meri sand
@merisand.bsky.social
Texan. Musician. Artist. Incorrigible weirdo. Geek. Faithful servant of my feline overlords.
Pinned
meri sand
@merisand.bsky.social
· Feb 28
For anyone wanting to learn more or keep up to date with neo-Nazi, Christian Nationalist, & RW extremist threats in TX politics, read Robert Downen, Andrea Grimes, Steven Monacelli, Dr David Brockman, other writers & reporters with Texas Observer, Texas Tribune, etc.
Yep. Because this is actually about public surveillance, not safety. It's just using "think of the children" as an excuse.
The thing to understand about "age verification" laws is that they are not just for kids
The only way to "stop kids from doing xyz online" using age-gating is to demand a government ID (or invasive biometric face scan) from EVERYONE.
This means associating your gov ID with EVERYTHING YOU DO ONLINE
The only way to "stop kids from doing xyz online" using age-gating is to demand a government ID (or invasive biometric face scan) from EVERYONE.
This means associating your gov ID with EVERYTHING YOU DO ONLINE
December 5, 2025 at 1:04 PM
Yep. Because this is actually about public surveillance, not safety. It's just using "think of the children" as an excuse.
The regime out there admitting to being liars, grifters, trolls, abusers, creeps, & supporters of stochastic violence. Otherwise, truth, facts, anti-disinfo work, anti-CSAM work, work that limits the impact of people threatening violence online wouldn't be their enemy.
THEY are anti-1st Amendment.
THEY are anti-1st Amendment.
Holy shit.
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Reuters reporting that new admin instructions on visas are if you worked at a platform in trust & safety or content moderation or on fact checking or online safety at an platform you *and your loved ones* are ineligible for H-1B visa.
www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
December 5, 2025 at 12:50 PM
The regime out there admitting to being liars, grifters, trolls, abusers, creeps, & supporters of stochastic violence. Otherwise, truth, facts, anti-disinfo work, anti-CSAM work, work that limits the impact of people threatening violence online wouldn't be their enemy.
THEY are anti-1st Amendment.
THEY are anti-1st Amendment.
Reposted by meri sand
This is what government censorship actually looks like: defunding entire fields, deporting researchers, and quite effectively chilling speech that helps people understand how our information systems are being exploited and calls out powerful people and platforms for their bullshit.
For the last decade, the pervasive spread of bullshit & manipulation of online platforms have been widely recognized societal concerns. Now non US citizens studying those subjects can be labeled “censors” & denied visas or deported from the US. Censorship, indeed. www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Exclusive: Trump administration orders enhanced vetting for applicants of H-1B visa
An internal State Department memo said that anyone involved in "censorship" of free speech should be considered for rejection.
www.reuters.com
December 4, 2025 at 5:27 PM
This is what government censorship actually looks like: defunding entire fields, deporting researchers, and quite effectively chilling speech that helps people understand how our information systems are being exploited and calls out powerful people and platforms for their bullshit.
Well, I've got to listen to this today! I love Air.
The French electronic duo turns distressed dreams into symphonies plucked from cotton candy clouds. Yet to see Air's members perform live, everything looks so effortless. n.pr/4rANTdX
Air: Tiny Desk Concert
The French electronic duo turns distressed dreams into symphonies plucked from cotton candy clouds. Yet to see Air's members perform live, everything looks so effortless.
n.pr
December 5, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Well, I've got to listen to this today! I love Air.
Due process is a value that you either believe applies to everyone or you don't hold at all & just lie to yourself about thinking certain groups/individuals deserve special treatment while others have fewer rights than you.
December 5, 2025 at 5:16 AM
Due process is a value that you either believe applies to everyone or you don't hold at all & just lie to yourself about thinking certain groups/individuals deserve special treatment while others have fewer rights than you.
Reposted by meri sand
Thank you @loscampesinos.bsky.social for being so generous with info - this should be illuminating for all. And note this key paragraph:
December 4, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Thank you @loscampesinos.bsky.social for being so generous with info - this should be illuminating for all. And note this key paragraph:
Reposted by meri sand
streaming is a reality. but truly – just moving those streams from spotify to literally any other platform? like, it actually matters
WRAP THAT, IT'S REAL
los campesinos! forever
stereogum.com/2481865/los-...
WRAP THAT, IT'S REAL
los campesinos! forever
stereogum.com/2481865/los-...
December 4, 2025 at 3:24 PM
streaming is a reality. but truly – just moving those streams from spotify to literally any other platform? like, it actually matters
WRAP THAT, IT'S REAL
los campesinos! forever
stereogum.com/2481865/los-...
WRAP THAT, IT'S REAL
los campesinos! forever
stereogum.com/2481865/los-...
thoughts right now (while trying to avoid the horrors):
When you're really cold, Thai curry is even more amazing.
Acrylic paint pens are great for when you don't have the time or spoons for getting out all the blending, slow dry, etc mediums & cleaning up.
DADGAD tuning=💖💖💖
When you're really cold, Thai curry is even more amazing.
Acrylic paint pens are great for when you don't have the time or spoons for getting out all the blending, slow dry, etc mediums & cleaning up.
DADGAD tuning=💖💖💖
December 4, 2025 at 6:32 AM
thoughts right now (while trying to avoid the horrors):
When you're really cold, Thai curry is even more amazing.
Acrylic paint pens are great for when you don't have the time or spoons for getting out all the blending, slow dry, etc mediums & cleaning up.
DADGAD tuning=💖💖💖
When you're really cold, Thai curry is even more amazing.
Acrylic paint pens are great for when you don't have the time or spoons for getting out all the blending, slow dry, etc mediums & cleaning up.
DADGAD tuning=💖💖💖
Somehow, reading his full quotes is even worse. He also feels he & his fellow morally bankrupt, arrogant, greedy, sadistic, self absorbed Silicon Valley tech billionaire ilk should get to choose our leadership, that he's the arbiter of who is/isn't America's enemy, that violent subjugation is good.
Palantir CEO Says Making War Crimes Constitutional Would Be Good for Business
Palantir CEO Says Making War Crimes Constitutional Would Be Good for Business
Alex Karp vows to use his "whole influence" on immigration and defense policy.
gizmodo.com
December 4, 2025 at 1:04 AM
Somehow, reading his full quotes is even worse. He also feels he & his fellow morally bankrupt, arrogant, greedy, sadistic, self absorbed Silicon Valley tech billionaire ilk should get to choose our leadership, that he's the arbiter of who is/isn't America's enemy, that violent subjugation is good.
2 friends of mine are talking about befriending a murder of crows, which got me looking at Moira Rose gifs to send them & laughing, because Catherine O'Hara is a such treasure.
a woman wearing a black feathered headband with the word schitts creek written on the bottom
Alt: Catherine O'Hara as Moira Rose in the sitcom Schitt's creek wearing a ridiculously huge feathered headband with fake crows on it making one of her melodramatic faces, saying "Tell me about it"
media.tenor.com
December 2, 2025 at 6:29 PM
2 friends of mine are talking about befriending a murder of crows, which got me looking at Moira Rose gifs to send them & laughing, because Catherine O'Hara is a such treasure.
Reposted by meri sand
The most precious commodity you have is your attention. You don’t have to waste it on poor-faith debates or arguments with strangers if you don’t think they’ll be productive. You can prioritize the things that matter to you and make your life richer.
November 30, 2025 at 8:00 PM
The most precious commodity you have is your attention. You don’t have to waste it on poor-faith debates or arguments with strangers if you don’t think they’ll be productive. You can prioritize the things that matter to you and make your life richer.
Reposted by meri sand
We end on "Machine Yearning for a Better Present" because why can't we dream? Why accept that universities are not places of learning? Nothing, except industry and their paid shills amongst us, force us to accept this & this force is not one of reason, but one of regressive values & profit.
10/n
10/n
September 6, 2025 at 8:53 AM
We end on "Machine Yearning for a Better Present" because why can't we dream? Why accept that universities are not places of learning? Nothing, except industry and their paid shills amongst us, force us to accept this & this force is not one of reason, but one of regressive values & profit.
10/n
10/n
Reposted by meri sand
7. the kinda appealing, but substantively indefensible, idea that somehow AI is different to other technology, like calculators, in a pedagogical context — but we totally ban a great deal of technology in the classroom.
(Section 3.7 here doi.org/10.5281/zeno...)
9/n
(Section 3.7 here doi.org/10.5281/zeno...)
9/n
September 6, 2025 at 8:46 AM
7. the kinda appealing, but substantively indefensible, idea that somehow AI is different to other technology, like calculators, in a pedagogical context — but we totally ban a great deal of technology in the classroom.
(Section 3.7 here doi.org/10.5281/zeno...)
9/n
(Section 3.7 here doi.org/10.5281/zeno...)
9/n
People who think they're authors or artists or whatever when the only thing they created was a sentence are like people who claim to be athletes because they played a FIFA video game.
You don't have to be good or a pro, but you do have to actually do the thing or it's just artistic stolen valor.
You don't have to be good or a pro, but you do have to actually do the thing or it's just artistic stolen valor.
November 28, 2025 at 9:11 PM
People who think they're authors or artists or whatever when the only thing they created was a sentence are like people who claim to be athletes because they played a FIFA video game.
You don't have to be good or a pro, but you do have to actually do the thing or it's just artistic stolen valor.
You don't have to be good or a pro, but you do have to actually do the thing or it's just artistic stolen valor.
A"I" slop is ruining the internet & rotting people's brains. LLM style generative stuff is flooding the entire internet with fake videos that people are trusting, including deep fakes. It's in ostensibly peer reviewed scientific journals. It's flooding art, writing, & music w/garbage built on theft.
November 28, 2025 at 7:29 PM
A"I" slop is ruining the internet & rotting people's brains. LLM style generative stuff is flooding the entire internet with fake videos that people are trusting, including deep fakes. It's in ostensibly peer reviewed scientific journals. It's flooding art, writing, & music w/garbage built on theft.
Reposted by meri sand
Dallas, TX friends: this big, fluffy boy has escaped. His name is Casey. He has one naked ear at the moment. In the vicinity of Abrams & Mockingbird. If you see him, please respond to this post with a location. We can’t have Thanksgiving without
him.
him.
November 26, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Dallas, TX friends: this big, fluffy boy has escaped. His name is Casey. He has one naked ear at the moment. In the vicinity of Abrams & Mockingbird. If you see him, please respond to this post with a location. We can’t have Thanksgiving without
him.
him.
Reposted by meri sand
someone the other day tried to tell me that I'm obviously a millionaire
from a bird cartoon
from a bird cartoon
Just saw someone claim that authors who want to be paid for their work are "class traitors" because we "only let the wealthy" read our books, and I think I need to go into the woods to scream into the night for a bit.
It's $5, not your first-born child! I need that $5 for health insurance!
It's $5, not your first-born child! I need that $5 for health insurance!
November 26, 2025 at 5:59 PM
someone the other day tried to tell me that I'm obviously a millionaire
from a bird cartoon
from a bird cartoon
Reposted by meri sand
AND supporting your local library is super important! If you actually DO want books to be available to everyone, the library *already exists* and is staffed by the people who are deep in the trenches of fighting censorship! Supporting the library is doing actual good for your community!
TAPS SCREEN
For like the zillionth time: Libraries are FREE for you, but WE still get compensated for our work!!
For like the zillionth time: Libraries are FREE for you, but WE still get compensated for our work!!
Just saw someone claim that authors who want to be paid for their work are "class traitors" because we "only let the wealthy" read our books, and I think I need to go into the woods to scream into the night for a bit.
It's $5, not your first-born child! I need that $5 for health insurance!
It's $5, not your first-born child! I need that $5 for health insurance!
November 26, 2025 at 8:01 PM
AND supporting your local library is super important! If you actually DO want books to be available to everyone, the library *already exists* and is staffed by the people who are deep in the trenches of fighting censorship! Supporting the library is doing actual good for your community!
I've gotten good practice sessions in on guitar this weekend, as well as a little time out doors. I want to read or make some art or something, but I'm too exhausted. I hate that. I can't go to sleep yet, either, unless I wanna wake up at 3 AM & then feel like a zombie all day tomorrow.
November 24, 2025 at 3:17 AM
I've gotten good practice sessions in on guitar this weekend, as well as a little time out doors. I want to read or make some art or something, but I'm too exhausted. I hate that. I can't go to sleep yet, either, unless I wanna wake up at 3 AM & then feel like a zombie all day tomorrow.
This is so incredibly sketchy. The audacity...
"after fighting to keep secret the emails exchanged between Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office and tech billionaire Elon Musk’s companies, state officials released nearly 1,400 pages...all but about 200 of the pages are entirely blacked out."
"after fighting to keep secret the emails exchanged between Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office and tech billionaire Elon Musk’s companies, state officials released nearly 1,400 pages...all but about 200 of the pages are entirely blacked out."
“The fact that a governmental body can redact more than 1,000 pages of documents that are directly related to a major business’s activities in Texas is certainly problematic,” an attorney specializing in public records said.
With @kutnews.bsky.social @texastribune.org
With @kutnews.bsky.social @texastribune.org
Gov. Greg Abbott Was Ordered to Release Some of His Emails With Elon Musk. Most Are Blacked Out.
Months after fighting to keep secret emails between Gov. Greg Abbott and Elon Musk, Texas officials released 1,400 pages of records. But they reveal little about the two men’s relationship or Musk’s i...
www.propublica.org
November 24, 2025 at 3:06 AM
This is so incredibly sketchy. The audacity...
"after fighting to keep secret the emails exchanged between Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office and tech billionaire Elon Musk’s companies, state officials released nearly 1,400 pages...all but about 200 of the pages are entirely blacked out."
"after fighting to keep secret the emails exchanged between Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office and tech billionaire Elon Musk’s companies, state officials released nearly 1,400 pages...all but about 200 of the pages are entirely blacked out."
Reposted by meri sand
So you wanna put up a Christmas tree, but you have cats. You’ve come to the right place!
You’ll need-
Patience
A tree (real or artificial doesn’t matter)
Weights for the base (sandbags or dumbbells) 1/
You’ll need-
Patience
A tree (real or artificial doesn’t matter)
Weights for the base (sandbags or dumbbells) 1/
November 23, 2025 at 5:41 PM
So you wanna put up a Christmas tree, but you have cats. You’ve come to the right place!
You’ll need-
Patience
A tree (real or artificial doesn’t matter)
Weights for the base (sandbags or dumbbells) 1/
You’ll need-
Patience
A tree (real or artificial doesn’t matter)
Weights for the base (sandbags or dumbbells) 1/
Reposted by meri sand
hey guys i made a seasonal meme
November 22, 2025 at 5:41 AM
hey guys i made a seasonal meme
Reposted by meri sand
It's that time of year
November 22, 2025 at 11:54 AM
It's that time of year
I've been deep into offline things, so every time I check online I feel like I'm hit by a huge wave of weirdness & disorientation. This has been a strange, stressful, chaotic year in the world, & it seems determined to keep turning up the dial on all 3 of those settings.
November 22, 2025 at 6:54 AM
I've been deep into offline things, so every time I check online I feel like I'm hit by a huge wave of weirdness & disorientation. This has been a strange, stressful, chaotic year in the world, & it seems determined to keep turning up the dial on all 3 of those settings.
I've spent the last week working on learning the guitar parts for Jeff Buckley's Nightmares by the Sea & the José Gonzalez version of Heartbeats. Got to listen to Paul Slavens' show last night & he played my request, then I played with acrylic markers for the 1st time in a notebook. That's something
November 17, 2025 at 12:11 PM
I've spent the last week working on learning the guitar parts for Jeff Buckley's Nightmares by the Sea & the José Gonzalez version of Heartbeats. Got to listen to Paul Slavens' show last night & he played my request, then I played with acrylic markers for the 1st time in a notebook. That's something