Liz Ard
@macrophyllum.bsky.social
Landscape designer, ecology nerd, artist. Mostly here for the parasocial relationships.
Reposted by Liz Ard
You know, the ones that have been systematically defunded over the past 2 decades, now being gutted by state laws requiring removal of any references to DEIA and the destruction of faculty governance and free speech…
Really important to stress that the Crown Jewels of the US higher education system were never the Ivies or elite SLACs (other countries have equivalents of these) but the well-funded, large, cheap, and excellently staffed public state university systems bringing high quality education to the masses.
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 6:06 PM
You know, the ones that have been systematically defunded over the past 2 decades, now being gutted by state laws requiring removal of any references to DEIA and the destruction of faculty governance and free speech…
Reposted by Liz Ard
You’re not always arguing with a bot.
Sometimes you’re arguing with a 24 year old from Myanmar who was trafficked to Cambodia on the promise a decent job only to be held hostage and forced to produce and monetise click bait. And what drives the most traffic on these sites? Racism and misogyny.
Sometimes you’re arguing with a 24 year old from Myanmar who was trafficked to Cambodia on the promise a decent job only to be held hostage and forced to produce and monetise click bait. And what drives the most traffic on these sites? Racism and misogyny.
November 23, 2025 at 6:11 PM
You’re not always arguing with a bot.
Sometimes you’re arguing with a 24 year old from Myanmar who was trafficked to Cambodia on the promise a decent job only to be held hostage and forced to produce and monetise click bait. And what drives the most traffic on these sites? Racism and misogyny.
Sometimes you’re arguing with a 24 year old from Myanmar who was trafficked to Cambodia on the promise a decent job only to be held hostage and forced to produce and monetise click bait. And what drives the most traffic on these sites? Racism and misogyny.
Reposted by Liz Ard
Kenyans were amongst the 1500 people arrested in a cyber scam compound in Myanmar in October. Many of these are young people held under duress who are being used to drive traffic to scam websites but also to drive engagement to specific sites to monetise them.
www.independent.co.uk/asia/southea...
www.independent.co.uk/asia/southea...
Thousands arrested by Myanmar military after raids on infamous cybercrime spots
Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun said the top leaders of the Karen National Union were involved in the scam projects
www.independent.co.uk
November 23, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Kenyans were amongst the 1500 people arrested in a cyber scam compound in Myanmar in October. Many of these are young people held under duress who are being used to drive traffic to scam websites but also to drive engagement to specific sites to monetise them.
www.independent.co.uk/asia/southea...
www.independent.co.uk/asia/southea...
Reposted by Liz Ard
A hot spot for this stuff is Cambodia where refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh are often trafficked and held under violent conditions and used to monetise platforms like x or to perpetrate online fraud. In July y 2025 1000 people were arrested there at “cyber scam compounds”.
aje.io/sahw9w
aje.io/sahw9w
More than 1,000 arrested in Cambodian cyber-scam raids
Nationwide detentions follow directive from Prime Minister Hun Manet to crack down on criminal operations.
aje.io
November 23, 2025 at 6:02 PM
A hot spot for this stuff is Cambodia where refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh are often trafficked and held under violent conditions and used to monetise platforms like x or to perpetrate online fraud. In July y 2025 1000 people were arrested there at “cyber scam compounds”.
aje.io/sahw9w
aje.io/sahw9w
Reposted by Liz Ard
There is a whole underworld of exploited workers who make up the foundation of digital tech. We talk about content moderators, but content farms are also very exploitative industries where moderately educated people with reasonable English skills in the global majority are used to push content.
It may be hard to believe, but Twitter was once a useful public space instead of a weird monetization scheme for racist ragebait chatbots.
the last 24 hours on X, summed up:
November 23, 2025 at 6:02 PM
There is a whole underworld of exploited workers who make up the foundation of digital tech. We talk about content moderators, but content farms are also very exploitative industries where moderately educated people with reasonable English skills in the global majority are used to push content.
Reposted by Liz Ard
This isn’t to say that the far right isn’t real but that a lot of the illusion of its popularity stems from these scam compounds and their ability to rig specific parts of the online architecture - young men in search of affirmation and community, monetisation and advertising, and misogyny.
November 23, 2025 at 6:06 PM
This isn’t to say that the far right isn’t real but that a lot of the illusion of its popularity stems from these scam compounds and their ability to rig specific parts of the online architecture - young men in search of affirmation and community, monetisation and advertising, and misogyny.
Reposted by Liz Ard
Sure, but... "The economy" was not good in 2024. The stock market and GDP were good. 🤷🏿♂️
2024 was the peak year for US homelessness. Higher than during the great depression.
2024 saw 770K layoffs, an increase over 2023, which was again, a massive jump over 2022.
2024 was the peak year for US homelessness. Higher than during the great depression.
2024 saw 770K layoffs, an increase over 2023, which was again, a massive jump over 2022.
Once again, I remind you that this woman cannot be allowed anywhere near the strategy or leadership of the Democratic Party:
bsky.app/profile/mcop...
Also, stop it with this BS. Biden correctly said the economy in 2024 was good, because it was. Yes, no one believed it. That wasn't his fault.
bsky.app/profile/mcop...
Also, stop it with this BS. Biden correctly said the economy in 2024 was good, because it was. Yes, no one believed it. That wasn't his fault.
Slotkin: "He's trying to distract us from the big stories of last week, the Epstein files and economy. He's tweeting 'the economy is the best it's ever been' -- amazing considering the public isn't stupid. It reminded me of Joe Biden. Biden tried to tell us for a year that the economy was great."
November 23, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Sure, but... "The economy" was not good in 2024. The stock market and GDP were good. 🤷🏿♂️
2024 was the peak year for US homelessness. Higher than during the great depression.
2024 saw 770K layoffs, an increase over 2023, which was again, a massive jump over 2022.
2024 was the peak year for US homelessness. Higher than during the great depression.
2024 saw 770K layoffs, an increase over 2023, which was again, a massive jump over 2022.
Reposted by Liz Ard
When talking to a person that just got laid off when no one is hiring, that just got an eviction notice for failure to pay rent and can't afford anywhere else to live in their city, and that can't afford insulin... you can't point to charts of GDP and the S&P, and tell them that the economy is good.
November 23, 2025 at 5:58 PM
When talking to a person that just got laid off when no one is hiring, that just got an eviction notice for failure to pay rent and can't afford anywhere else to live in their city, and that can't afford insulin... you can't point to charts of GDP and the S&P, and tell them that the economy is good.
Reposted by Liz Ard
Essentially three of these additions happened: Blue Line to O’Hare, Red Line down the South Side, and Orange Line. But each of them were built in highway medians or industrial corridors, drastically reducing their usefulness and ridership
Check out this 1923 transit plan commissioned by the Chicago City Council. We use to be insanely ambitious. A network like this would've supported Paris-level population densities.
It's never too late!
It's never too late!
November 22, 2025 at 10:13 PM
Essentially three of these additions happened: Blue Line to O’Hare, Red Line down the South Side, and Orange Line. But each of them were built in highway medians or industrial corridors, drastically reducing their usefulness and ridership
Reposted by Liz Ard
These people are deep into committing election fraud, so they assume everyone else is too
"Every accusation is a confession" remains undefeated
"Every accusation is a confession" remains undefeated
Austin Smith, a former Republican state representative and onetime leader within Turning Point Action—the political arm of Turning Point USA—pleaded guilty to forging signatures on nominating petitions for his 2024 reelection bid.
open.substack.com/pub/theintel...
open.substack.com/pub/theintel...
November 23, 2025 at 3:08 PM
These people are deep into committing election fraud, so they assume everyone else is too
"Every accusation is a confession" remains undefeated
"Every accusation is a confession" remains undefeated
Reposted by Liz Ard
just put this in :)
November 22, 2025 at 9:22 PM
just put this in :)
Reposted by Liz Ard
Reposted by Liz Ard
Shout out to Mr Daugherty. And he did it every year so you could be like "oh you're in Daugherty's class? Did you do the pbj lesson yet"
Bc the repetition turned it into shared context
Bc the repetition turned it into shared context
November 23, 2025 at 1:40 PM
Shout out to Mr Daugherty. And he did it every year so you could be like "oh you're in Daugherty's class? Did you do the pbj lesson yet"
Bc the repetition turned it into shared context
Bc the repetition turned it into shared context
Reposted by Liz Ard
When I was in 7th grade my science teacher had everybody write up the instructions for how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich
Then, he brought in the ingredients and followed the instructions very literally to hilarious effect.
It was an intro to describing methodology, and a good bit
Then, he brought in the ingredients and followed the instructions very literally to hilarious effect.
It was an intro to describing methodology, and a good bit
November 23, 2025 at 1:34 PM
When I was in 7th grade my science teacher had everybody write up the instructions for how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich
Then, he brought in the ingredients and followed the instructions very literally to hilarious effect.
It was an intro to describing methodology, and a good bit
Then, he brought in the ingredients and followed the instructions very literally to hilarious effect.
It was an intro to describing methodology, and a good bit
Reposted by Liz Ard
If you look carefully, they market this fact.
They hype "personalized" learning, by which they mean "algorithmically generated per student"
So if I'm given a word problem I can't talk to my classmates about it, bc they don't have the same one
They hype "personalized" learning, by which they mean "algorithmically generated per student"
So if I'm given a word problem I can't talk to my classmates about it, bc they don't have the same one
November 23, 2025 at 1:28 PM
If you look carefully, they market this fact.
They hype "personalized" learning, by which they mean "algorithmically generated per student"
So if I'm given a word problem I can't talk to my classmates about it, bc they don't have the same one
They hype "personalized" learning, by which they mean "algorithmically generated per student"
So if I'm given a word problem I can't talk to my classmates about it, bc they don't have the same one
Reposted by Liz Ard
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 Liz Ard
If they restore leg room, full meal service with menu options, the 747 upstairs bar and the Concord…I’ll consider it. otherwise you get what you get
November 23, 2025 at 2:47 AM
If they restore leg room, full meal service with menu options, the 747 upstairs bar and the Concord…I’ll consider it. otherwise you get what you get
Reposted by Liz Ard
I once knew a Federal bank examiner, and one time someone asked him why we had to KEEP inspecting banks over and over. He basically said every new batch of business school grads invents bank fraud from first principles.
AirBnB CEO calling it “vibe revenue” just 👨🍳 😘
The underlying cause of every bubble - debt masquerading as financial innovation - depends on not just short financial memory & speculative neophytism, but reinventing jargon of finance, like how each generation of kids has new ways to say same things.
The underlying cause of every bubble - debt masquerading as financial innovation - depends on not just short financial memory & speculative neophytism, but reinventing jargon of finance, like how each generation of kids has new ways to say same things.
November 22, 2025 at 6:02 PM
I once knew a Federal bank examiner, and one time someone asked him why we had to KEEP inspecting banks over and over. He basically said every new batch of business school grads invents bank fraud from first principles.
Reposted by Liz Ard
it is true that trump sucks and is shitty, but it is also true that he is incredibly susceptible to the jangling of keys, and it is wild that no democrat until Mamdani has figured this out
the democrats not having a single idea how to play the world's biggest and most suggestible egomaniac is yet another reason they belong on the scrap heap of history
It’s cool that Zohran was able to find common ground with Trump on material issues of affordability while the rest of the Democratic Party has only found common ground with him on hating and harming trans people.
November 23, 2025 at 12:29 AM
it is true that trump sucks and is shitty, but it is also true that he is incredibly susceptible to the jangling of keys, and it is wild that no democrat until Mamdani has figured this out
Reposted by Liz Ard
11 years ago today, 12 year old Tamir Rice was gunned down by police officers on Cleveland’s west side.
The officer shot him within seconds of arriving at the park he was playing in.
Tamir’s life mattered. It still does. My thoughts are with his family today.
The officer shot him within seconds of arriving at the park he was playing in.
Tamir’s life mattered. It still does. My thoughts are with his family today.
November 22, 2025 at 11:32 PM
11 years ago today, 12 year old Tamir Rice was gunned down by police officers on Cleveland’s west side.
The officer shot him within seconds of arriving at the park he was playing in.
Tamir’s life mattered. It still does. My thoughts are with his family today.
The officer shot him within seconds of arriving at the park he was playing in.
Tamir’s life mattered. It still does. My thoughts are with his family today.
Reposted by Liz Ard
would still clog if you flush wipes.
Sadly, we both missed an opportunity to bid on this last night at Sotherby’s
November 19, 2025 at 1:38 PM
would still clog if you flush wipes.
Reposted by Liz Ard
Timeline cleanse: welcoming fall chum salmon home to Piper’s Creek in Seattle, WA.
November 23, 2025 at 12:30 AM
Timeline cleanse: welcoming fall chum salmon home to Piper’s Creek in Seattle, WA.
Reposted by Liz Ard
one underppreciated selling point of authoritarianism is “agency is hard and scary, don’t you want big daddy to take care of it?”
November 23, 2025 at 12:35 AM
one underppreciated selling point of authoritarianism is “agency is hard and scary, don’t you want big daddy to take care of it?”
Reposted by Liz Ard
“It's both possible, and even necessary, to simultaneously enjoy media while also being critical of its more problematic or pernicious aspects" was such a simple message that was so thoroughly and viciously rejected, but i think many of you still need to learn it
November 22, 2025 at 9:42 PM
“It's both possible, and even necessary, to simultaneously enjoy media while also being critical of its more problematic or pernicious aspects" was such a simple message that was so thoroughly and viciously rejected, but i think many of you still need to learn it
Reposted by Liz Ard
hey guys i made a seasonal meme
November 22, 2025 at 5:41 AM
hey guys i made a seasonal meme