R.J. Cross

a handmade sign in a children's handwriting hanging on a brick wall. it reads "bike more dont use cars"

from the mouths of babes

the things we spend our technological abundance on

Rent day being arguably the worst day this could happen

Driving deeper into debt: As cars get bigger, so does the cost of owning them Bigger vehicles, more debt: That's been the story of the American car market for more than a decade. What will it take to change course?

Americans owe a whopping $1.6 trillion on their car loans. As cars get bigger and more expensive, this debt balance is rising. Is change possible? Intern Ben Outar explores in our new article. frontiergroup.org/articles/dri...

What’s a technology that you think is overhyped? I’m going to give a sideways answer to this, which is that the venture capital business model needs to be understood as requiring hype. You can go back to the Netscape IPO, and that was the proof point that made venture capital the financial lifeblood of the tech industry. Venture capital looks at valuations and growth, not necessarily at profit or revenue. So you don’t actually have to invest in technology that works, or that even makes a profit, you simply have to have a narrative that is compelling enough to float those valuations. So you see this repetitive and exhausting hype cycle as a feature in this industry. A couple of years ago, you would have been asking me about the metaverse, then last year, you would have asked me about Web3 and crypto, and for each of these inflection points there’s an Andreessen Horowitz manifesto. It’s not simply that one piece of technology is overhyped, it’s that hype is a necessary ingredient of the current business ecosystem of the tech industry. We should examine how often the financial incentive for hype is rewarded without any real social returns, without any meaningful progress in technology, without these tools and services and worlds ever actually manifesting. That’s key to understanding the growing chasm between the narrative of techno-optimists and the reality of our tech-encumbered world.

Stand by this: www.politico.com/newsletters/...

Can’t wait till every single device in my life sells my data and pushes ads in my face while also charging me a subscription for something I technically own

This warm and beckoning glow is conveniently located just beyond your grasp, but if you run toward it you just might find the calming space you’ve always been looking for. Reference #228745

Real Estate: The Light

Tech Industry Figures Suddenly Very Concerned That AI Use Is Leading to Psychotic Episodes Tech industry hotshots are speaking out after a prominent OpenAI investor appeared to have a ChatGPT-induced mental health breakdown.

Something very interesting is happening: tech industry insiders are suddenly getting very concerned that ChatGPT is causing severe mental health problems in users -- including potentially top figures in the AI sector itself

futurism.com/tech-industr...

bad

For Authenticity’s Sake, This Post-Apocalyptic Drama Needs More Dead Kids Hey, don’t look at me like I’m the monster.

Check out my latest piece in Slackjaw. #apocalypse #dramas #tv #satire
medium.com/slackjaw/for...

a black and white ink drawing of a lantern floating on a river, framed by mountains. above the sketch text reads: Yutori The conscious act of slowing down to allow us to savor the world around us. The refusal to rush. No talking. Just absorbing the world around us with no goal except to see. Spaciousness. Artist credit: artist @Drex.Dsgn in IG

the teen boys playing basketball in the driveway next to my window discussing which wildflowers you can make into medicinal teas

Grok's back. It's trending as MechaHitler now.

Welcome news

They Asked an A.I. Chatbot Questions. The Answers Sent Them Spiraling.

Dear lord, this is the most disturbing AI news I've ever read. @kashhill.bsky.social nails an urgent story. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/13/t...

A Political Battle Is Brewing Over Data Centers An AI-related provision in the “Big Beautiful Bill” could restrict state-level legislation of energy-hungry data centers—and is raising bipartisan objections across the US.

could the 10-year AI moratorium in the megabill ban legislation around data center sitings? a group of bipartisan politicans, from Thomas Massie to state-level legislators, are voicing concerns about it — the latest in the new battle over where, exactly, we're going to put these things:

I turned one of my favorite hobbies - telling anyone who will listen how dumb car ads are - into a bit of satire. Thanks to @pointsincase.com for publishing it.

This Isn’t the Future We at Dippin’ Dots Envisioned Since 1988, we at Dippin’ Dots have proudly sold the official ice cream of the future. And ever since, we’ve been waiting for the future to arrive ...

"Since 1988, we’ve been waiting for the future to arrive at Little League concession stands and any place that smells like popcorn and feet. But now that the future is here, we regret to announce that we are extremely disappointed."

I don't know about anyone else, but I've always wondered what my life would be like in a car commercial.
Love this @rj-x.bsky.social.
#satire #comedy

Thank you ^_^

How Allstate’s data broker Arity sells driver data

Last night my roommate & I went through the 51 apps on her phone and deleted as many as she could stand to part with. I've never met someone with both MyRadar and GasBuddy. Earlier this year PIRG found both sharing location data with Allstate's data broker Arity. Delete your apps!!

Graduates, We Think There Are Some Jobs That AI Hasn’t Taken Yet | Robot Butt A career center associate whose days are numbered goes over job options that won't be taken by AI.

I channeled my anxiety about the lack of serious & forward-thinking convos about the looming employment crisis into very dumb jokes. Enjoy. www.robotbutt.com/2025/05/26/g...

If you load this page it contacts 82 IP addresses executing 256 separate HTTP transactions to download 18MB of data writing 64 cookies to your device to tell you “no”

23andMe sold the genetic data of 15 million people for $256 million to a pharmaceutical company called Regeneron.

🔗 www.404media.co/23andme-sale...

'Creepy' data collection is happening in cars without any universal safeguards for drivers Technology in cars can make driving more convenient, but it's also raising questions about how much data it's allowing car companies to collect on us.

Appreciated the chance to talk about how our cars can collect far more data about us than we realize with Spotlight on America. Like, way more than you realize.

“Anytime ‘personalized’ is used in a description that means surveillance”
www.vox.com/technology/4...

I've created a calculator that gives you the right answer 80% of the time and I believe it will change the world

One time I dropped my phone in my dog's water bowl, stuck it in rice for a day, and managed to get a grain of rice so far lodged into the headphone jack it lived there for 2 years. I could still use headphones if I pushed into the jack really hard & used the rice as a conductor. This I do not miss.