Pete Arden

the defining image of the early 21st century is an agent of the state pointing a gun at a person, and a citizen pointing a smartphone camera back at them

we see this scene reenacted every day, around the world

There were diagrams just like this during the dot-com boom, and we all know how that turned out.

This ain’t healthy.

We believe healthcare is a right for every American.

But starting today, millions of people will be notified that they are being priced out of their insurance thanks to Republican policies.

Enough is enough. The GOP may shut down the government, but we will stand tall for YOU.

At least 30% better.

Quisling.

There is no low that this human piece of garbage won’t sink to.

The worst crime against the discourse that mainstream outlets like the New York Times have committed is making it sound like people who think certain groups shouldn’t have rights (immigrants, minorities, trans people, women, etc) have “controversial” opinions like it’s pineapple on pizza not bigotry

Charlie Kirk in His Own Words 17 quotes you should read from the right-wing activist and Trump ally who was tragically shot and killed on Wednesday in Utah.

Lest anyone forget who he really was. zeteo.com/p/charlie-ki...

Look, at some level you cannot have a functioning democracy where both parties presuppose an electorate of selfish, ignorant louts and compete to offer them the best array of goodies, which is more or less what “focus on kitchen table issues” means. You have to activate some kind of civic impulse.

Bazinga!

👀 😂 🍿

Just did my civic duty and donated.

Forcing LLMs to be evil during training can make them nicer in the long run New Anthropic research shows that undesirable LLM traits can be detected—and even prevented—by examining and manipulating the model’s inner workings.

In related news: I’ve not given up hope yet that our imminent AI overlords - trained along these lines - can lead us out of this mess of our own making. www.technologyreview.com/2025/08/01/1...

I would wholeheartedly support any political movement whose organizing principle was “Don’t be a dick.”

'Hello human, nice to meet you'

Good lord. Good riddance then.

‘Smoke’ on AppleTV+ has the best early-season twist I’ve seen in years. I’m still thinking about it 24 hours later.

It’s kinda crazy that “freedom of speech” now means it’s OK to be racist but not OK to say things or take positions the government doesn’t like.

Lalo Bossa Nova Quincy Jones · Big Band Bossa Nova · Song · 1962

open.spotify.com/track/7oB7l3...

'Mission: Impossible' composer Lalo Schifrin dies at 93 Argentine pianist and composer Lalo Schifrin, best known for his scores for Mission: Impossible and more than 200 other films and TV shows, including Bullitt, Mannix and Cool Hand Luke, has died.

Jazz pianist, brilliant soundtrack composer, Quincy Jones and Dizzy Gillespie and Astor Piazolla collaborator … RIP
www.npr.org/2025/06/26/1...

As a longtime fan of Rick Steve’s’ travel guides (and his wonderfully dorky PBS series) I didn’t think I could love this man more…until today.

Great listen, and right on target with both the diagnosis and the remedy. Like Buttigieg a few years ago, McBride is one to watch.

I will be damned if I allow a bunch of Confederate-waving January 6th apologists give the American people a lecture on flag waving.

There is ZERO reason to enter an argument about patriotism with people who still worship traitors to America 150+ years later.

They. Are. Breaking. The. Law.

whenever i encounter people who say they can't understand shakespeare verses I always send them this clip from the 2019 Shakespeare in the Park production of Much Ado About Nothing

What a legacy. I first heard about WTF in 2014 and have been a devoted listener and fan ever since. The long-form interviews with actors, directors, musicians and artists — and Marc’s deeply personal, funny, irritated, relatable opening monologues — will be missed. @marcmaron.bsky.social

A CNN news notification : The convicted killer crab walked between two walls and pushed through the newly installed razor wire to break out of prison, authorities say

*crab-walked

Berimbau/Consolacao Sérgio Mendes, Stevie Wonder, Gracinha Leporace · Timeless · Song · 2006

Cutrent obsession open.spotify.com/track/0MXqOC...

Oof 🤦🏻‍♂️

Meanwhile, in Casablanca: