Simon Waldman
@swaldman.bsky.social
Follow @simon-on-energy for energy, environment & academia. Stay here for anything else. All tweets in personal capacity. he/him.
Can also be found at mendeddrum.org/@swaldman
Can also be found at mendeddrum.org/@swaldman
Reposted by Simon Waldman
For this post to be about the United States and not Russia shows that there has been an absolute diplomatic revolution.
I spoke to the Secretary-General of NATO, Emmanuel Macron, Keir Starmer, Friedrich Merz and Giorgia Meloni.
Together we stand firm in our commitment to uphold the sovereignty of Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark.
Together we stand firm in our commitment to uphold the sovereignty of Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark.
January 18, 2026 at 9:42 PM
For this post to be about the United States and not Russia shows that there has been an absolute diplomatic revolution.
Reposted by Simon Waldman
The Greenland slogan is funny, but the hats definitely made us do a double take at first we thought they were MAGA gear. It actually stands for Make America Go Away.
January 18, 2026 at 10:14 PM
The Greenland slogan is funny, but the hats definitely made us do a double take at first we thought they were MAGA gear. It actually stands for Make America Go Away.
Reposted by Simon Waldman
I have never felt more pro-European.
Foreign Ministers of Denmark and Greenland after their meeting with US Vice President and Secretary of State.
January 15, 2026 at 11:58 AM
I have never felt more pro-European.
Creepylink : The URL shortener that makes your link look as suspicious as possible.
creepylink.com
creepylink.com
CreepyLink
Make your links look as suspicious as possible
creepylink.com
January 14, 2026 at 10:11 AM
Creepylink : The URL shortener that makes your link look as suspicious as possible.
creepylink.com
creepylink.com
Trump administration is asking universities for lists of Jews on campus. (Good on Penn for refusing, but it won't be just them that were asked)
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
UPenn faculty condemn Trump administration’s demand for ‘lists of Jews’
Groups say EEOC demand for names and personal details echoes dark history and threatens safety and civil rights
www.theguardian.com
January 14, 2026 at 10:00 AM
Trump administration is asking universities for lists of Jews on campus. (Good on Penn for refusing, but it won't be just them that were asked)
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Reposted by Simon Waldman
Just as importantly, I think, is asking payment processors like Visa and Mastercard why they are still accepting payments for Grok and whatever Elon calls the paid version of X these days
January 9, 2026 at 4:36 PM
Just as importantly, I think, is asking payment processors like Visa and Mastercard why they are still accepting payments for Grok and whatever Elon calls the paid version of X these days
Reposted by Simon Waldman
New: Trio of Dem senators urge Apple and Google to enforce their own terms of service and ban X, Grok apps for their flood of nonconsensual sexual imagery.
I've repeatedly asked both Apple and Google about this for three days. They're completely silent, seemingly hoping the question just goes away.
I've repeatedly asked both Apple and Google about this for three days. They're completely silent, seemingly hoping the question just goes away.
Senators urged Apple and Google to remove X and Grok from app stores over sexual deepfakes
“Turning a blind eye to X’s egregious behavior would make a mockery of your moderation
practices,” three Democratic senators wrote to Apple’s and Google’s CEOs.
www.nbcnews.com
January 9, 2026 at 4:06 PM
New: Trio of Dem senators urge Apple and Google to enforce their own terms of service and ban X, Grok apps for their flood of nonconsensual sexual imagery.
I've repeatedly asked both Apple and Google about this for three days. They're completely silent, seemingly hoping the question just goes away.
I've repeatedly asked both Apple and Google about this for three days. They're completely silent, seemingly hoping the question just goes away.
youtube.com/watch?v=a1Yo...
I once again find myself admiring the Daily How's ability to tackle serious topics and make them funny without trivializing them.
"Brought to you by people who want to go outside without being shot"
Thoughts are with friends in the US, especially those in Minneapolis.
I once again find myself admiring the Daily How's ability to tackle serious topics and make them funny without trivializing them.
"Brought to you by people who want to go outside without being shot"
Thoughts are with friends in the US, especially those in Minneapolis.
ICE Killing in Minnesota Ignites Protests as Trump and Kristi Noem Double Down | The Daily Show
youtube.com
January 9, 2026 at 7:23 AM
youtube.com/watch?v=a1Yo...
I once again find myself admiring the Daily How's ability to tackle serious topics and make them funny without trivializing them.
"Brought to you by people who want to go outside without being shot"
Thoughts are with friends in the US, especially those in Minneapolis.
I once again find myself admiring the Daily How's ability to tackle serious topics and make them funny without trivializing them.
"Brought to you by people who want to go outside without being shot"
Thoughts are with friends in the US, especially those in Minneapolis.
Reposted by Simon Waldman
The black cat atop the stones at Stonehenge during the Winter Solstice 2025 celebrations, delivering its blessings for the coming year.
December 25, 2025 at 3:29 AM
The black cat atop the stones at Stonehenge during the Winter Solstice 2025 celebrations, delivering its blessings for the coming year.
Reposted by Simon Waldman
Drove past this church today.
"Due to ICE activity in our community, the Holy Family is in hiding."
Remembering the reason for the season when your president is Herod.
"Due to ICE activity in our community, the Holy Family is in hiding."
Remembering the reason for the season when your president is Herod.
Baby Jesus with Zip-Tied Wrists and Mary in a Gas Mask: Why Some Churches Are Taking a Stand with Anti-ICE Nativity Scenes
This Christmas season, some churches are using their Nativity displays to make a political statement about the increased and controversial federal immigration law enforcement — drawing both support an...
people.com
December 24, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Drove past this church today.
"Due to ICE activity in our community, the Holy Family is in hiding."
Remembering the reason for the season when your president is Herod.
"Due to ICE activity in our community, the Holy Family is in hiding."
Remembering the reason for the season when your president is Herod.
Reposted by Simon Waldman
The Embassy staff of Germany, France and the United Kingdom sing Schedryk in the Kyiv underground.
Wonderful!
Wonderful!
December 24, 2025 at 10:29 PM
The Embassy staff of Germany, France and the United Kingdom sing Schedryk in the Kyiv underground.
Wonderful!
Wonderful!
www.reuters.com/technology/i...
Uh oh. The Roomba is the only smart appliance in my home which depends completely on the cloud for core functionality, such that I'd care if it lost thst connection.
Uh oh. The Roomba is the only smart appliance in my home which depends completely on the cloud for core functionality, such that I'd care if it lost thst connection.
December 15, 2025 at 3:38 AM
www.reuters.com/technology/i...
Uh oh. The Roomba is the only smart appliance in my home which depends completely on the cloud for core functionality, such that I'd care if it lost thst connection.
Uh oh. The Roomba is the only smart appliance in my home which depends completely on the cloud for core functionality, such that I'd care if it lost thst connection.
*blinks*
(I haven't verified, since that would entail logging into X)
(I haven't verified, since that would entail logging into X)
December 10, 2025 at 9:22 AM
*blinks*
(I haven't verified, since that would entail logging into X)
(I haven't verified, since that would entail logging into X)
Reposted by Simon Waldman
December 9, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Reposted by Simon Waldman
Five years of social media history?
Ten years of email addresses?
Looks like I won't be going to the states for a long time
Ten years of email addresses?
Looks like I won't be going to the states for a long time
December 10, 2025 at 7:19 AM
Five years of social media history?
Ten years of email addresses?
Looks like I won't be going to the states for a long time
Ten years of email addresses?
Looks like I won't be going to the states for a long time
Sans serif typefaces are woke now.
Marco Rubio ordered diplomats to return to using Times New Roman font in official communications, calling his predecessor's decision to adopt Calibri a “wasteful” diversity move
Rubio Stages Font Coup: Times New Roman Ousts Calibri
The secretary of state called it a "wasteful" diversity move, according to an internal department cable seen by Reuters.
www.huffpost.com
December 10, 2025 at 7:17 AM
Sans serif typefaces are woke now.
Reposted by Simon Waldman
blessed be the henry
September 26, 2025 at 4:53 PM
blessed be the henry
Reposted by Simon Waldman
Trump says reporting on his health is "seditious, perhaps even treasonous, for The New York Times, and others, to consistently do FAKE reports in order to libel and demean 'THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.' They are true Enemies of the People, and we should do something about it."
December 10, 2025 at 2:16 AM
Trump says reporting on his health is "seditious, perhaps even treasonous, for The New York Times, and others, to consistently do FAKE reports in order to libel and demean 'THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.' They are true Enemies of the People, and we should do something about it."
Reposted by Simon Waldman
re:the NHS Fife case it's fun that the same media institutions that constantly bitch and moan about how nobody trusts them anymore will just come out and say the literal opposite of the truth. that's not institutional bias in reporting it's *just* lying
December 9, 2025 at 1:35 PM
re:the NHS Fife case it's fun that the same media institutions that constantly bitch and moan about how nobody trusts them anymore will just come out and say the literal opposite of the truth. that's not institutional bias in reporting it's *just* lying
"Tribunal rules that employers do not have to exclude trans people"
goodlawproject.org/sandie-peggi...
Not that you'd know it from the media coverage, which is almost entirely "Partial victory as Peggie wins on some procedural matters"
goodlawproject.org/sandie-peggi...
Not that you'd know it from the media coverage, which is almost entirely "Partial victory as Peggie wins on some procedural matters"
Sandie Peggie: Tribunal rules that employers do not have to exclude trans people | Good Law Project
One of the first cases that follows the Supreme Court’s decision on the definition of sex under the Equality Act has found that the court didn’t decide which changing room a trans person should use.
goodlawproject.org
December 9, 2025 at 1:54 PM
"Tribunal rules that employers do not have to exclude trans people"
goodlawproject.org/sandie-peggi...
Not that you'd know it from the media coverage, which is almost entirely "Partial victory as Peggie wins on some procedural matters"
goodlawproject.org/sandie-peggi...
Not that you'd know it from the media coverage, which is almost entirely "Partial victory as Peggie wins on some procedural matters"
Oh look, given a mix of judgements both sides claim victory. But one side has all the press.
A great example here of how it simply does not matter what happens, and how the public come to be so disastrously misinformed on more or less everything. When all our media outlets feed the public much the same shit day in, day out, then it’s no wonder Yer Da has developed Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease.
Sandie Peggie's agony...
BBC News - Scotland's papers: Sandie Peggie 'agony' as NHS board 'harassed nurse'
www.bbc.com/news/article...
BBC News - Scotland's papers: Sandie Peggie 'agony' as NHS board 'harassed nurse'
www.bbc.com/news/article...
December 9, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Oh look, given a mix of judgements both sides claim victory. But one side has all the press.
Reposted by Simon Waldman
This was my instinct with it as well: it's *hard* and it takes a lot of work, but that's because the tools are shitty. Like, you can make great art with limited resources - sometimes it even helps! - but genAI is almost actively working *against* artistry because of the way it's created.
I've spoken with someone who made something similar recently and I don't think the studio are wrong in their description. Think of it closer to a digitally composite animation patched together from an unreliable generator.
McDonald's has released an AI-generated Christmas ad
The studio behind it says they 'hardly slept' for several weeks while writing AI prompts and refining the shots — 'AI didn't make this film. We did'
Comments have been turned off on YouTube
The studio behind it says they 'hardly slept' for several weeks while writing AI prompts and refining the shots — 'AI didn't make this film. We did'
Comments have been turned off on YouTube
December 9, 2025 at 11:42 AM
This was my instinct with it as well: it's *hard* and it takes a lot of work, but that's because the tools are shitty. Like, you can make great art with limited resources - sometimes it even helps! - but genAI is almost actively working *against* artistry because of the way it's created.
Reposted by Simon Waldman
HR departments countrywide need to start treating gendercrit employees as potentially hostile. As soon as you are required to interact with one, you dust off the rulebook, you dot every eye and cross every t, and you assume bad faith at every turn.
They are a threat to every organisation.
They are a threat to every organisation.
December 8, 2025 at 5:12 PM
HR departments countrywide need to start treating gendercrit employees as potentially hostile. As soon as you are required to interact with one, you dust off the rulebook, you dot every eye and cross every t, and you assume bad faith at every turn.
They are a threat to every organisation.
They are a threat to every organisation.