the thing that the BLITs and the Snow Crashes of the world did not forsee was that the basilisk would be slow rather than fast, that you'd have to *keep* staring at it for months, and that people would willingly do so, mostly because although it tore their minds apart, it was also moderately helpful for making low-complexity web apps and planning relatively simple administrative tasks

"Defense executives plan to meet at White House as strikes on Iran diminish stockpiles"

that's good, right?

https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/defense-executives-plan-meet-white-house-strikes-iran-diminish-stockpiles-2026-03-04/

The US intelligence community long ago gamed out all the risks surrounding a conflict with Iran, including the possibility Iran would close the Straits of Hormuz.
If the Trump administration and Hegseth are surprised now, it's because they've never listened to, and sidelined, the experts.

Sadly I think there's a lot of truth in this.

https://www.theguardian.com/global/commentisfree/2026/mar/08/trump-democracy-oligarchy-policy

"AI can make mistakes, always check the results"

I fucking loathe this phrase and everything that goes into it. It's not advice. It's a threat.

You probably read it as "AI is _capable_ of making mistakes; you _should_ check the results".

What it actually says is "AI is _permitted_ to make mistakes; _you are liable_ for the results, whether you check them or not".

Except "you" is generally not even the person building, installing, or even using the AI. It's the person the AI is used on:
https://thepit.social/@peter/116205452673914720

@cdarwin data centers raise prices and distort the grid.

@cdarwin

Elon Musk specifically chose a rural location with wholly inadequate infrastructure so he could overwhelm its leadership and do WTF he wanted. This is not new behavior from him or the oligarchs. It's a standard business model. Has been for generations.

Elon Musk’s new AI data center has turned a formerly quiet Mississippi town into a noisy nightmare.
The $20 billion facility, run by Musk’s AI firm xAI, is powered by ⚠️27 methane gas turbines that run day and night,
belching fumes and emitting a constant noise like jet engines, NBC News reports.
The turbines were trucked in because Southaven, the unsuspecting rural community that Musk chose to build the data center in, can’t provide the electricity the facility needs. 
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/musks-ai-power-plant-generates-sound-fury-mississippi-rcna258594

Global economy must move past GDP to avoid planetary disaster, warns UN chief
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/feb/09/global-economy-transformed-humanity-future-un-chief-antonio-guterres
We need #degrowth, a #DonutEconomy & #SystemChange to #Conviviality in a #CaringEconomy of #Partnerism within #planetboundaries, please! 🙏
#TaxTheRich #MakePollutersPay #cooltheclimate #CapitalismKills

Don't shun people just because they have different beliefs about blotting out the sun to usher in a new age of eternal darkness. We have to find an answer in the middle.

When you write people off simply because they are actively working to make the entire planet a frozen apocalyptic wasteland, it actually is you who are blotting out the sun—the sun of free discourse.

by Thomas Chatterton Williams

@benroyce wow I hate so many things about the way they’ve phrased that.

1. Age appropriate according to whom? What are you, my mom?

2. Just give us this data real quick, it’ll be so easy. Don’t think about it too much, definitely do it without thinking please. Also we’re holding your account hostage

3. It’s private, trust us.™️

@ChrisMayLA6 "Asset" is different from "agent". It's not that he's taking orders from them - it's that he's manipulable, and generally favorable to them.

Anyone else worried that China will notice that our forces are running out of missiles because of the Iran war, and decide it'd be a great time to invade Taiwan?

Bonus: they'd cripple the US economy by doing so.

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/24/technology/taiwan-china-chips-silicon-valley-tsmc.html?unlocked_article_code=1.RVA.0xYT.l6kKY58A006o&smid=nytcore-android-share
(gift link)

@Edelruth @wdlindsy yep. No one could have seen that coming

@georgetakei but it was an IMMINENT feeling!

Israel hacked Tehran's traffic cameras and used the surveillance feeds to plan an assassination. That makes me feel just great about all the Flock cameras, Ring cameras, and Waymo cameras on SF streets.
https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/03/middleeast/us-israel-plot-kill-iran-khamenei-latam-intl

Given that the military itself has been calling the current war “Operation Epstein Fury,” I think it is safe to say that if Trump gives the order, the number of nuclear weapons to actually deploy will be far below 10%.

I would not expect Donald Trump to understand ANY of the above, but this information is probably worth knowing.

It is a small comfort, I know, but hopefully, it is a comfort for you.

6/6

In my 21 1/2 years of military service I don’t recall ever running into anything like this. This is fucked up beyond all recognition.
#FUBAR

“A combat-unit commander told non-commissioned officers at a briefing Monday that the Iran war is part of God’s plan and that Pres. Donald Trump was ‘anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth,’ according to a complaint by a non-commissioned officer.” - Jonathan Larsen
https://jonathanlarsen.substack.com/p/us-troops-were-told-iran-war-is-for?fbclid=IwZnRzaAQTONJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEeJG3E3YqM8ukVozZseDDcDk7CWLgH6C2-l29rGcDD7SgEoT5gVduTtcaS4ak_aem_TITttkhQhu5b_C9u3tX4mA

RE: https://mastodon.social/@QasimRashid/116163141038527638

We’re on the verge of having state-controlled media in the US. Really.