Lee Herman

Update 4: A message from Emily James, director of the upcoming documentary Enshittification: The Film. · Enshittification: the DRM-free audiobook This is a guest post from my friend Emily James, director of the forthcoming movie, Enshittification: The Film. You can pre-purchase two tickets and a download code on the film's Patreon. The film's t...

The audiobook is going to become a movie!

Congratulations! Glad to hear!

Proto "The story of how one language left the steppes of Ukraine and became the earth's dominant language family has become clearer and more exciting than ever b…

@laurainparis.bsky.social tells fascinating stories about language in this podcast from her book, coming soon to a library or bookstore near you: www.bloomsbury.com/us/proto-978...

At Its Beginnings, Only a Handful of People Spoke This Language. It’s the Origin of Every Word You Say. This revelatory new book will open your eyes to the source of everything you say.

I can’t wait for this to come in at the library. Looks fascinating. @laurainparis.bsky.social slate.com/culture/2025...

From an April 27, 1978, speech by economist Milton Friedman at Kansas State University:
"We call a tariff a protective measure. It does protect; it protects the consumer very well against one thing. It protects the consumer against low prices. . . . “ via @wsj.com

Grassy yard looking west at trees silhouetted by orange sunset.

We had a beautiful sunset yesterday after a torrential downpour. We were very lucky - our part of the storm had only light winds.

What Trump’s Trade War Would Mean, in Nine Charts If implemented, President Trump’s tariffs on Canada, China, and Mexico could upend U.S. trade. These nine charts show what’s at stake, what comes next, and why it matters.

Wondering what the impact of Trump’s tariffs will be? Read this and weep. www.cfr.org/article/what...

Large front yard with trees and the ground covered in snow under a bright blue cloudless sky.

It was beautiful outside today. Our front yard from the living room window. Remember to get out in nature. It’s good for you.

Pre-ordered! Thanks for the tip, Bri!

Everyone get out your dictionaries and look up the word "kakistocracy."

Family includes everyone! ❤️

Behind the scenes, the company was also quietly dismantling a system to prevent the spread of misinformation. When the company announced on Jan. 7 that it would end its fact-checking partnerships, the company also instructed teams responsible for ranking content in the company’s apps to stop penalizing misinformation, according to sources and an internal document obtained by Platformer. The result is that the sort of viral hoaxes that ran roughshod over the platform during the 2016 US presidential election — “Pope Francis endorses Trump,” Pizzagate, and all the rest — are now just as eligible for free amplification on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads as true stories.

NEW: Meta has quietly dismantled the system that prevented misinformation from spreading in the United States. Machine-learning classifiers that once identified viral hoaxes and limited their reach have now been switched off, Platformer has learned www.platformer.news/meta-ends-mi...

Stainless Steel Spatula with Wood Handle We're bringing back our favorite vintage metal spatula! It's sharp and flexible, perfect for slipping under fried potatoes, slicing up flat dumplings, flipping pancakes, and serving hot biscuits. Thin...

My old spatula with the flexible blade died. The stiff one I was left with did not inspire joy nor work well with my skillet. I found and bought this one. I love it. Not from Amazon. oldcountrykitchenware.com/products/fle...

Of course I ended up completely redesigning my #GTD system in #Obsidian on the spur of the moment. I’m exploiting the power of the Tasks plugin and custom task statuses to make much better lists but making one simplifying change led to a cascade. The changes will pay off in clarity and efficiency! ✅

Reminds me of the time a bunch of us attending a Food Co-op conference were in the hotel bar when all the fans attending the Kiss concert came in. We moved out into the lobby.

As I wrote last week: "As other information sources fall, Wikipedia’s stubborn independence becomes more vital than ever. The attacks from [the right] aren't just about an online encyclopedia — they're part of a broader assault on any information source that refuses to be controlled."

Here are some of the horrible things that you can now say on Instagram and Facebook New rules.

As if I didn’t already have enough reasons to leave Facebook and Instagram… I guess Zuck is trying compete with Elon and X. 😢 www.theverge.com/2025/1/7/243...

Why I'm quitting the Washington Post Democracy can't function without a free press

Folks: please be diligent about not disseminating Ann Telnaes' cartoon in a way that she's not getting the clicks on it (until she says differently). Her IP matters now more than ever.

Make it go viral but make sure she benefits.

anntelnaes.substack.com/p/why-im-qui...

GitHub - axelson/obsidian-auto-note-mover: This is a plugin for Obsidian (https://obsidian.md). This is a plugin for Obsidian (https://obsidian.md). - axelson/obsidian-auto-note-mover

The plugin was forked to support other front matter (properties) from the one in the plugin store in Obsidian: Auto Note Mover with the latest update here: This version (has to be installed with BRAT or manually) to get support for properties (the yaml front matter): github.com/axelson/obsi...

Not all of us are “guys.” This blog is six years old and still holds true. www.gregcons.com/KateBlog/Tho...

Dear Musician Friends,

Knight Road House Concerts is now on @bsky.app at @knightroadhc.bsky.social! I’ll connect with you over there. So when I unfollow here, don’t take it as unfriending.

With all my love of you and your music! 🎵🎵🎵🎵🎵
Lee

Meta, Amazon and tech CEOs make $1 million investments in Trump's inauguration Tech companies are sending big bucks to President-elect Donald Trump's nonprofit inaugural committee.

As if there weren’t already enough reasons to want to move my spending away and usage away from these platforms. www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-t...

Please add me to the list!