Different Than

I used to love academia. Now I just want to be friends with it. Antifascist. Pro-people. Love me some music. Sometimes I make it. Love photos. Sometimes I take them. Love my kid. Always and forever.

Statements here do not represent the views of my employer. This should probably be obvious.

he/him pronouns (or whatever floats your boat)

About alt-text: I endeavor to add it to all photos I post. Reminders are welcome, but please wait at least 10 minutes after the post goes up because I frequently post photos from my phone with no alt-text, then switch to my laptop to type the text (because texting fucking sucks).

Different Than boosted:
2025-06-22

Here’s the thing: fuck the ayatollah and his mullahs and fuck Hamas (neither of those bastards would hesitate to put a bullet in the head of an atheist apostate like me) but that doesn’t mean you attack the people of Iran (most of whom oppose the regime) or Palestine (who also suffer under the yoke of Hamas – an organisation that, furthermore, was funded and supported by Netanyahu’s regime to sabotage the peace process).

If you cannot separate authoritarian regimes from the people being oppressed by them, and if you condone the indiscriminate slaughter of the latter, then don’t be surprised when the same rules end up applying to you… given the way things are going in the United States, for example.

We have rules of combat and international law for a reason. It’s not because we’re morally superior; far from it. It’s because we don’t want that same shit done to us. That’s a dangerous thing to forget.

Different Than boosted:
2025-06-22

Ice Out of Portland put up a website:
pdxorganized.wordpress.com/mel

"Call and Email your representatives to demand that they BAN ICE from the state of Oregon, and BAN the use of tear gas, chemical agents, rubber bullets, and live ammunition by ICE, PPB, and DHS without exception. "

#ICE

2025-06-22

@news The ingredient is waste vegetable oil.

#savedYouAClick

2025-06-22

@kaia He'll be fine. He's up at all hours, anyway, from what I'm told.

2025-06-22

@naught101 @kenwhite.bsky.social Same. Not creating an account just to see a few posts shared on mastodon.

2025-06-22

A friend in western New York state has a bee swarm looking for a home (it used to live in her soffit). If you have any beekeeper friends looking for a swarm, willing to drive to #WNY (or living near there), DM me. I'll get you connected.

#bees #swarm #beekeeping #buffalo #erie

A thick swarm of bees, seen from below, clustered around the trunk of a tree.
Different Than boosted:
2025-06-22

No lies detected in this 2020 description of Joe Rogan.

Joe Rogan is like some barbarian Khan from the steppes that took an interest in intellectual things and his show is basically him bringing slightly nervous scholars and magicians to come before him to explain how the world works "glasses man, you explain to Joe why sky big, and how tree grow" but he will also believe almost anything you tell him, and only recently (in the past few years) does he clap back like "Tiny hat man say otherwise, do you lie to Joe? Tiny hat man say fat not bad for you, that sugar is enemy, so which is truth? Joe thinks you are wrong" and people just nervously go "oh-oh ok h-Haha yah I guess so"

"Joe spend many moons on horseback and training with bow and sword, but joe also wonder why skyfire rise from mountains every morning, you will explain this to Joe."
Different Than boosted:
Emil Jacobs - Collectifissioncollectifission@greennuclear.online
2025-06-22

Tehran has had the capability of building nukes for years now. This is obvious for anyone. The problem isn't lacking technical capability, but the political will to do it. Now, it'll be probably inevitable that they do pursue it. The US has given them ultimate proof that this is the only rational position.

The only reason we got here is because Israel was left unchecked for 21 months, and Netanyahu was emboldened to start that wider war he dreamt of for decades.

This one is on the West's inaction to do anything about a genocidal regime.

Different Than boosted:
2025-06-22

It's 1991, and a republican president is embroiling us in a bullshit war in the Middle East.

It's 2003, and a republican president is embroiling us in a bullshit war in the Middle East.

It's 2025, and a republican president is embroiling us in a bullshit war in the Middle East.

Dr. Manhattan sits on the surface of Mars, gazing across the endless expanse of time.
Different Than boosted:
Emeritus Prof Christopher MayChrisMayLA6@zirk.us
2025-06-22

Lets be clear; changes to tax laws do not 'force' the wealthy to leave the country.

The wealthy are choosing not to increase their contribution to the country they are (currently at least) living in.

Sure that is a choice they are free to make, but its their choice; no-one is forcing them into anything.

They already have enough money, so refusing to pay higher taxes is a choice about what they wish to support in their (for now) home country!

They are not victims!

#taxes #politics

Different Than boosted:
Completely and Totally Obliterated Hatkenwhite.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy
2025-06-22

Turn Gestapo: The cleric can use their Channel Divinity ability to emit an aura of shame and righteous judgment. Any Gestapo, fascists, lickspittles, or thugs in the area of effect must use the waddle action to move at full speed away for three rounds timesofsandiego.com/life/2025/06...

ICE agents scatter as SD Bisho...

2025-06-22

@FritzAdalis Yeah, that gambler seemed to have the skills.

2025-06-21

@mllsc I've seen many comments in the past decade on reddit about reading being a "hobby" and people challenging themselves to read longer and longer pieces or books. They talk about it like running, weightlifting, etc. The assumption is that it takes discipline to read longer pieces. I've gone from thinking "Pshaw. Reading for pleasure doesn't take *effort*" to understanding that, for me, now it does. Or maybe it takes a determination not to shift too frequently or quickly to more bite-sized, constant online content. I think you're not alone.

Different Than boosted:
2025-06-21

I miss reading books. Nowadays, if I can't finish a piece of writing in one or maybe two sittings, I won't finish it. I don't understand why. This has been going on for at least 5 or 6 years.

I enjoy writing, but I can't get better at it because I don't read. Frankly it's a little depressing.

I don't know of anyone else who has this problem of wanting to read longer things and finding themselves unable to. Wish I knew of a solution. Seems like it should be easy, right? And yet.

2025-06-21

My daughter and another 14-year-old girl have just hatched a brilliant plan: make #Siri gaslight her users.

As Big Boss of #Apple they would make Siri give people different grades of information and treat them differently depending on how polite they were to Siri. Examples:

"Siri, it's lovely to see you this morning. What will the weather be like today?"

*77 degrees fahrenheit with light clouds and a chance of showers in the evening. You might want to pack an umbrella for your regular evening walk."

- or -

"Siri. Weather. Now."

*77 degrees... bitch.*

Importantly, Siri would never admit it insulted users or downgraded their information. This would play out much like the ongoing "is my phone listening to me?" question. Also, in transcripts of Siri's messages the insults would never appear. Siri could insult people (which would be very occsaional) in a different voice, so it would be easy for Apple to insist that any recordings of this were faked.

These kids don't have much technical know-how (I think they can maybe code simple things in a kid-friendly scripting language), but their villain skills are top notch.

#EvilPlans #NotUsed #DontDoThis #tech #ai

2025-06-21

@RickiTarr A certain jaynosaykwa. Also probably some pretty good tacos.

Different Than boosted:
Nullstring 🏴‍☠️0x00string@infosec.exchange
2025-06-21

get lawyer, form llc holding company, personally buy land for cash, lease it to llc, get an in-state DBA and business license, get a 12% interest business loan, buy metal building, buy solar panels, buy commercial lithium battery generators, lease EV truck, lease forklift, lease billboard near large outdoor venues and undercut market price for commercial generator rentals, seed land with pollinator plants, lease grazing time to goat farmers, install EV chargers at solar site, contract to sell excess to local utility. im gonna fucking do it.

Different Than boosted:
Nullstring 🏴‍☠️0x00string@infosec.exchange
2025-06-21

i wanna make good money doing good things and scratch this itch to strike out on my own

Different Than boosted:

It shouldn't be against the law to provide an encrypted app. But if the STOP CSAM Act passes, it would make it a crime to offer encryption, because it could "facilitate" the sharing of illegal child abuse material (CSAM)—even if there's no evidence that a platform or service intended to do so.

The law would undermine digital security for all internet users, impacting private messaging and email app providers, social media platforms, cloud storage providers, and many other internet intermediaries and online services.

act.eff.org/action/tell-congre
#EFF #Encryption #Privacy

2025-06-21

@whatever_sauce I'm only moderately solid in one language (R) with a "hanging on by my fingernails" familiarity with Python. For me, learning R has always been driven by what I need to do with it. I guess my advice is, yes, come up with projects just at the edge of your ability, but that you really care about completing (e.g., maybe they are just fun or benefit you in some way). Use those to learn.

Client Info

Server: https://mastodon.social
Version: 2025.04
Repository: https://github.com/cyevgeniy/lmst