Catherine Berry

Opinion | That Hegseth Speech Was Actually Pretty Good

The four stages of reading a New York Times opinion piece.

Denial: OMG! With that title, this *has* to be a snarky satire.

Bargaining: ...4 paragraphs in, still deadpan. Must be a real zinger coming!

Anger: WTAF??!!

Acceptance: Oh, right. The Times.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/07/o...

Den gesten inclodë Werwulfe, Vlad Tepes, und heis sonne.

Opinion | That Hegseth Speech Was Actually Pretty Good

The four stages of reading a New York Times opinion piece.

Denial: OMG! With that title, this *has* to be a snarky satire.

Bargaining: ...4 paragraphs in, still deadpan. Must be a real zinger coming!

Anger: WTAF??!!

Acceptance: Oh, right. The Times.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/07/o...

If the single issue is "Am I allowed to exist?", then hell yes, I am a single issue voter. And I am getting very tired of people telling me to die on a hill to support their priorities. If you don't support trans people, we're not allies.

If the single issue is "Am I allowed to exist?", then hell yes, I am a single issue voter. And I am getting very tired of people telling me to die on a hill to support their priorities. If you don't support trans people, we're not allies.

None of that matters -- and I say that as someone who left Facebook and X years ago. As Cory Doctorow has often explained, individual action is effectively pointless against the forces wrecking our lives. Only organized collective action can counterbalance the power of governments and billionaires.

Amen to that! I've managed to be there for the golden age a few times over the years, but far more often I have jumped on board an already sinking ship.

I've been on the Internet since it was the Arpanet, and this has always been the way of things. A forum attracts people, their activity attracts more people, a golden age happens, bad conduct becomes a problem, moderation attempts ultimately fail, and it's over. The cycle is just getting faster.

I, Shub-Niggurath, Don't Understand How Stephen Miller's Parents Did Not Eat Him As A Child Geez, he's such a little asshole.

"Grovel, humans! Grovel and quail for mercy as my hideous form materializes before you! For I am currently the least of your problems." 😁

open.substack.com/pub/wonkette...

A vii° is just a lazy V7.

Someone in a frog costume facing down a line of police in riot gear

George Orwell’s Animal Crossing

Way past its prime: how did Amazon get so rubbish? Sick of scrolling through junk results, AI-generated ads and links to lookalike products? The author and activist behind the term ‘enshittification’ explains what’s gone wrong with the internet – and ...

Short essay by Cory Doctorow on fhe enshitification of Amazon Prime www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

A vii° is just a lazy V7.

Aleister Crowley has you covered. In several senses.

allpoetry.com/Leah-Sublime

I think you meant to type ... --- ... 🙂

Arthur C. Clarke, who helped develop the radar systems that protected England from the Luftwaffe during World War II, wrote a spectacularly good science fiction story on this topic in 1951. Everyone, and especially every engineer, should read "Superiority". Repeatedly. www.baen.com/Chapters/143...

I had to interrupt an intense programming session to be hypnotized for a while.

A printed page posted on a window, with this text: claire's NOTICE OF STORE CLOSURE To Our Valued Customers, This Claire's location has been permanently closed. The decision reflects both external pressures & internal restructuring. In recent months, repeated attacks of ridicule by radical left agitators have gone beyond mere criticism, escalating into a deliberate effort to destabilize our company - conduct we recognize as Domestic Economic Terrorism. At the same time, our transition under new private equity ownership required difficult financial choices. Protecting the stability of shareholders was prioritized, & this store - along with its local workforce - was deemed expendable in service of that obligation. Despite these challenges, Claire's remains committed to our identity as a traditional American company rooted in values of family & community. We will not be silenced by those who attempt to undermine that mission, & we continue to move forward with confidence in our future. Here at Claire's, we look forward to working with the current administration to reinvigorate our brand presence across the United States, ensuring that we remain a part of American life for generations to come. We invite you to continue supporting Claire's by shopping online at www.claires.com Thank you for your attention to this matter. Claire's Stores, Inc. 2400 West Central Road, Hoffman Estates, IL 60192 | Claire's Stores, Inc. | CBI Distributing Corp.

Here's a version with alt text that actually includes the text in the image, courtesy of the best feature of Gemini.

Even among those who actually want to resist in some way, they see themselves as De Gaulle, meeting with FDR and Churchill while in exile. Not as the lady on a bicycle who points the SS in the wrong direction or the tavern owner who listens to drunk officers talk and relays what they hear.

Ouch!! 😯

H. P. Lovecraft makes a great example. His stories, while brilliant, are filled with feverish racism. It's easy to think "Well, it was the 1920s." Then you find out we have letters from his friends that basically say "Dude, tone it down!! Are you okay?"

YouTube video by Thomas Dolby - Topic Screen Kiss (2009 Remaster)

A wistful memory of a life I had, once upon a time.

music.youtube.com/watch?v=AbhK...

They probably thought she was trans. 🙄

The semantic trap lies in accepting the use of "AI" to describe what the tech bros are pushing. I find Cory Doctorow's "Spicy Autocomplete" more accurate. Mentally replacing every mention of "AI" with "Spicy Autocomplete" makes it much easier to think clearly about this topic.

Forget the promise of savagery and hate, for in the pleasant light of the far future there is only cottagecore.

Fripp is wildly inventive and talented in about a hundred different ways.

I've been riding in Waymos a great deal the last few months. It's endlessly fascinating (at least to me) to watch them deal with the myriad small surprises and challenges of driving. They are definitely more cautious (and situationally aware) than most human drivers.

Because he truly believes he is entitled to everything.

"The fights for trans rights and Palestinians are over and we lost" is something I'm seeing over and over from cis white progressives. And I'm seeing variations of this popping up about racial justice, marriage equality, and disability rights too.

Sorry, but fuck that.

music.youtube.com/playlist?lis...