spend a weekend in the next city over, and while you're there, you get a haircut.
When Tony doesn't recognize you Monday morning, you assume he's joking and laugh it off. "Yeah, those sandwiches are making me put on some pounds. I had to lose a pound of hair to keep up. Can I have my usual? I should have $30 in my account here."
But Tony still doesn't recognize you. Even when you give your name. Even when you recite your regular order. "Look, dude. If this is some attempt to keep my money--"
"No, no, of course not!" says Tony. "We just want to make sure someone else isn't trying to order a drink under our favourite customer's name."
"So you think someone with my exact face decided to put on my clothes, come into your cafe, and pretend to be me so he could get a five-dollar latte?"
"Well, it's theoretically possible, isn't it?"
"Okay. Sure. Thanks for keeping my coffee secure. Now how do I prove I'm me?"
"Well, can you give me your customer ID?"
"No? What's that?"
"It's written on every receipt we give you."
"You mean the receipts you offer me and then throw away when I say 'no, thanks'?"
"Yes, those ones. Do you have your customer ID?"
"Right. You're being very difficult here, Tony. Tell me what I can do."
"We can mail you a new customer ID. Do you still live at 1927 Newcastle Road in Seattle?"
"No. Obviously no. We are in Portland. And how did you even know I lived there?"
"Not important. What's the name of your oldest cousin?"
"Patricia. But how did you--"
"Great, you're in. Do you want your usual again? How was your weekend?"
"It was ... Fine, I suppose. And yes please."
You turn to sit at your usual table, but find that someone else is already there, so instead you collapse into the closest chair you can find and manage to log into work only two minutes late.
At 10:30, you're finally hungry for more than a tiny croissant, so you call out to Tony: "Hey, could I get a sandwich?"
He looks up from his phone and gives you an odd stare. "I think I know who you are, but you're sitting somewhere unusual. Can I just get your customer ID from you?"
"I still don't have it. Just like I didn't have it two hours ago. I don't mean to be rude, but is something wrong with you?"
"No, I'm perfectly fine, thanks for asking. But since you just used a security question two hours ago, I'm going to need you to sort through this box of coffee cups and give me all the medium ones that don't have a lid."
"Okay, this is insane. Can I just pay for my coffee with my credit card?"
"Not while your name is flagged as possible fraud."
Slowly, methodically, you pack your bag and walk out, never to return.
#MicroFiction

My particular computing needs are complicated: I browse web, I play and make games, I explore old software, I draw, and I make music. On top of that, I do some writing, I work with spreadsheets, and of course I hang out with my friends and family online.

All those things, obviously, can be done on NetBSD. All those things come with some friction. Resolving this friction is generally highly rewarding.

Among recent examples:

figuring out how to have graphical acceleration on my computer, so video playback is very smooth;
configuring my desktop in such a way that my most commonly used programs (terminal, file browser, taskbar) are LLM-free;
hacking around xf86-input-tablet driver to make my tablet work in NetBSD.

All of those taught me a lot about my computer. They were not as simple as I hoped, but they gave me a bit of agency over my computing needs.

🧵 3/?

Let's get some basics sorted out. Using NetBSD is generally more difficult than using Windows, MacOS or Linux. It is harder to configure, it supports less hardware and there's fewer software options available. Depending on your needs and circumstances, using NetBSD (or OpenBSD, or FreeBSD) as your main operating system might be difficult or even impossible.

So, why bother, you might ask.

Well, I keep thinking about a metaphor; it might not be the most apt one, but I can't think of anything better: imagine that you're vegan, and you absolutely do not want to eat animal products. It is very obviously a choice. Now, if the supermarket does not sell any vegan options, you are going to have some tough time. Maybe you'll make your own tofu and seitan. It is not an easy life, but you try. Maybe you can't fully commit to it, because it's hard, but you feel like you (and everyone else) should have a choice.

So, if one wants to choose not to use LLM-tainted software, I'm afraid NetBSD is one of a few options.

🧵 2/?

“Mental Health Workers Say Algorithmic Triage Is Hurting Patients - The American Prospect”

https://prospect.org/2026/08/27/mental-health-workers-algorithmic-triage-ai-patients-kaiser-permanente/

> Even with better AI systems and more transparency on how they are used, therapists at Kaiser and Rogers stressed that such tools cannot produce the same benefits as a strong relationship with a human caregiver.

RE: https://ohai.social/@TarkabarkaHolgy/117134297730197472

I am sorry, I have to add an update based on a recent news article:

1. The memorial has been dismantled

2. It was supposed to depict a bird with a helmet, soaring into the sky

3. The design was - surprise, surprise - generated by #AI

4. The mayor claims he didn't see the finished product, because he was taking time off for pink eye

You can't make this stuff up

43% of nonunion workers say they would vote to unionize if they could.

“It’s high time lawmakers translate the public’s near-record support for unions into policy.”

Heidi Shierholz on why the PRO Act, stronger bargaining rights and rebuilding union power belong at the center of the affordability debate.
https://inthesetimes.com/article/affordabilitys-union-labor-pro-act-congress

URGENT APPEAL (IN ENGLISH)

Comrades on the ground report that legal aid institutions—including LBH and YLBHI—have been reluctant to actively represent detainees arrested in recent protests labeled as “anarchist,” unless they are already viral or well-known activists.

This is especially troubling given that these institutions are supported by public resources and, in some cases, international donors. If they are entrusted with resources to defend access to justice and human rights, that responsibility should not disappear when the detainees are unpopular, politically inconvenient, or lacking public visibility.

We urge friends and colleagues outside Indonesia to contact LBH and YLBHI and press them to immediately provide legal assistance to the 300+ people currently detained at Polda Metro Jaya.

The situation is urgent: according to information from the ground, only one lawyer is currently standing by for hundreds of detainees.

Justice should not depend on who goes viral. They should act now—not after the detainees become headline news.

LBH. Jakarta:
keluhsaran@bantuanhukum.or.id
Legal Aid Institute (LBH) Jakarta

Jl. Pangeran Diponegoro No.74, RT.9/RW.2, Pegangsaan, Kec. Menteng, Kota Jakarta Pusat, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta 1032

(021) 3145518

YLBHI

Jl. Pangeran Diponegoro No.74, RT.2/RW.6, Kenari, Kec. Menteng, Kota Jakarta Pusat

(021) 3929840

Lots of mystery meat news this week! I did a livestream going through the stories here!

If you've wondered

"Where is this bonus tariff-free beef coming from??

"Is it HORSE?"

https://youtube.com/live/av5QXbHaXeU

you’re a worker and deserve a union even if you (temporarily) make really good money

we uh actually need workers with a modicum of bargaining power in unions. fucking obviously

it was previously very popular for the capitalist class to pretend to be programmers, but it’s always been popular for the capitalists to pretend to be workers in general

I don’t know how you look at the current state of programming and don’t see labor exploitation, other than not looking at all