Civilian Reader
@civilianreader.com
Reader of books (biblio-Sisyphus), listener of music, watcher of movies, drinker of coffee & wine. (Same handle on Insta.) I also like basketball. Basically just ricocheting my way through life.
http://civilianreader.com
http://civilianreader.com
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Microsoft, Google, Meta and Amazon paying influencers $400k-$600k to post months of AI hype content. Absolutely busted, failed industry, embarrassing era
www.cnbc.com/2026/02/06/g...
www.cnbc.com/2026/02/06/g...
Google and Microsoft offer lucrative deals to promote AI, but even $500,000 won't sway some creators
Tech companies including Google and Microsoft are paying influencers hundreds of thousands of dollars to promote AI products.
www.cnbc.com
February 11, 2026 at 7:03 PM
Microsoft, Google, Meta and Amazon paying influencers $400k-$600k to post months of AI hype content. Absolutely busted, failed industry, embarrassing era
www.cnbc.com/2026/02/06/g...
www.cnbc.com/2026/02/06/g...
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Whale Evolution:
Flamingo-Legged Watermelon Mouse
Mutant Sewer Rat King
Gator Wolf
Steel-Jawed PollyWorg
Titan MerSausage
Flamingo-Legged Watermelon Mouse
Mutant Sewer Rat King
Gator Wolf
Steel-Jawed PollyWorg
Titan MerSausage
February 10, 2026 at 4:36 AM
Whale Evolution:
Flamingo-Legged Watermelon Mouse
Mutant Sewer Rat King
Gator Wolf
Steel-Jawed PollyWorg
Titan MerSausage
Flamingo-Legged Watermelon Mouse
Mutant Sewer Rat King
Gator Wolf
Steel-Jawed PollyWorg
Titan MerSausage
Now the Kobo website doesn’t work on my iPhone, either. Very peculiar.
Just suddenly stopped working.
Just suddenly stopped working.
February 10, 2026 at 4:37 AM
Now the Kobo website doesn’t work on my iPhone, either. Very peculiar.
Just suddenly stopped working.
Just suddenly stopped working.
Reposted by Civilian Reader
February 10, 2026 at 12:27 AM
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Project Hail Mary (March 20): Final trailer
Very good trailer for what promises to be a great sci-fi movie, but beware, it reveals a lot about the story and, above all, shows a lot of Rocky. ☝️
Very good trailer for what promises to be a great sci-fi movie, but beware, it reveals a lot about the story and, above all, shows a lot of Rocky. ☝️
Project Hail Mary | Final Trailer
YouTube video by Amazon MGM Studios
www.youtube.com
February 8, 2026 at 10:09 PM
Project Hail Mary (March 20): Final trailer
Very good trailer for what promises to be a great sci-fi movie, but beware, it reveals a lot about the story and, above all, shows a lot of Rocky. ☝️
Very good trailer for what promises to be a great sci-fi movie, but beware, it reveals a lot about the story and, above all, shows a lot of Rocky. ☝️
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Fun facts about Carol Hart: Not only does she sell $1000 courses on how to AI generate books, you can also buy a ready-to-generate book outline for $1000, or, for $4000, a whole-ass autogenerated book ready for you to slap your name on the cover and release it.
February 9, 2026 at 11:54 PM
Fun facts about Carol Hart: Not only does she sell $1000 courses on how to AI generate books, you can also buy a ready-to-generate book outline for $1000, or, for $4000, a whole-ass autogenerated book ready for you to slap your name on the cover and release it.
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Excerpt, excerpt!
New Excerpt: RABBIT TEST AND OTHER STORIES by Samantha Mills (@samtasticbooks.com)...
civilianreader.com/2026/02/06/e...
Due to be pub'd by @tachyonpub.bsky.social on April 21st.
civilianreader.com/2026/02/06/e...
Due to be pub'd by @tachyonpub.bsky.social on April 21st.
Excerpt: RABBIT TEST AND OTHER STORIES by Samantha Mills (Tachyon)
Today, we have an excerpt from the Rabbit Test and Other Stories, a highly-anticipated debut short story collection by Samantha Mills. Specifically, the (substantial) excerpt is from the story R…
civilianreader.com
February 9, 2026 at 8:38 PM
Excerpt, excerpt!
Reposted by Civilian Reader
We're down to the wire for "Moses and the Doctor." This is the last weekend that you can preorder from Astoria Bookshop and receive a signed copy along with the custom cards that we made featuring Dr. J and Moses Malone. Do it before Tuesday! www.astoriabookshop.com/item/koW0Owl...
February 7, 2026 at 6:12 PM
We're down to the wire for "Moses and the Doctor." This is the last weekend that you can preorder from Astoria Bookshop and receive a signed copy along with the custom cards that we made featuring Dr. J and Moses Malone. Do it before Tuesday! www.astoriabookshop.com/item/koW0Owl...
Reposted by Civilian Reader
No Kings includes Draft Kings
February 8, 2026 at 11:49 PM
No Kings includes Draft Kings
Really good novel. (Novella? It’s short for a Tchaikovsky book, but not short-short…)
Definitely recommended.
Definitely recommended.
The reviews are in!
Spiderlight by Adrian Tchaikovsky
reviewed by Andy Sawyer
Link ⬇️
strangehorizons.com/wordpress/no...
Spiderlight by Adrian Tchaikovsky
reviewed by Andy Sawyer
Link ⬇️
strangehorizons.com/wordpress/no...
February 8, 2026 at 7:16 PM
Really good novel. (Novella? It’s short for a Tchaikovsky book, but not short-short…)
Definitely recommended.
Definitely recommended.
“We fooled you dollars” is a great way to frame it.
So what's gonna happen there? She's going to have to constantly cycle through pen name after pen name, regurgitating books in different formats, and she'll be joined by thousands of other content extruders all fighting over the same "we fooled you" dollars.
February 8, 2026 at 2:55 PM
“We fooled you dollars” is a great way to frame it.
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i forget who made it but it cracks me up lol
February 8, 2026 at 10:54 AM
i forget who made it but it cracks me up lol
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Celebrating 250 years of democracy by only allowing vassals willing to pay tribute an opportunity to speak to the King.
SCOOP: Freedom 250 — the group launched by Trump to oversee projects including the @UFC fight on the WH lawn & his arch overlooking DC — is offering access to him for donors who give $1M.
For $2.5M, donors are being offered the chance to speak at the national July 4 celebration. 🎁🔗
For $2.5M, donors are being offered the chance to speak at the national July 4 celebration. 🎁🔗
For $1 Million, Donors to U.S.A. Birthday Group Offered Access to Trump
www.nytimes.com
February 8, 2026 at 2:47 PM
Celebrating 250 years of democracy by only allowing vassals willing to pay tribute an opportunity to speak to the King.
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“Torrenting from a corporate laptop doesn’t feel right,” one Meta engineer wrote in 2023 with a grinning emoji. [...] “If there is media coverage suggesting we have used a dataset we know to be pirated, such as LibGen, this may undermine our negotiating position with regulators on these issues.”
February 8, 2026 at 2:23 AM
“Torrenting from a corporate laptop doesn’t feel right,” one Meta engineer wrote in 2023 with a grinning emoji. [...] “If there is media coverage suggesting we have used a dataset we know to be pirated, such as LibGen, this may undermine our negotiating position with regulators on these issues.”
Reposted by Civilian Reader
hard to think of a better example of "you may not believe in class war, but billionaires know they're in one" than this
This is bleak: Jes Staley, currently CEO of Barclays, reassuring Epstein that popular revolt against financial elites is unlikely because capitalism and pop culture have defanged social movements, leaving people more invested in consumption than justice.
February 7, 2026 at 3:53 AM
hard to think of a better example of "you may not believe in class war, but billionaires know they're in one" than this
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Just hire all the laid off reporters. Call it the Washington Citizen or something. Doesn’t seem that hard.
Before The Washington Post layoffs came down, a group of wealthy D.C. locals approached CEO Will Lewis with a proposal.
@passantino.bsky.social has the details in his Saturday @status.news column: www.status.news/p/washington...
@passantino.bsky.social has the details in his Saturday @status.news column: www.status.news/p/washington...
February 7, 2026 at 5:54 PM
Just hire all the laid off reporters. Call it the Washington Citizen or something. Doesn’t seem that hard.
One of my most-anticipated novels of the year.
February 7, 2026 at 6:44 PM
One of my most-anticipated novels of the year.
Reposted by Civilian Reader
An estate agent is forced to choose between a sale and his humanity when facing the inhuman eldritch forces that feed off rental tenants across the United Kingdom.
Next week... "Agency" by @georgesandison.bsky.social
Edited by @datlow.bsky.social
Art by Jamie Keenan
Next week... "Agency" by @georgesandison.bsky.social
Edited by @datlow.bsky.social
Art by Jamie Keenan
February 5, 2026 at 9:41 PM
An estate agent is forced to choose between a sale and his humanity when facing the inhuman eldritch forces that feed off rental tenants across the United Kingdom.
Next week... "Agency" by @georgesandison.bsky.social
Edited by @datlow.bsky.social
Art by Jamie Keenan
Next week... "Agency" by @georgesandison.bsky.social
Edited by @datlow.bsky.social
Art by Jamie Keenan
Reposted by Civilian Reader
this is the question.
"If Mandelson's links to Jeffrey Epstein disqualifies him from holding power, why does the company controlled by Epstein's business partner and co-owner retain access to the UK's most sensitive national security infrastructure?"
Peter Thiel. Jeffrey Epstein. Palantir. The UK Government.
Peter Thiel. Jeffrey Epstein. Palantir. The UK Government.
Jeffrey Epstein Co-Owned Venture Fund with Palantir Founder as it Entered UK Government
The Russian connected convicted sex trafficker co-owned a fund with Peter Thiel, now embedded in Britain’s most critical infrastructure with the help of Peter Mandelson
bylinetimes.com
February 6, 2026 at 7:41 PM
this is the question.
New Excerpt: RABBIT TEST AND OTHER STORIES by Samantha Mills (@samtasticbooks.com)...
civilianreader.com/2026/02/06/e...
Due to be pub'd by @tachyonpub.bsky.social on April 21st.
civilianreader.com/2026/02/06/e...
Due to be pub'd by @tachyonpub.bsky.social on April 21st.
Excerpt: RABBIT TEST AND OTHER STORIES by Samantha Mills (Tachyon)
Today, we have an excerpt from the Rabbit Test and Other Stories, a highly-anticipated debut short story collection by Samantha Mills. Specifically, the (substantial) excerpt is from the story R…
civilianreader.com
February 6, 2026 at 2:59 PM
New Excerpt: RABBIT TEST AND OTHER STORIES by Samantha Mills (@samtasticbooks.com)...
civilianreader.com/2026/02/06/e...
Due to be pub'd by @tachyonpub.bsky.social on April 21st.
civilianreader.com/2026/02/06/e...
Due to be pub'd by @tachyonpub.bsky.social on April 21st.
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Jeff Bezos’s wealth has increased an average of $70 million every day of 2026, meaning that he could have offset The Post’s losses with what he’s made since Monday.
February 5, 2026 at 2:48 AM
Jeff Bezos’s wealth has increased an average of $70 million every day of 2026, meaning that he could have offset The Post’s losses with what he’s made since Monday.
Reposted by Civilian Reader
the Washington Post effectively blew up its arts section today, dismissing its books, TV, music, and theater critics, features writers, and several editors. (I'm also guessing the vacant film critic position will stay that way.) Just an insane loss of talent and a huge self-inflicted wound.
February 4, 2026 at 9:46 PM
the Washington Post effectively blew up its arts section today, dismissing its books, TV, music, and theater critics, features writers, and several editors. (I'm also guessing the vacant film critic position will stay that way.) Just an insane loss of talent and a huge self-inflicted wound.
Reposted by Civilian Reader
Don't agree with Cato Inst on much. But:
Very glad they have quantified what has been obvious for years.
Very glad they have quantified what has been obvious for years.
The US immigrant population generated more in taxes than they received in benefits from all levels of government every year from 1994 to 2023.
The Cato study provides the first-ever 30-year analysis of the fiscal effects of immigration on government budgets.
https://ow.ly/jy8a50Y8kM3
The Cato study provides the first-ever 30-year analysis of the fiscal effects of immigration on government budgets.
https://ow.ly/jy8a50Y8kM3
February 4, 2026 at 2:45 AM
Don't agree with Cato Inst on much. But:
Very glad they have quantified what has been obvious for years.
Very glad they have quantified what has been obvious for years.