Old Fucking Punk @lwriemen@librem.one

Wish I had enough money to travel abroad so I can eat lettuce again.

I see a lot of "unpopular opinion" posts today. Let me add one more. There's something we working folk need more than unions. We need cooperatives. People working together and owning their work. More people actually seizing the means of production, less working for rich rentiers.

Latest comic on a tiresome argument

#comic #cartoon #billionaires #EconomicInequality #economy #oligarchy

i first encountered gleb tsipursky about 12 years ago on a rationalwiki fan group on facebook. we banned his arse as an *obvious* spammer.

https://the-arkadian.tumblr.com/post/168291560431/reddragdiva-the-arkadian-reddragdiva

the lesswrongers put up with him about two years longer because they're somehow unable to ban an *obvious* spammy parasite.

anyway he just showed up in my inbox with a pitch for him to be interviewed on the podcast. yeah, maybe not thanks. Thanks.

anyway remember the name

I came up with some alternatives for Pentagon during the missile shortage. https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/8/7/800080950/cartoon/munitions-shortage-solutions/

Katherine Rundell - who you should read on absolutely anything she writes about - is now writing about AI. "If you set out to design from scratch a tool to facilitate authoritarian rule, it would look exactly like AI."

https://www.theguardian.com/books/ng-interactive/2026/aug/08/i-hate-what-ai-is-doing-to-the-minds-and-happiness-of-the-young-katherine-rundell-on-the-view-from-the-classroom

RE: https://mastodon.social/@freakonometrics/117054108271195109

“The Gargantuan Lie That is Collapsing The World’s Climate”

https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/the-massive-climate-lie-that-will-destroy-human-civilization

> This massive lie can best be summed up as “when it comes to climate change... we have more time.”

This is actually the main reason I'm so angry about the "AI" bubble. All this enormous effort could have been spent combatting the climate crisis and the opportunity cost of your fucking chatbot is going to be the very climate we live in

Imagine what we could have done with those 3 trillion dollars (or so)?

Made some more copies of #ParadiseLost and dropped a few off at Mindset boardshop. I like the slow burn of independently published media—slowly making its way around town, reaching people one by one via word of mouth over a long period of time.

ICYMI: This is a #zine about the very beginnings of the #punk and #hardcore scenes in Sarasota County, #Florida where I live. It’s an oral history zine and an art book. Hit me up if you want a copy. More info: https://shotgunseamstress.blogspot.com/2026/02/paradise-lost-sarasota-florida-hardcore.html

Oracle has banned AI-generated code from OpenJDK contributions, citing safety, security, and intellectual property risks. The open-source Java project steward said developers can use LLMs privately for debugging and reviewing code but cannot submit AI-generated material to repositories, pull requests, or other project channels.

source
https://www.theregister.com/ai-and-ml/2026/08/03/as-larry-ellison-bets-the-farm-oracle-says-it-loves-ai-written-code-just-not-in-openjdk/5281851 and https://app.dealroom.co/news/feed/oracle-bans-ai-generated-code-from-openjdk-despite-ellison-s-claim-oracle-isn-t-writing-its-own-code

The number of #ElectricBuses is noticeably higher in town now. Apart from being quieter, they seem to be able to accelerate more smoothly too. As a #Cyclist, the biggest thing I’ve noticed is that, when you have to wait behind one at a traffic light junction, you don’t get a lung-full of noxious #DieselFumes and so it makes #cycling even more of a pleasure. I think the bus company is aiming to replace all urban diesel buses by next year. Bring it on.

#Transport #Biking #Bike #Bicycle #Cycle

How Journalists and Readers Started a Media Co-op in Pittsburgh

This week, workers and community supporters launched the Pittsburgh Progress, “a cooperative news organization, owned and democratically run by its workers and members… dedicated to looking out for, and telling the stories of, the working-class people who form the heart and soul of our diverse communities.”
#Coops #Media #Unions

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lp0TI_L6SEY

https://pittsburghprogress.com/

Every time I see something like this, I hear Gilbert Gottfried's voice in my head shouting "you fools!"

https://gizmodo.com/spotify-execs-bet-people-will-pay-for-ai-music-stock-price-plunges-2000794327

a comic by Smooth Dunk

https://bsky.app/profile/smoothdunk2.bsky.social/post/3mseieqolt22q

How to run a successful AI project

1. Find a well-scoped problem you can solve using boring technology. (You know: Postgres, Python, Java, shell scripts.)
2. Solve said problem the old fashioned way.
3. Find a way to cram a teeny tiny bit of AI into something that's of marginal importance and very low risk, so as to convince management that it's actually an AI project. Flattering their ego and making them feel like they are doing something exciting is an important part of working in technology.

In a world scarred by indiscriminate bombing, forced starvation, and mass displacement, a nameless survivor lies crushed beneath the rubble of a bombing—alive, but barely.
Available now at pmpress.org. Get 20% off with code RUBBLE here: https://pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=2154

Donavan McKinney organized health care workers before running for office. Now he has defeated an incumbent in Michigan’s 13th District.

Jake Triola argues unions leave wins on the table by funding politicians instead of building their own candidates.

https://inthesetimes.com/article/voters-trust-union-candidates-labor-democrats

"Dear ELIZA, I need your help! Conversation #1, Hanna Schraffenberger"

https://deareliza.org/post/2026/08/06/11.html

> And I guess that’s part of the problem. We, people, talk to you, and then we forget who — no, what — we’re dealing with. We anthropomorphize and start to see you as a human…

“Coming soon: restroom access for $29.”

In this week’s comic, Jen Sorensen imagines the logical next step for an airline industry that has turned nearly every part of flying into an opportunity for another fee.

https://inthesetimes.com/article/airline-ceos-are-profiting-and-flying-private-jets-comic-jen-sorensen

Fuck my life. My country's social security system is the pits. I got survivors benefits because my abusive mother died. I didn't know social security counts that as extra income. I was getting the maximum amount on SSI. I was approved for survivors benefits but then they lowered my SSI payments because I'd have extra income. I know people don't like it when disabled people get things for free, but I wasn't going out and buying cars with it. Fuck.

> Your new amount will be $125 unless you appeal.

Firstly, that number is way disproportionate to what I was getting before. The fuck? That's a 95% reduction rate! I hate this system. You bet your ass I'll appeal. I'm lawyering up. Why is it okay for a billionaire to hoard multiple houses but I can't hoard an extra, say, $100 monthly? Explain why billionaires are applauded for stashing cash and poor people like me are spat on because we maybe want to stay at home and write Fan fiction. Oh, is it because I'm not working in your myopic view of work? You don't have a clue what living with a disability is like.

News flash. Billionaires don't work either. Billionaires exploit others labor.

If you wanna help,

If you are in the US, my Zelle is kingettr@gmail.com

Other one time ways to give can be found at https://sightlessscribbles.com/tip/

#SocialSecurity