Old Fucking Punk @lwriemen@librem.one

Earlier this week, we had the opportunity to get our (nearly 10yo) hound's teeth cleaned. It involves full anaesthetic... Wow. The unexpected side effect: dog breath is *gone*. Her teeth are stunningly white and clean. She seems pretty chuffed about it, too.

Successful move of blogdown/hugo website from GitLab to Codeberg Pages 🎉
https://stragu.codeberg.page/
After much pain figuring out that static files are stored in the "public" directory (which means the Forgejo webhook thingy doesn't work), and then playing with submodules to end up with one main sources repo, and a "pages" submodule that contains the files in that "public" directory.
Not sure the submodule management pain is worth it, maybe I should have done this: https://docs.codeberg.org/codeberg-pages/pushing-output/#manual-pushing

I just emailed a strongly worded letter
to my government representative to oppose Bill C-22.

If you are Canadian, you should too: https://action.openmedia.org/page/188754/action/1

#BillC22 #Privacy #HumanRights #Canada #CanPoli #CndPoli

Big Journalism never fails to demonstrate its fecklessness. As the Democrats (finally!) fight back against the Republicans' attacks on voting, journalists are trotting out their SOP "both sides" framing.

Top-down journalistic reform is impossible. It'll have to be from neighborhoods out.

Trump's campaign to wreck the United States, Exhibit 39,445: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/the-cost-of-the-gops-medicaid-cuts-er-bills-for-states-and-a-spiraling-oral-health-crisis

The Department of Homeland Security intends to continue its work with Cellebrite, a provider of digital forensics hardware and software tools. “I don’t think people realize just how invasive these mobile forensic tools are,” EFF’s @cooperq told @fedscoop. https://fedscoop.com/dhs-cellebrite-privacy-drones-data-mobile-devices-ice/

Reminder to software developers: You can just *not* use AI.

Yes, even if your company tells you to. There will probably be zero consequences.

(Want to argue with me based on your employer's behavior? That's fine, but I'm talking about the general case. My hunch is that almost all execs will flinch first. Hiring is *hard and expensive*.)

Need to fill out a performance review item? Repeat after me: "I used AI to the fullest extent possible in every task where it seemed likely to be beneficial."

Ok, we've gone even further! Encroaching tech authoritarianism is such a good monitvator 💻 🌱

We've added LaSuite Meet: https://meet.cooperative.computer

And LaSuite Files: https://drive.cooperative.computer/

All accessible through the Co-op Comp Single Sign On: https://cooperative.computer/

All hosted with @coopcloud a commons focussed app hosting ecosystem of high repute ☁️ 🌈

New website coming soon also! Hopefully based on Lichen-markdown: https://git.coopcloud.tech/coop-cloud/lichen.page

For clarity, we explicitly opted out of any sort of arrangement involving 'cuts'/donations, as it would've been too complicated on our side to deal with. If you ask me, we'd probably end up "losing" money in overhead costs from that.

Merch was heavily requested as it is, so we hope this makes it more accessible for you. And hey, you can still donate separately if you want. :) ~n

On May Day, the Trump admin fired a mine safety commissioner & closed the Pittsburgh office of the agency that handles mine safety disputes.

Kim Kelly reports on what that could mean for coal miners already facing black lung, silica dust & dangerous work.

https://inthesetimes.com/article/trump-coal-miners-doge-fmshrc

New stuff on the site!

The crossword is back: https://the-counterforce.org/the-counterforce-crossword-2/

Plus numerous new reviews:
https://the-counterforce.org/tag/reviews/

GLASS DOLLS, LUCKLESS, MASS HALLUCINATION, CELL DETH, POISON RUIN, DEMONSTRATE

Have you ever wanted a Codeberg t-shirt? Maybe a polo shirt? What about a towel or a mug? A barrel bag?! If that's the case, we put together a list of places where you can get them from: https://merch.codeberg.org

To be clear, we don't produce, sell or earn a commission from any sales made. Our logos can be used to print garments at no cost. (If you're interested in doing it yourself, you can get them here: https://codeberg.org/Codeberg/Design)

AI regulation is already happening at the state level—from Colorado’s protections against algorithmic discrimination to California’s transparency rules for frontier AI models.

A Trump executive order could put those laws in jeopardy.

https://inthesetimes.com/article/open-ai-serious-risks-trump-executive-order-state-regulation-of-artification-intelligence

https://kolektiva.media/w/vrD15TVttqff6JEzD96Uv3

Prosfygika Resist

The Greek state is planning the eviction of “Oi Prosfygika” in Athens, one of the largest self-organized housing communities in Europe. This space represents collective living, social projects, and resistance against displacement.

Since February 5, Aristotelis Chantzis has been on hunger strike. On May 1, Suzon Doppagne joined him. Both are protesting against the impending eviction and for the preservation of the community. But what exactly is Prosfygika?

#SaveProsfygika #Exarchia #Athens #Solidarity #Squat #Gentrification #FreeSpaces
#Anarchism #Kurdistan #Rojava

@intsaveprosfygika

This week's comic on Daily Kos
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Let's look in on a typical family in Chagrin Falls, Iran
-
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/5/14/800038269/cartoon/tom-the-dancing-bug-presents-an-average-family-in-chagrin-falls-iran/

There are thousands of people working in UK worker co-ops, collectively sitting on millions of pounds in separate bank accounts.

What would it look like to organise money collectively instead?

This month on Punchcard I spoke to Rob Callender from Kin.coop about savings clubs, collective finance, and why worker co-ops might need to think beyond just democratising work.

“Your savings account is holding us back.”

Replacing Banks with Savings Clubs — out now on Punchcard
workers.coop/punchcard

I’ve had to move apartments and it’s been absolutely brutal on my baseline. The setback has been humbling, terrifying and frustrating in equal measure.

This is life with chronic illness.

Everything is so much harder.

Any significant upheaval can cause major losses of function.

To make matters worse I found mold in my closet and it appears most of my wardrobe got contaminated.

It’s just been one thing after another.

A friend is trying to salvage them, but with the severity of my MCAS I suspect I may have to toss and replace.

That said, hit me up with any tips you might have for removing mold and mildew from clothes. Or hidden gems for finding cheap but comfortable, ethical clothing. I can only wear loose cotton and my clothes were all good quality (and I hate shopping).

I plan to write a series of articles once I recover, including one about housing instability and another about setbacks and contingency planning when chronically ill.

Thank you to everyone who’s been supporting me and patiently waiting for me to get back to writing!

#chronicillness #ableism #mcas #disability

here's to the crazy ones. the misfits. the rebels.