Old Fucking Punk @lwriemen@librem.one

#NoBillionaires

READ: “Policies to help people walk & cycle such as low-traffic neighbourhoods can create public health benefits as much as 100 times greater than the cost of the schemes, a long-term study has concluded.” AND the benefits continue to grow even higher over time.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/mar/08/health-gains-of-low-traffic-schemes-up-to-100-times-greater-than-costs-study-finds

"The Locusts of the Newspaper World" -- how financial looters enriched themselves while they destroyed community information --- and then did it to Vice. https://defector.com/the-locusts-of-the-newspaper-world-how-fortress-investment-group-decimated-newspapers-before-gutting-vice

When police search people’s homes without knocking, it creates dangers for residents and the cops. Which is why it’s crucial the public know when and why police might deploy this tactic. Mississippi’s justice courts, however, can’t be bothered to make even basic details about these raids public. https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/03/foilies-2024#blindfold

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita aggressively promoted his opposition to gender-affirming care in the media, but when American Oversight requested the documentation behind his claims, Rokita claimed opinions and speculation were exempt from disclosure.
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/03/foilies-2024#rokita

Roku has become just another arrogant tech company, but this stunt -- locking up people's "smart" TVs until they agree to regressive new terms of service -- is disgusting even for this crowd.

How can it even be legal?

https://www.wired.com/story/roku-terms-of-service-update-locks-tv/

Even decades after the news industry began trying to recognize the hazards of language that lazily picks up the rhetoric of politics, major news organizations continue to parrot phrases like "tough on crime." All policing is tough on crime, conceptually. Focus on what policies have proven to work, where proof is missing -- I.e. avoid the rhetoric, focus on facts. #journalism #USPol

Debtors Prison for superrich deadbeats: an idea whose time has come. https://wandering.shop/@cstross/112070923274019917

On the latest episode of #ThisIsAmerica, we roundup the news and direct action across the US, from #StopCopCity to rent strikes to blockades in solidarity with #Palestine.

We then speak to antifascist Jermey White, about the ongoing case of several antifascists in #SanDiego who face felonies for protesting a group of violent Proud Boys and American Guard members.

We also speak to two people in #Austin about the upcoming 'Smash By Smash West' counter-summit and @franklinlopez speaks on his brand new book for kids and the need for more space for parents and kids within autonomous movements.

https://itsgoingdown.org/this-is-america-194

Big Tech likes to push the trope that things are moving and changing too quickly and there's no way that regulators could really keep up --- better (on their view) to just let the innovators innovate. This is false: many of the issues stay stable over quite some time. Case in point: Here's me **5 years ago** pointing out that large language models shouldn't be used as sources of information about the world, and that doing so poses risks to the information ecosystem:

https://x.com/emilymbender/status/1766634514946945414?s=20

Hey everyone! I'm making a thing again, and I'd love if some knowledgeable people threw in some submissions in the form of resources, stories, suggestions, or questions!

It's a project about tech-enabled abuse.

https://codeberg.org/alicewatson/on-tech-enabled-abuse

Latest comic: Floored

#inequality #unhoused #homeless #cartoon #comic #travel

Microsoft says Kremlin-backed hackers accessed its source and internal systems

"Midnight Blizzard is now using stolen secrets in follow-on attacks against customers."
https://arstechnica.com/security/2024/03/microsoft-says-kremlin-backed-hackers-accessed-its-source-and-internal-systems/

If critiquing the incumbent president is a threat to democracy, then we're already not in one. https://brianmcfadden.org/2024/03/01/pleas-from-the-president/

Lucy Parsons, Black anarchist and worker's rights activist (described by the Chicago PD as "more dangerous than a thousand rioters") died on March 7th, 1942.

Lucy fought tirelessly for the rights of the poor in the face of an increasingly oppressive industrial economic system.

The PRESS Act is nonpartisan because press freedom is nonpartisan.

It's time to pass this bill and protect all journalists, regardless of politics or mainstream credentials, from government spying.

https://nypost.com/2024/03/07/us-news/bill-shielding-press-from-feds-could-reach-bidens-desk-this-year-schumer-says/

BBC says a British judge ordered Trump to "pay a six-figure legal bill to a company founded by a former British spy that he unsuccessfully sued for making what his lawyer called “shocking and scandalous" false claims that harmed his reputation."

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/trump-ordered-pay-legal-fees-after-failed-lawsuit-107891658

What the BBC didn't say is that Trump, based on his record of stiffing people, will never, ever pay this judgment.

The safeguards ElevenLabs put in to prevent people from cloning politician voices ahead of the election can be bypassed in 2 seconds, which we did accidentally and then were able to repeat over and over

https://www.404media.co/elevenlabs-block-on-cloning-bidens-voice-easily-bypassed/

So, I’ve had two good pieces of news for the ActivityPub book from O’Reilly Media. The first one is that I finished the 6th of 7 chapters this week (on using and creating ActivityPub extensions). It was a gruelling chapter that I had to reorganise a couple of times to clarify, but I’m so happy that it’s in the can.

The second big piece of news is that the first two chapters of the ActivityPub book are up for early access review on O’Reilly Media’s Learning Platform. This is a big deal for me — people have started reading and interacting with the book in the real world. Mind blown!

If you are interested in ActivityPub, and you have access to the O’Reilly Media Learning Platform, I would take it as a big favour if you would read what’s available now (Introduction, ActivityPub API) and give me your feedback.

Two more chapters should be available soon — Activity Stream 2.0, and the federation protocol — I’ll post here when I’ve got more news.

Thanks to everyone who’s been helpful or supportive in this process. I’m looking forward to the full availability of this book in the coming months.

https://evanp.me/2024/03/07/early-access-to-oreilly-media-activitypub-book/

Seems to me that the only likely purpose of the gov't's cuts to the public service is to soften up services for 'PPP's (Public Private Partnerships) with the eventual aim of making all public property privately owned (by the very few very wealthy people who funded all 3 parties' campaigns).