Brad Proctor
@bdproctor.bsky.social
Historian at the Evergreen State College, occasional/lapsed banjo player, IndyCar fan.
Olympia, WA. 🏳️🌈
Olympia, WA. 🏳️🌈
Every part of this is an abomination
November 24, 2025 at 1:55 AM
Every part of this is an abomination
Reposted by Brad Proctor
Twin Peaks: Major Briggs.
November 24, 2025 at 1:30 AM
Twin Peaks: Major Briggs.
Reposted by Brad Proctor
One of the bragging rights that the US ed system had in the 20th century is that we didn't have education tracks. Essentially, any kid could go to a CC or state school & major in whatever they wanted to (obviously an oversimplification). I fear this aspect of the American dream is dying.
November 23, 2025 at 4:47 PM
One of the bragging rights that the US ed system had in the 20th century is that we didn't have education tracks. Essentially, any kid could go to a CC or state school & major in whatever they wanted to (obviously an oversimplification). I fear this aspect of the American dream is dying.
Reposted by Brad Proctor
I think the shortest version of why LLMs are an anti education technology is that education is fundamentally about making shared context to understand ourselves, each other, and the world
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
November 23, 2025 at 12:57 PM
I think the shortest version of why LLMs are an anti education technology is that education is fundamentally about making shared context to understand ourselves, each other, and the world
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
And by design LLMs destroy shared context
Reposted by Brad Proctor
Neither Trump, nor half of his cabinet have “ancestors” who were in North America before the revolution. I’d guess that less than half of current US citizens do. “Your ancestors” is doing a lot of implicitly white Christian nationalist work here.
November 22, 2025 at 11:16 PM
Neither Trump, nor half of his cabinet have “ancestors” who were in North America before the revolution. I’d guess that less than half of current US citizens do. “Your ancestors” is doing a lot of implicitly white Christian nationalist work here.
Reposted by Brad Proctor
Anyway, do not help the Sam Altmans of the world steal Machine Learning valor to prop up a bunch of gross plagiarism machines that have all our worst biases and failings baked in.
November 22, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Anyway, do not help the Sam Altmans of the world steal Machine Learning valor to prop up a bunch of gross plagiarism machines that have all our worst biases and failings baked in.
Reposted by Brad Proctor
Journalist challenge: Use “Machine Learning” when you mean machine learning and “LLM” when you mean LLM. Ditch “AI” as a catch-all term, it’s not useful for readers and it helps companies trying to confuse the public by obscuring the roles played by different technologies. 🧪
November 22, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Journalist challenge: Use “Machine Learning” when you mean machine learning and “LLM” when you mean LLM. Ditch “AI” as a catch-all term, it’s not useful for readers and it helps companies trying to confuse the public by obscuring the roles played by different technologies. 🧪
Reposted by Brad Proctor
Have we considered the possibility that the "67" meme is caused by Data sending information out of the time loop in an attempt to stop America from crashing into the USS Bozeman?
November 22, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Have we considered the possibility that the "67" meme is caused by Data sending information out of the time loop in an attempt to stop America from crashing into the USS Bozeman?
Reposted by Brad Proctor
The disconnect between Platner’s actual class background (upper-middle class) and the way he’s often spoken of (tribune of the working class) has long bugged me. John deftly unpacks that discrepancy here.
November 21, 2025 at 5:23 AM
The disconnect between Platner’s actual class background (upper-middle class) and the way he’s often spoken of (tribune of the working class) has long bugged me. John deftly unpacks that discrepancy here.
Reposted by Brad Proctor
This is very important. The intrusion of AI slop into higher education is not mainly coming from below, from the students. It's coming from the top.
What I've been noticing lately in convos with students is that they *despise* the AI-slopification of everything as much or even more than I do. And yet our universities & their admin seem to believe that students for some reason want it integrated into everything. THEY DON'T.
“To be sat there with this material in front of you that is just really not worth anyone’s time, when you could be spending that time actually engaging with something worthwhile, is really frustrating,” he said.
November 21, 2025 at 2:34 AM
This is very important. The intrusion of AI slop into higher education is not mainly coming from below, from the students. It's coming from the top.
Reposted by Brad Proctor
The vast body of research that Ken Burns relied upon to make his new documentary on the American Revolution would be practically impossible to be produced today, what with the defunding of humanistic scholarship, the collapse of stable academic jobs, the attack on public history & academic freedom.🗃️
November 17, 2025 at 9:43 PM
The vast body of research that Ken Burns relied upon to make his new documentary on the American Revolution would be practically impossible to be produced today, what with the defunding of humanistic scholarship, the collapse of stable academic jobs, the attack on public history & academic freedom.🗃️
Reposted by Brad Proctor
Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc being the only human character in a film of Muppets is, and I’m trying not to be dramatic here, the reason cinema was invented in the first place!
Am I a hypocrite for wanting this after giving a hard no to muppet knives out
Okay, I'm making my case for the only Muppet I want to see on Broadway right now...
November 19, 2025 at 2:28 AM
Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc being the only human character in a film of Muppets is, and I’m trying not to be dramatic here, the reason cinema was invented in the first place!
Reposted by Brad Proctor
The main difference between their characters is that I would view Butthead as being morally culpable for his crimes in a way I wouldn’t for Beavis. Beavis I’m almost instantly arguing down to manslaughter, Butthead is full Murder One
November 18, 2025 at 8:45 PM
The main difference between their characters is that I would view Butthead as being morally culpable for his crimes in a way I wouldn’t for Beavis. Beavis I’m almost instantly arguing down to manslaughter, Butthead is full Murder One
Reposted by Brad Proctor
Reposted by Brad Proctor
I don't know who the "ew, she got childcare help from parents" attack is supposed to impress, but it definitely did not impress the voting parents of Seattle, so many of whom (us included) got some kind of assistance from parents so we didn't get priced out of the damn city.
You guys realize that taxing people to pay for services isn't socialism, right? This is just how governments work.
November 17, 2025 at 3:55 PM
I don't know who the "ew, she got childcare help from parents" attack is supposed to impress, but it definitely did not impress the voting parents of Seattle, so many of whom (us included) got some kind of assistance from parents so we didn't get priced out of the damn city.
Reposted by Brad Proctor
underrated how the de facto prohibition on discussing the substance of policy among political reporters means they are primed to focus on culture war nonsense
November 17, 2025 at 1:04 PM
underrated how the de facto prohibition on discussing the substance of policy among political reporters means they are primed to focus on culture war nonsense
I've been told I look like Linguine for over a decade. Tonight I reunited with Remy!
November 16, 2025 at 2:40 AM
I've been told I look like Linguine for over a decade. Tonight I reunited with Remy!
Deeply saddened to hear that Todd Snider has died. I was hoping to see him on this tour, but it was not to be. What a monumental loss.
It's not often that people play their own funeral, but the perfect tribute to him might be his service for Jerry Jeff Walker:
www.youtube.com/live/JzuuI4E...
It's not often that people play their own funeral, but the perfect tribute to him might be his service for Jerry Jeff Walker:
www.youtube.com/live/JzuuI4E...
"JERRY JEFF WALKER FOREVER" a celebration of life, Live with Todd Snider 12pm CT 10/24/2020.
YouTube video by Todd Snider
www.youtube.com
November 15, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Deeply saddened to hear that Todd Snider has died. I was hoping to see him on this tour, but it was not to be. What a monumental loss.
It's not often that people play their own funeral, but the perfect tribute to him might be his service for Jerry Jeff Walker:
www.youtube.com/live/JzuuI4E...
It's not often that people play their own funeral, but the perfect tribute to him might be his service for Jerry Jeff Walker:
www.youtube.com/live/JzuuI4E...
Reposted by Brad Proctor
Exactly! If Democrats need to focus on affordability, just ... focus on affordability. Don't constantly give lectures about how other people with the exact same job as you need to do it differently.
Step aside from even the content. Why are you advising on messaging- just deliver the message. Reminds me of Newsom saying he doesn't know what the Dem party stands for on his podcast. Motherfucker you are the dem party!
November 15, 2025 at 1:40 AM
Exactly! If Democrats need to focus on affordability, just ... focus on affordability. Don't constantly give lectures about how other people with the exact same job as you need to do it differently.
Reposted by Brad Proctor
THEN YOU PURCHASE THEM AND DO NOT USE THE PROPERTY OF OTHERS
Open AI loses copyright case in Germany.
Judge Elke Schwager summarized the case saying that if you want to build something and need components, "then you purchase them and do not use the property of others."
Judge Elke Schwager summarized the case saying that if you want to build something and need components, "then you purchase them and do not use the property of others."
Blow for OpenAI in Germany as court rules song lyrics used illegally
A German court ruled on Tuesday that OpenAI violated copyright on nine popular songs in a lawsuit that marked another attempt to prevent the free use of artists' content online. The Munich Regional Co...
www.yahoo.com
November 14, 2025 at 9:23 PM
THEN YOU PURCHASE THEM AND DO NOT USE THE PROPERTY OF OTHERS
Reposted by Brad Proctor
the astonishing thing about this wave of denialism is that we have more or less decidedly hit the point where clean energy is the *cheaper* option by some distance
I'm kind of baffled how the "moderates" have apparently all decided to turn against climate policy at once, just as China reaches green electrostate liftoff mode. I thought these people were all about National Greatness and making Hard Choices
November 14, 2025 at 3:25 PM
the astonishing thing about this wave of denialism is that we have more or less decidedly hit the point where clean energy is the *cheaper* option by some distance
Why is Copilot suddenly in my Microsoft Word despite trying to disable all AI as often as possible? I did not ask for the plagiarism machine that stole from me.
a picture of gollum with the caption " leave now and never come back !! "
ALT: a picture of gollum with the caption " leave now and never come back !! "
media.tenor.com
November 14, 2025 at 5:23 AM
Why is Copilot suddenly in my Microsoft Word despite trying to disable all AI as often as possible? I did not ask for the plagiarism machine that stole from me.
The grammar here is fascinated. First, passive voice in the headline. Who left her up for exploitation? More importantly, who exploited her? Two, "ended up having sex" frames her exploitation as natural, inevitable, an act of time and nature rather than specific human beings. Finally...
A teenager in Florida with a homeless parent wanted money for braces and ended up having sex for money with powerful men, setting off a chain of events that would have a dramatic impact on her life and help upend the political career of Representative Matt Gaetz. nyti.ms/49PSkL9
November 14, 2025 at 12:41 AM
The grammar here is fascinated. First, passive voice in the headline. Who left her up for exploitation? More importantly, who exploited her? Two, "ended up having sex" frames her exploitation as natural, inevitable, an act of time and nature rather than specific human beings. Finally...
Reposted by Brad Proctor
Reposted by Brad Proctor
An unfortunate effect of AI: for all the talk of it enabling “creativity,” many of us feel forced by its utility for plagiarism to move toward more restrictive and surveillant measures in the classroom. In the last few years the classroom is of necessity becoming more locked down than it ever was.
November 12, 2025 at 3:24 PM
An unfortunate effect of AI: for all the talk of it enabling “creativity,” many of us feel forced by its utility for plagiarism to move toward more restrictive and surveillant measures in the classroom. In the last few years the classroom is of necessity becoming more locked down than it ever was.