Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by PAL

Dieselbrain @dieselbrain.bsky.social · 16h

‪
#SaveSpeech

If you're like me and you are struggling to contact your senators re: KOSA via their phone lines this week, I recommend attempting to send physical letters or emails in the meantime.

Here is a script you can use to contact your reps!

www.commoncause.org/find-your-re...

Hi, my name is [NAME] and I’m a constituent from [LOCATION]
I'm messaging to demand [SENATOR] oppose S. 1748, the Kids Online Safety Act, also known as KOSA. This broad legislation does not protect anyone and instead will be used to block any speech that the Trump administration’s partisan FTC disagrees with. It pushes the “duty of care” onto websites and social media platforms to remove content that is “harmful to children”. It would lead to overcompliance, mass censorship, and remove access to crucial information re: everything from mental health, LGBT topics, substance abuse, eating disorders and more.
Additionally, while large, corporate platforms like X can shoulder the weight of “duty of care”, smaller websites cannot, leading to greater and greater concentrations of power online into giant corporate platforms rather than small and medium sized businesses.
KOSA will not make kids safer. It will make the internet more dangerous for anyone who relies on it to learn, connect, or speak freely. Lawmakers should reject it, and fast.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
IF SENATOR COSPONSORED KOSA: Additionally, I want to remark on [SENATOR]’s cosponsorship of this bill. I think it is shameful that [SENATOR] has backed a bill as transparently bad as KOSA. This will not keep kids safe, it is an excuse to censor the free and open internet. I will not be voting for nor donating to [SENATOR] in any future campaigns if they do not drop their co-sponsorship of this bill, and I will encourage everyone in my life to do the same.
Do the right thing.

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Lyle Lewis @race2extinct.bsky.social · 11h

Corpus Christi lured industry with “cheap energy and abundant water.” Now both are running out. The myth of infinite resources always ends in the same place: drought, denial, and disbelief.
apple.news/A5FIymjzIRiy...

This Texas Town Is an Energy Powerhouse. It’s Running Out of Water. — The Wall Street Journal

Severe drought has Corpus Christi scrambling to meet growing demand from companies like Exxon and Tesla

apple.news

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Brendan Keogh @brkeogh.bsky.social · 14h

Visa and Mastercard have the opportunity to do something really funny.

Matt Burgess (WIRED) @mattburgess1.bsky.social · 18h

Oh good, ChatGPT is getting "erotica for verified adults" later this year

We made ChatGPT pretty restrictive to make sure we were being careful with mental health issues. We realize this made it less useful/enjoyable to many users who had no mental health problems, but given the seriousness of the issue we wanted to get this right.

Now that we have been able to mitigate the serious mental health issues and have new tools, we are going to be able to safely relax the restrictions in most cases.

In a few weeks, we plan to put out a new version of ChatGPT that allows people to have a personality that behaves more like what people liked about 4o (we hope it will be better!). If you want your ChatGPT to respond in a very human-like way, or use a ton of emoji, or act like a friend, ChatGPT should do it (but only if you want it, not because we are usage-maxxing).

In December, as we roll out age-gating more fully and as part of our “treat adult users like adults” principle, we will allow even more, like erotica for verified adults.

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Lunar Twilight VA @lunartwilightva.bsky.social · 11h

the dollar store is doing ten dollars off delivery for spooky season, so if anyone would like to give me money for snacks that would be super pogged up. im filled up on groceries for at least a week for now
ko-fi.com/lunartwiligh...

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Ghostin this Hell @hoovybaby.bsky.social · 11h

@GrayAthene
darkly funny that the media insists that only democrats have a problem with overly online staffers/ activists while ignoring the fact that ur average young republican is some groyper with a copy of bronze age pervert and porn on their hard drive that'd get you 20 to life

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Kenzie [DENMOTHER] Zero @hivezero.net · 14h

was going so smoothly, just got my new job, moving in to the new place on Oct 24th, small paycheck arrives, I think I've budgeted it all properly...

my card got compromised & my bank account has been plunged to -$400, with several urgent bills ($350) that need to be paid by Oct 17th

Support Kenzie Zero

You can support me meeting my basic expenses; bills, travel for interviews, HRT, food

ko-fi.com

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Peter @notalawyer.bsky.social · 14h

at this point it would be interesting journalism if someone could locate a Young Republican groupchat that was not full of overt Nazis

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Lumin @screwy.bsky.social · 12h

Just buy your favorite artists' albums where available (and Soulseek them if they're not)

They already get paid practically nothing from Spotify listens, allocate your subscription money for better support lmao

SFGATE @sfgate.com · 13h

Spotify responded that the ads do not violate its policies.

Spotify is running ICE hiring ads boasting wild signing bonuses

Spotify responded that the ads do not violate its policies.

bit.ly

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PAL @paladin42.bsky.social · 12h

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Alex Brown 🇵🇸 (they/them) @bookjockeyalex.bsky.social · 15h

Setting aside graverobbing woman who died in no small part due to men exploiting her image, copyright violations aren't "growing pains." It's literally the law. They’re breaking the law. Without copyright law, there is no creative industry, and without a creative industry, there is no genAI.

Scientific American @sciam.bsky.social · 2d

Despite early, and familiar, copyright growing pains, Sora may be the prelude to AI-generated on-demand TV and movies

Want to See Marilyn Monroe in Game of Thrones? AI Could Make It Soon

Despite early, and familiar, copyright growing pains, Sora may be the prelude to AI-generated on-demand TV and movies

www.scientificamerican.com

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Dicefunctional | TTRPG Nerds, Actual Plays, and Streamers | 🦀 @dicefunctional.bsky.social · 5d

This is a great time to remind everyone that you should in fact, still be calling MasterCard, Visa, Stripe, and other payment processors to annoy the shit out of them.

Because I'll tell you right now, that shitheel? Not gonna have to worry about them accepting payment.

*Artists will.*

Phone Numbers
• Stripe (California): +1 888 926 2289 (Say you're based in California before continuing.)
• Stripe (Headquarters): +1 (888) 963-8955
• Stripe (US): +1 (877) 887-7815
• Stripe (France): +33 805-11-19-67
Mastercard (Headquarters): +1 914-249-2000 • Mastercard (US): +1 (800)-627-8372
Mastercard (US): +1 (800)-307-7309
• Mastercard (Int.): +1 (636)-722-7111
• Mastercard (AUS): +61 1800 120 113
• Mastercard (UK): 0-800-96-4767
All region numbers for Mastercard Visa (Headquarters): +1 (650)-432-3200
• Visa (US+ Can): +1 (800)-847-2911
• Visa (AUS): +61 1800 125 440 All region numbers for Visa
• PayPal (US): +1 (888)-221-1161
• PayPal (UK): +44 (0203)-901-7000
PayPal Customer Service: +1 (877)-569-1116

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PAL @paladin42.bsky.social · 14h

MULTIPLE TIMES.

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Oh hey Chels! @chelsisright.bsky.social · 14h

If you want to see an economy, really take off and hit the stratosphere. Try this.

s. eek smith 👻 @sesmith.lol · 14h

Big fan of universal free child care!

New Mexico Is Providing Free Childcare for All. It’s Time for Others to Do the Same

The state is setting a powerful example with its first-in-the-nation plan. But the policy has support across the US.

www.thenation.com

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AltSSA @altssa.altgov.info · 20h

This article does a great job of explaining exactly how the administration can make policy changes that results in fewer people having access to benefits while still getting to say they didn’t make cuts. It’s semantics. Don’t let them fool you. It’s a cut. Period.

Kathleen Romig @kathleenromig.bsky.social · 21h

The stakes of the deep Social Security disability cuts the Trump Admin is planning:

"approval for benefits reduces the likelihood of bankruptcy, foreclosure... For low-income beneficiaries, disability benefits reduce mortality, effectively saving lives."

www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...

The Trump Administration’s Plans To Covertly Cut Social Security Disability Benefits

An upcoming regulatory proposal would change the rules of Social Security disability programs to make it harder to qualify, particularly harming older adults.

www.americanprogress.org

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Santiago Mayer @santiagomayer.com · 1d

Spotify is now running recruitment ads for ICE.

It’s time to cancel your account.

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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 1d

Billionaire tax cuts are a policy choice.

Cutting healthcare for millions is a policy choice.

Cutting food assistance for children is a policy choice.

Taking from the poor and giving to the rich is a policy choice.

Make no mistake: Trump and the GOP just chose to do this.

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Based Sonic the Hedgehog @sonic.bsky.social · 1d

10000% this - this is like, easily the smartest message for Dems to run with right now.

"Republicans are destroying the economy, and inflicting cruelty on federal employees and their families to protect pedophiles"

It's the Sexual Predator Shutdown

Robert Garcia @robertgarcia.bsky.social · 1d

It’s become crystal clear, Speaker Johnson doesn’t want Congress to come back in session because they don’t want the Epstein files released.

Stop the shutdown - release the files!

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Hell-Raea-ser 🦋✨🏳️‍⚧️🏴 @raea.meangirls.online · 1d

fuck u gavin newsom it’d have been such peace of mind to be able to get a year of hrt through insurance im gonna give u a swirlie bitch

mady castigan✨ 🏳️‍⚧️ @madycast.com · 1d

Newsom vetoes both the PreP access and the HRT stockpile bill because he is worried it would increase healthcare costs...

He claims to support the aims of these bills. But the vetoes deny access to medical care for queer people.

(Context: He vetoed these 2 while signing 8 other queer rights bills)

Trans News Network @transnews.network · 1d

He also signed SB 590, which bolsters paid family leave.

Read his veto messages here:

www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/u...
www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/u...

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Smooth Dunk @smoothdunk2.bsky.social · 20d

America 2025. Please Don’t Offend The White Supremacists

4 panel comic

Panel 1: On the left hand side of the panel a member of the KKK is snivelling like a pissy little baby. A Red Guy and a Purple Guy stand next to him. The Red Guy says to the Purple Guy, “Look what you’ve done”

Panel 2: The Red Guy continues “You’ve upset this poor, sweet racist”
the little KKK bitch whimpers “I don’t even feel like lynching a black person”

Panel 3: The Red Guy goes on with disgusting sympathy “He doesn’t even feel like lynching a black person”

Panel 4: The Red Guy says “And that’s his FAVOURITE thing to do” he puts his arm around the whiny little pointy robed cunt.

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Micah @rincewind.run · 1d

a foundational belief of the modern right is that there is no such thing as organic disagreement with their policies, it’s all directed from the top down

they just can’t conceive that ordinary people find them horrifying

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 1d

Sean Duffy: "The No Kings protest, Maria, really frustrating. This is part of antifa, paid protesters. It begs the question who's funding it."

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Pookleblinky @pookleblinky.bsky.social · 1d

It's weird that the guy who made the spyware app that Mike Johnson uses to spy on his son's porn-watching, and vice versa, was found to have a stash of CSAM and that just blipped right out of the news.

The Associated Press @apnews.com · 1d

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson predicts the federal government shutdown may become the longest in history.

Government shutdown could be the longest ever, Speaker Johnson warns

Republican Speaker Mike Johnson predicts the federal government shutdown may become the longest in history.

bit.ly

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Pavel @spavel.bsky.social · 1d

boost your user satisfaction and growth with this one weird trick (removing the shit everyone hates that you added for no reason)

r/SaaS
u/soasme
I deleted ALL AI features... and user growth went UP.

Everyone's busy adding Al to everything.
I did the same for indie10k.com but it didn't work.
I removed all of fancy Al stuff - Al coach, Al growth ideas, Al "personalized" advice - everything.
Guess what?
I see more registered users and higher retention.
That actually make me wonder why now i have one page with one button, without all that Al thingy, but it does better?
Here's my question:
Is Al feature actually helping SaaS grow?

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Ro Salarian @rosalarian.bsky.social · 1d

It infuriates me that as human-made porn is being increasingly censored across the board, AI porn is not only allowed, but celebrated. And AI porn exists because of stolen content from non-consenting, unpaid human pornographers. It's maddening.

Rolling Stone @rollingstone.com · 5d

“I still can’t believe how unhinged the last update was. Not only the nudity but the motions, boobs bounces more realistically, it’s incredible.”

Elon Musk's xAI seems to have relaxed filters on Grok's video generation, allowing users to create and share explicit AI pornography.

Musk's AI Is Being Used to Make Hardcore Porn: 'Grok Is Learning Genitalia Really Fast!'

bit.ly

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PAL @paladin42.bsky.social · 1d

it wouldn't have fixed Rise of Skywalker but 2019 would've been a VERY good time to tell a story that centered on how much edgelord dipshits cosplaying famous fascists aren't deserving of a redemption arc.

The Star Wars Underworld @theswu.bsky.social · 1d

Should they have stuck with Colin Trevorrow's original idea to make Kylo Ren the final main bad guy of Episode 9?

#DueloftheFates #StarWars #Sequels

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John Scalzi @scalzi.com · 1d

Most "classics" are boring as fuck to a modern reader in no small part because the context of the story is not understood by them and so many of the allusions and "inside jokes" known to then-contemporary readers have been lost in time and in translation

Rachel Feder @rachelfeder.bsky.social · 1d

Tell me your most unhinged literary opinion, as a little treat

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