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Scott Merms 🏞️

@shmermel.bsky.social

960 followers 790 following 1.5K posts

Geologist in metropolis Leftist, Indiana Alum he/him/they/them

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Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · Aug 23

New platform, might as well introduce myself properly for once.

I'm Scott, I studied geology at Indiana and now I live near where I grew up and work for a private engineering firm in NJ with most of our work being in NYC.

A cloudy New York City seen from a barge on the Hudson, heading towards the East River

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Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 3h

If you see this qrp with a game released the year you were born

😏

Tetris cover art for Nintendo and apparently the tag line used to be, from Russia with fun

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 4h

Don't tell that to Bowie

Young puppy Bowie acting angry and baring teeth

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Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 7h

Bowie's favorite time

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Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 8h

We're all in the mood for a smoothie

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 13h

a close up of a man 's face with make a gif.com in the bottom right corner

Alt: wishmaster says make a wish with an evil grin

media.tenor.com

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 14h

Only mentioned there though, I missed it a bunch of times. I think they deserve more.

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 14h

PSE&G exposing themselves in this month's usage letter

"Your energy consumption decreased compared to last year but you still spent 30% more, here's ways to save..."

Clearly I need a new provider

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 15h

Bowie's toy got stuck on her crate so she sat inside until someone got it #btposse

Bowie sitting patiently in her crate with the door open and a stuffed green toy on top of it

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Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 16h

If by "competitive user experience" you mean this site is on par with the toxicity and censorship on other sites, you're right. It doesn't have to be this way though, @jay.bsky.team might remember that your other tweet is the way to run this site so it has a better user experience than other sites.

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 17h

Really good article, just missing an extra detail of how Palestinians are also targeted by moderation

Nico Mara-McKay 🦇 (they/iel) @nicomaramckay.com · 6d

tl;dr: Bluesky began with genuine promise: a new social media platform where users could feel safer, but inconsistent moderation quickly eroded trust.

When systemically marginalized users pushed back, Bluesky’s leadership minimized concerns and began to target them for bans.

Bluesky’s CEO meltdown: How leadership continues to fail its most marginalized users

tl;dr: Bluesky began with genuine promise: a new social media platform where systemically marginalized users could feel safer, but…

plutopsyche.medium.com

Reposted by Scott Merms 🏞️

The Onion @theonion.com · 1d

U.S. Military Carries Out Strike On Scuffy The Tugboat

ARLINGTON, VA—Saying the Pentagon had acted swiftly on an insider tip about the vessel having a “big adventure” planned, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed Tuesday that the U.S. military had car...

theonion.com

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Reposted by Scott Merms 🏞️

Dr Space Junk (Alice Gorman) @drspacejunk.bsky.social · 2d

Do we really want 250,000 mirrored satellites in Low Earth Orbit? Hasn't the Starlink megaconstellation already done enough damage?
🧪 @mjibrown.bsky.social

A US startup plans to deliver ‘sunlight on demand’ after dark. Can it work – and would we want it to?

Satellites beaming sunlight down to Earth sound like science fiction – and they have astronomers very worried.

theconversation.com

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Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 1d

Sorry but I gotta tag @actualnames.bsky.social on this one

Reposted by Scott Merms 🏞️

Mike W @gekido.bsky.social · 2d

so Google just added a bunch (more) AI bullshit to Chrome

Go through these steps to disable it:

opus.ing/posts/how-to...

#chrome #aibullshit

How to Remove AI From Your Google Chrome Experience - Opus

Follow these steps to resist the AI-pocalypse in your everyday web browsing.

opus.ing

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Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 1d

You need an option for the zionists in bluesky to be able to block Palestinians on their own accounts without banning everyone in Palestine on the app.

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 2d

My photos from Port Jervis, NY

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Reposted by Scott Merms 🏞️

Luke Steuber @lukesteuber.com · 2d

Live the kind of life that doesn’t make you think that not being able to hide your money is Armageddon

He believes the Armageddon will be ushered in by an antichrist-type figure who cultivates a fear of existential threats such as climate change, Al and nuclear war to amass inordinate power.
The idea is this figure will convince people to do everything they can to avoid something like a third world war, including accepting a one-world order charged with protecting everyone from the apocalypse that implements a complete restriction of technological progress. In his mind, this is already happening. Thiel said that international financial bodies, which make it more difficult for people to shelter their wealth in tax havens, are one sign the antichrist may be amassing power and hastening Armageddon, saying: "It's become quite difficult to hide one's money."

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Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 2d

The original labubu?

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 2d

So, I guess as an engineer, I do what RFK thinks he's doing. When I do subsurface investigations for construction, the client usually already has a plan, and we're usually there to confirm the plan, but we're intelligent so we'll suggest other options that would work too.

Andrew Kniss @wyoweeds.bsky.social · 3d

My quoted tweet below was mocking RFK Jr. because he should know better as head of HHS and someone who claims to 'follow the science.' But also - I think this is a common misconception so I'm going to address it earnestly.

Why do we conduct research, if not to 'make proof?'

Andrew Kniss @wyoweeds.bsky.social · 3d

I, a scientist, definitely do studies to make proof.

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 2d

I'm watching Athlos NYC and enjoying it and one of the announcers says, "if you are anywhere within driving distance, you really missed a spectacle..." And now I want to yell at him for having never driven in NYC before.

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 2d

We stopped a foot early

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 2d

Photoshop not photograph jfc

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 2d

Someone should photograph Trump's face on this gif and we'll call it "fuck your infrastructure"

Scott Merms 🏞️ @shmermel.bsky.social · 2d

Oh what happened to the UN being Hamas and terrorists and not to be trusted

The Associated Press @apnews.com · 2d

BREAKING: The U.N. will begin delivering scaled-up humanitarian aid into Gaza on Sunday as ceasefire takes effect, U.N. official says.

Israeli military says ceasefire takes effect in Gaza, raising hopes for ending the war

The Israeli military says a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has come into effect in Gaza. The announcement came Friday, hours after Israel’s Cabinet approved a deal to pause the fighting and exchange the remaining hostages for Palestinian prisoners.

bit.ly

Reposted by Scott Merms 🏞️

Normal Island News @normalisland.co.uk · 2d

Huge congratulations to Maria Corina Machado who has won the Nobel Imperialism Prize for steadfastly supporting Israel's genocide and calling on the US to invade her own country so she can be installed as puppet leader while Trump takes Venezuela's oil ♥️

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