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Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
HeavenlyPossum@kolektiva.social wrote:

I suspect that these historical facts, or at least the popular impression of them, have persuaded many people that another US civil war like the first one is effectively impossible.

There is no clear geographic divide within the US like there was in 1861 between slave states and free states. Instead, Americans are deeply divided on an array of political issues but are interspersed geographically. Even many states that are described in US political discourse as “red” or “blue” are, for the most part, almost evenly split in political terms.

Prior to the US civil war, states really were semi-sovereign and the federal government was vastly smaller than it is now. It was, at the time, possible to imagine group of states cooperating to challenge federal authority, because the balance of power between the component state and the federal government was not nearly as lopsided as it is today.

2/

https://www.fairobserver.com/region/north%5Famerica/purple-america-best-election-maps/

Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
dogzilla@masto.deluma.biz wrote:

It’s time to demand removal. Dementia doesn’t have a political agenda. What’s left of Trump is clearly no longer living in this reality.

Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
Nonya_Bidniss@infosec.exchange ("Nonya "Lethal Precision" Bidniss :CIAverified: 🇺🇸") wrote:

SCOTUS enabled all of this specifically for Trump (it'll be neat when there's a Dem president again), Congress is flat on its back (it'll be neat when Dems are majority), & conspirator Cabinet won't exercise last gasp power (25th). That leaves correction up to the people. We're it.

jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:

AP: “Inflation has risen in three of the last four months and is slightly higher than it was a year ago, when it helped sink then-Vice President Kamala Harris' presidential campaign. Yet you wouldn't know it from listening to President Donald Trump or even some of the inflation fighters at the Federal Reserve.”

Boosted by keul@fosstodon.org ("Luca Fabbri"):
MissingThePt ("Missing The Point") wrote:

“Can you explain this gap in your resume?”

Me thinking quickly on my feet to explain the period when I worked for ICE: “I was selling drugs… uh, to children.”

pzmyers@freethought.online ("pzmyers 🕷") wrote:

Classic 7th birthday choice: rollerblades.

https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2025/10/12/ilianas-7th-birthday/

Gargron ("Eugen Rochko") wrote:

Low Rigg feat. cows.

📷 Pentax 6x7
🎞️ Kodak Portra 400
🔭 Super Takumar 105mm/2.4
⚗ Come Through Lab

#BelieveInFilm #FilmPhotography #AnalogPhotography #MediumFormat #LakeDistrict #TheLakes #Cumbria

Boosted by baldur@toot.cafe ("Baldur Bjarnason"):
brucelawson@vivaldi.net ("Bruce Lawson ✅ ♫ ♿ ✌️♂️✊") wrote:

Anthropic stole the books I co-wrote in order to train their planet-burning hallucination machine, so I've filed a claim. They wept that if every plagiarised author does so, the company will go bankrupt. Boo emdash hoo. www.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com

Boosted by baldur@toot.cafe ("Baldur Bjarnason"):
cstross@wandering.shop ("Charlie Stross") wrote:

The analyst behind this essay thinks there's no way the AI data centre boom can be profitable. I looked at their expectations and … they're optimistic: those number crunchers in the data centres won't depreciate over 3-5 years, they'll be obsolete inside 18 months!

It's ridiculous.
https://awful.systems/comment/9041013

baldur@toot.cafe ("Baldur Bjarnason") wrote:

“The Great Software Quality Collapse: How We Normalized Catastrophe”

https://techtrenches.substack.com/p/the-great-software-quality-collapse

> I've been tracking software quality metrics for three years. The degradation isn't gradual—it's exponential.

That thing where you don't really wanna say it, but kinda have to: I told you so.

Boosted by baldur@toot.cafe ("Baldur Bjarnason"):
nivrig ("nivs @ #Amiga40 🇩🇪 15-20 Oct") wrote:

The Great Software Quality Collapse:

https://techtrenches.substack.com/p/the-great-software-quality-collapse

jwz wrote:

Absolutely chilling words that someone said to me today:

"I have this new AI insulin pump..."

baldur@toot.cafe ("Baldur Bjarnason") wrote:

“The App Store Was Always Authoritarian - Infrequently Noted”

https://infrequently.org/2025/10/the-app-store-was-always-authoritarian/

Boosted by jwz:
GeePawHill wrote:

We laugh, but it's really serious.

Wearing a cool costume will not actually prevent fascists from hurting you. But it *will* make them look very very bad if they do it.

It's funny, yes, and it's actually courageous.

Boosted by jwz:
jensorensen ("Jen Sorensen") wrote:

Latest comic: What does not belong?

#cartoon #comic #politics #democracy #firstamendment #monarchy #authoritarianism #uspol

Boosted by jwz:
mwichary@mastodon.online ("Marcin Wichary") wrote:

Is it very weird that I like these.

They feel super European to me somehow – you don’t see this extreme version a lot any more.

Boosted by jwz:
slop@fuckaas.space ("slop enjoyer") wrote:

haven’t even found one person who wants to exchange floppies yet

Boosted by jwz:
slop@fuckaas.space ("slop enjoyer") wrote:

the movie hackers tricked me into believing exchanging top secret floppy disks via skateboard was a much bigger part of adult life

Boosted by jwz:
ConspiracyOfCartographers ("Conspiracy of Cartographers") wrote:

"One more drink and I’ll be under the host”

Boosted by jwz:
IndivisibleSF@sfba.social ("Indivisible SF") wrote:

buff.ly/fFjTp…
NoKings #NoKings2

Boosted by jwz:
downey@floss.social ("Michael Downey 🧢") wrote:

In one week, people all over the United States will join together to say: In America we don’t do wannabe dictators or Kings.

No Thrones.
No Crowns.
No Kings.

One week to go.

✊ https://nokings.org

#NoKings #NoKingsPDX #PDX #Portland

jwz wrote:

Every time I see someone saying, "Someone did an AI thing and it found an obscure bug, kinda cool!" what I hear is, "Say what you want about Dr. Mengele, but his twin experiments did generate some useful data!"

Yes this is a subtwit. You know who you are.

Boosted by jwz:
Daojoan ("JA Westenberg") wrote:

Philosophers 300 years ago:

"Is life inherently meaningful, or do we create meaning through action?"

Philosophers now:

"Use code MEANING for 20% off on Squarespace"

slightlyoff@toot.cafe ("Alex Russell") wrote:

We know the devil is real because no result force conscience can conjure could imagine the moral and intellectual depravity of the median HN comment.

Boosted by ChrisWere@toot.wales ("Chris Werewolf ⁂🐧🌱☕ 🎃💀🕸🐺"):
anjune@chaosfem.tw wrote:

If, in the waking world, you usually have a mobile phone with you: do you have one in your dreams?

Important research!

db@social.lol ("David Bushell 👻") wrote:

reading: A theory on why contact forms get more spam than email addresses

https://www.lkhrs.com/blog/a-theory-on-why-contact-forms-get-more-spam-than-email-addresses/

make sense; easy delivery

Boosted by adam@social.lol ("Adam :prami:"):
bazurk@social.lol ("ᗪave") wrote:

#bipolar

Boosted by jwz:
vantablue@writing.exchange ("Daniela Quirke") wrote:

🐸🐸🐸

Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
servelan@newsie.social ("Servelan") wrote:

Troops stung by hard credit checks and denials in relief loans

https://taskandpurpose.com/military-life/usaa-credit-loan-troops-shutdown/

Boosted by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
victorvonvortex wrote:

"On July 10, I was on my way to work when ICE agents engulfed my car in tear gas, smashed my driver-side window, and pepper-sprayed my face."

"I spent three nights and three days in federal custody... I was never told what I was charged with, was not allowed to shower despite being covered in tear gas and pepper spray, had no phone call to my family, and no access to an attorney... No explanation. No charges. No apology. One day, I was just told, 'you’re free to go.'"

https://newsletter.ofthebrave.org/p/im-a-us-citizen-and-a-veteran-ice