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Posts Tagged ‘law’

The…State has no business telling a man, sitting alone in his own house, what books he may read or what films he may watch.  –  Stanley v. Georgia

Torture Chamber

This will never stop until all cops who murder prisoners are charged with murder:

LAPD…[pigs]…beat…a handcuffed and restrained [mentally ill] man multiple times…[in a cage until he died].  Jose Carlo Hoyos-Munoz…[was repeatedly chok]ed, elbowed, and kneeled on [by several over]weight [pigs] in three separate incidents…Hoyos-Munoz…“lost his mind”…and [attacked several members of his family, but had been in custody for]…approximately 20 hours…[when cops decided it was vitally important to the entire human race that he be] fingerprint[ed immediately instead of turned over to mental health professionals.  So they oinked the magic words]…”non-compliant” a[t him]…before [a gang of] six [pigs violently attacked]…him…and [hobbled]…him…[When he continued to act like the extremely mentally ill person he was, the gang ludicrously oinked the magic word “]safety[“]…at…him…to [justify another brutal gang assault, which this time included repeatedly kicking him in the head and]…pressing [his] face into [a] cot…un[til he collapsed]…and [stopped] breathing…[LAPD is hiding] the names [and faces] of the [murderers]…

All-Purpose Excuse (#1077)

“Sex trafficking” is now entirely a Trump regime propaganda weapon:

…When young people enter the country seeking asylum without their parents, they are generally released to a sponsor, often a family member already living in America…These youth [“UACs”] are supposed to keep their addresses current in order to follow up on their applications for asylum and immigration court dates, but not all of them do…[Trumpists] have claimed, with[out] evidence, that UACs were being placed with unvetted or unfit sponsors, [call]ing…this… “human trafficking”…as a[n excuse] to limit migration…[the] Trump [regime]…claim[s] that…300,000 [of these minors a]re considered “missing”…this number is an utter invention—most UACs live with their sponsors, and some are now adults.  Nevertheless, Trump’s DHS has prioritized locating these young people [in order to]…deport…[them].  Later stages of the program a[re] intended to locate UACs and charge their sponsors with…crimes…such as trafficking…[or] violations of the Mann Act…ICE has hired [bounty hunters] to [track] immigrants, including UACs[, like animals, and goons] have…[revoltingly referred to raids intended to abduct schoolkids as] “wellness checks”…

Tissue of Lies (#1243)

It’s been 4 years since this cop fad died out, long enough for Americans to forget:

Florida [copaganda] officials [claim] a statewide [“]operation[“] has helped find dozens of…children [and teenagers whose records the state had misplaced, or who were living with someone other than the court-assigned custodial parent or guardian].  Florida [psychopath-] General James Uthmeier [claimed] 163 children were [“]recovered[“, but in reality few were actually children and none were actually]…missing…Officials…[also tested a new euphemism for jails used to cage young people the State has decided to brand “]human trafficking[” victims, namely]…[“]designated recovery hubs[“]…

These “missing child operations” were innovated in Georgia in September 2020 after the pandemic made actual “stings” much more difficult, and became popular with cop shops all over the US for about two years.  They’re constructed by combining a few arrests of sex workers and clients with mass arrests of teens in foster care and shelters and pretending they’re related.

See No Evil (#1386)

A rare court judgment lessening the government’s ability to persecute thoughtcrime:

In Stanley v. Georgia, 394 U.S. 557 (1969), the Supreme Court created an exception to the rule that the government may freely restrict or punish speech that is…legally obscene, holding that possessing such material in one’s home is protected, as the First Amendment does not permit the government to punish people for private thoughts…And while sexually explicit images of real minors…that require…child abuse to create…[constitute an] unprotected category where even private possession is unlawful, the Supreme Court held in Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition, 535 U.S. 234 (2002), that “virtual” CSAM not involving real minors…falls within Stanley’s protection.  That’s been settled law ever since.  But that didn’t stop the federal government from prosecuting the private possession of sexually explicit [computer-generated] images of [imaginary] minors in United States v. Anderegg…The Seventh Circuit [reject]ed [the prosecutors’ arguments], affirming th[at]…the First Amendment protects private, in-home possession of obscene depictions of non-existent minors…

Walled Garden (#1629)

Burble burble BLUE STATE burble drool:

The California legislature [has] passed…A.B. 1709…a sweeping ban on social media use for young people under…16.  This…deeply flawed piece of legislation [intentionally] cuts young people off from essential information and experiences, particularly harming vulnerable youth and marginalized groups who often find safety in supportive online communities they can’t access offline…platforms would be prohibited from offering virtually every functional recommendation algorithm and basic input…to anyone under 16…By labeling these basic tools as “addictive,” the bill relies on…[pseudo]science [demonizing] youth social media use…A.B. 1709 is a massive privacy and free speech nightmare. Denying young people access to digital forums (or stripping out the basic tools needed to navigate them) does nothing to make young people safer or healthier…and…age-gating requirements will force everyone to give big tech companies even more personal information…

Panopticon (Nosey Parkers)

Safetyism has always enabled totalitarianism:

…the city [council of] Pflugerville[, Texas]…unanimously voted to terminate their [contract] with Flock S[urveillance]…resulting in the city turning off all 28 Flock License Plate Reader cameras leased by the city and covering them with plastic bags…[after learning that over 400 agencies had accessed its Flock system…even though only 83 had authorization]…the city…has requested that all city data be deleted immediately and permanently [but it is doubtful Flock will comply]…

Stalkers in Blue (#1668)

Cops will abuse warrantless surveillance for as long as it exists:

A Texas [cop ab]used [the] Flock [surveillance network] more than 10,000 times to [stalk] an ex-girlfriend, her family members and other people she had relationships with…Zachary Anthony Klein…was…investigated [after one of his victims discovered]…the [stalking and initiated]…a public information request [so the cop shop could no longer ignore his crimes]…that…[were committ]ed “nearly all hours of the day and night”…from June 2024 to December 2025…The ex-girlfriend [said]…Klein was…obsessed…with the idea she was cheating on him and would often look through her phone…he…also…threatened to find and kill someone she had a prior relationship with…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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For those who find [drag shows] offensive, the solution is relatively simple…just don’t go.  –  Judge David Hittner

To Molest and Rape

When will amateur women learn cops are dangerous sex predators?

[A Baltimore cop named] Daniel Oxendine…[raped] a woman…[who foolishly approached] him to [ask him to] drive her…home…[when they got there,] Oxendine [forced his way] inside and [raped] her…Investigators [believe]…he may have [had other victims so he]…is being held [without bail]…

Undead Powers (#1409)

I’ve long held that all laws should sunset after 10 years unless specific action is taken to renew them:

[The prominent anti-female autonomy group] Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America [has] signed a letter calling on the Department of [In]justice…to interpret a 19th century anti-obscenity law as a national abortion ban.  It’s the first time the country’s largest anti-a[utonomy] organization has publicly endorsed this interpretation of the Comstock Act, signaling that a once-fringe reading of the dormant law has gone mainstream within the [forced-birth] movement—and that these groups are coming for more than just abortion pills…Comstock bans mailing any article or thing that can be used for abortions…including…devices and other supplies sent to brick-and-mortar abortion clinics.  These same drugs, devices, and supplies are also used for routine obstetric care, including miscarriage management and treatment of postpartum hemorrhage…

Your regular reminder that regardless of what evil laws fanatics impose, abortion medication will still be available by mail unless the US entirely criminalizes shipping things.

The Last Shall Be First (#1567) 

It should be a felony to propose a bill that is facially unconstitutional:

U.S. District Judge…David Hittner [has once again] ruled that Texas’ law banning drag shows around minors is “facially overbroad” and “unconstitutionally vague”…Hittner had originally ruled SB 12 unconstitutional in 2023, shortly after it was passed…[but psychopath-]General Ken Paxton appealed [the] ruling to the…Fifth Circuit…which…sent the case back to Hittner…who…[pointed out that] banning…[any] performance…that…”appeals to the prurient interest in sex”…might…apply to performers as varied as Elvis Presley…Dolly Parton, and Miley Cyrus…

These showboat bills waste public money for politicians’ virtue-signaling; the only allowable defense should be that the politician was too stupid to understand the plain language of the Constitution.

When Ambulance-Chasers Run the Hospitals (#1626)

The open internet will soon be a thing of the past:

[Facebook] has settled with 52 state and local Attorneys General who had sued the company in some form or another [using the excuse of “]child safety[“]…the years-long case…against [it] ends, and [Zuckerberg] pays…approximately $18 billion…[and] will implement a bunch of changes to its platforms…everyone involved knows full well that no government could mandate these feature changes without violating the First Amendment.  But now that it’s in a “settlement”…people are cheering this on, without realizing the damage it will do…For a few decades now, when basically all Attorneys General would get together to threaten and/or sue tech companies, it was almost always over bullshit headline grabbing claims where the AGs either had no jurisdiction or ability to legally do anything…these efforts are so resource intensive, so expensive, and so draining that it’s no surprise that most companies end up “settling” by agreeing to do things that the government simply cannot force a company to do.  But because it’s a “settlement” people act like it’s not the government doing it…The other bit of background worth understanding here is that [Facebook] has been…practically begging for Congress to pass child safety legislation that only the largest companies (like itself) could comply with…[such as] FOSTA…it’s been pretty consistently losing the innovation race, and the government granting it a regulatory moat that smaller competitors can’t cross would be a godsend…[especially when i]t looks like…“losing” a lawsuit…

The Cop Myth (#1658)

He was named “Deputy of the Year” for exemplifying cops’ true nature so well:

[A Florida cop named] Michael Fultz [was allowed to] resign…[rather than being fired] for…extreme…sexual misconduct, racism, and abuse…Brevard County named Fultz its Deputy of the Year in 2025.  The day of the ceremony [his] ex-girlfriend sent a letter…to the sheriff’s office with a long list of complaints about his behavior…which [prompted]…the…discover[y that] he’d used Flock to stalk her…[further] investigation found Fultz had posed for pictures as Adolf Hitler, freely used racial slurs in texts, masturbated on camera in his p[igmobile, shoved his gun into]…his ex-girlfriend[‘s]…mouth during sex [and took pictures, and] repeatedly [covered]…his motorcycle [license plate while speeding over 100 mph so he could look like a big man on]…Instagram and TikTok…the sexual encounter where…he [threatened to murder his girlfriend] occurred [immediately after he murdered a man in April 2025, then blamed his victim]…

Stalkers in Blue (#1666)

Cops will abuse warrantless surveillance for as long as it exists:

A…[Kentucky cop was actually]…suspended…and…charge[d] for [repeat]edly using license plate reader cameras to track and harass [his ex-girlfriend] in Kentucky and Indiana…Asad Zahir …used…Flock…to conduct more than 2,000 searches on [her] from January through May of this year, [despite]…an Indiana…[“]protective order[“] against him…Zahir…[abused the system so egregiously Flock’s software reported him to his bosses]…

Panopticon (#1667)

Cops are angry that people hate unconstitutional surveillance:

A…Florida [cop shop] used “decoy” Flock cameras that a…[pig] 3D-printed at home to “bait” [citizens concerned about unconstitutional surveillance]…then charged a man with three felonies after he cut down and destroyed one…Oviedo, Florida mayor Megan Sladek said she “had NO idea” that [cops were planning this scam]…Despite the decoy camera being worth, at most, several dollars worth of plastic filament, Evan Meyer was charged with…[“]attempted[” felonies]…Meyer ad[mitted that he targeted the make-believe] camera…specifically…[because it] was close…to his house…The [pig scheme] is reminiscent of Amazon “package sting” [scam]s that several [cop shops] attempted several years ago, in which empty Amazon boxes were placed on people’s porches while p[igs lurked to spy]…result[ing] in zero known arrests…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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We’re coming for the books.  –  Dan Patrick

Policing for Profit

Cops usually make up some pretext, however flimsy, for their armed robbery schemes:

Two Phoenix [cops] have been arrested and fired for [brutally robbing two people at gunpoint after tricking them into pulling over under guise of] a…traffic stop…Luis Vasquez Jr. and Antonio Felix…repeatedly shocked [the male driver] with a stun gun and [also] punched [him.  They also yanked] his girlfriend…[out of] the vehicle…[twisted her] arm [behind her back, violently] handcuffed [her] and [shoved her into the back of a pigmobile]…The [cops] also…threatened to shoot [the driver] before…eventually [letting him] drive away…

I Spy (#1491)

The only way to fully protect data is not to collect it:

…Microsoft…shared the names of Dutch [bureaucra]ts working for two [bureaus]…with the U.S. House of Representatives…The [bureaucra]ts involved are working on implementing the Digital Services Act (DSA), the European [censorship] law that forces online platforms to [censor anything politicians declare “]illegal[“]…Microsoft shared emails…and [other paperwork]…without redacting their names…due to the Cloud Act[, which also works in the opposite direction by allowing foreign cops to demand US data without a warrant]…

Thought Control (#1527)

“Coming for” anything or anybody is intrinsically an act of tyranny:

…“Dark, demonic content”…[inanely barfed] Bonnie Wallace, a [pro-censorship] activist…at a press conference…put on by [Texas] Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick [claiming there are] “dirty books” in school libraries…“I’m here because God has given me [a mission],” Wallace [psychotically continued, bragging about her personal censorship crusade before]…Patrick [idiotically claimed]…that enforcement of [a book ban law] wasn’t the state banning books…and…[calling for state persecution and firing of] librarians…“We’re coming for the books,” he later added…[calling very tame sex education] books…“so disgusting, so filthy, so dirty, so vulgar, so pornographic that for the ladies here, I wouldn’t even open it and show you”…His primary example was Let’s Talk About It, a 2021 sex education graphic novel by married couple Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan…[and he specifically flagged a suggestion that readers] consult a medical professional for health information…[the statement that] sex toys…exist…[and the statement that] pornography…can be unrealistic…

Secret Squirrel (#1541)

This sickness will get much worse before it gets better:

Uber is updating its teen account feature to allow parents to use the selfie cameras on Uber drivers’ phones to [spy] on their teenage [offspring] during ridehail trips.  Since first launching teen accounts in 2023, Uber has touted the myriad ways parents can [spy] on their [offspring], from PIN verification to live GPS tracking…the new feature…[is] ready to roll out nationwide over the next few weeks.  Drivers who have opted in to accept underage passengers will [for] now…be asked to [allow]…the s[urveillance, but refusing consent won’t be an option for long]…

I Spy (#1542)

Local politicians’ virtue-signaling is powerless against the fascist panopticon:

…local officials from at least 75 agencies across Illinois [feed] information to federal immigration [goons]…in…violation of state law…pre[tend]ed [to be] a shield against it…Illinois’s TRUST Act is one of the [most] strong[ly-worded] laws in the nation meant to protect immigrants and has often been cited as a national model.  More than a dozen states, including New York and California, have similar laws.  But…records…show a pattern of continued collaboration with federal…[pogroms]: Sheriffs honoring ICE detainers the law forbids them to honor.  [Cop shops] emailing [ICE goons] the home addresses, employers, and daily whereabouts of people stopped for speeding…[pigs] with a local badge and an ICE email address, sharing immigration data that’s supposed to be off-limits to them.  Jails releasing people directly to waiting ICE agents…at least 150 people [so far have been] uprooted from their lives in Illinois and funneled into the deportation system, in a state whose [politicians have falsely] promised over and over again that it wouldn’t happen here…

On the Simultaneous Having and Eating of Cake (#1614)

A big step forward for treating sex work as work:

…the Nevada State AFL-CIO [has] adopted a resolution in support of sex workers’ right to organize…with unanimous support…“Sex work is work, and these workers deserve to be treated as such,” [Nevada AFL-CIO vice president Marc] Ellis said…“sex workers can know they have the full support of all members of the AFL-CIO”…

Panopticon (Nosey Parkers)

Much, much, MUCH more of this, please:

On August 11, a[n Ohio] grand jury re[fused to indict]…Cody Morelock…[for] destroying a Flock S[urveillance camera]…de[spite] surveillance footage…from other Flock cameras on the same network…The no-bill doesn’t legalize destroying cameras…[or] cancel Flock’s Ohio contracts.  But when a grand jury declines to treat smashing a surveillance camera as [a] serious felony…that signals something real about where public sentiment sits — and that tension isn’t resolving anytime soon…

Other recent actions by anti-surveillance freedom fighters include eight cameras stolen in Winona, Minnesota, six in Duluth, and two in Plymouth, and two in Pageland, South Carolina.  Flock is so nervous about the threat to its fascist revenue stream that it is now demanding a “compromise” between basic civil rights and unconstitutional warrantless surveillance, absurdly claiming that it isn’t the unconstitutional warrantless surveillance company‘s fault if cops predictably use its unconstitutional warrantless surveillance cameras for unconstitutional warrantless surveillance.

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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ICE is the worst of the worst.  –  Peter Moskowitz

Buried Truth

A textbook example of McNeill’s Law:

A Florida [politici]an from Donald Trump’s home district could potentially face the death penalty under a law he had championed as a state legislator.  Mike Caruso…[one] of Gov. Ron DeSantis[‘ gang], [has been]…arrested for…molesting his [toddler] grandson…on…at…le[ast]…three separate [occasions]…Caruso was previously accused of child sexual abuse [several times], but [always managed to get away with it before]…

The Cop Myth (#1602)

Cop deals with problems exactly as he was trained & encouraged to, and everyone is shocked:

A [Florida cop murdered] his [ex-]girlfriend and then [killed] himself…Troy Savetz…was [lurking at his victims’s] house [when she return from an outing with her two children].  He [accosted her] and…[when she] tried to call 911, [he stole her] phone…She then told her children to go in the house and call 911…Savetz…the[n abducted the woman] and to[ok her about]…6 miles [away, where he shot her]…

Above the Law (#1605)

The 100% predictable outcome of handing this kind of power to thugs:

A new report by the Ohio Immigrant Alliance…re[veals]…a [predictable] level of sexual criminal behavior within ICE and CBP.  Out of 152 cases of identified [goons] accused or convicted of criminal behavior, 131 of them, or 86.2 percent, were charged with sex offenses.  Seventy-eight of them—51 percent of the entire cohort—”committed sex offenses against children—the single largest category on the list”…these are just the [goons] known to be…[sex] crim[inals].  Indictments are rare…

Panopticon (#1642)

This will never stop without aggressive resistance:

The [Trump regime]…has [install]ed Flock cameras…at [national] parks including…Yosemite…and…rangers are not happy about it…“Surveillance is a disrespectful invasion of privacy”…[said one]…Another…said…“Every American should be free to visit our national parks without…being…tracked by the federal government”…

Panopticon (#1658)

Do you feel safe yet?

…Flock S[urveillance] has [lied] for years that its technology “cannot recognize, identify, or track individuals.”  It has now built a system that…can identify drivers and track vehicles by their patterns of movement alone…the tool can pick out potential witnesses by how often their cars pass through a neighborhood, or surface a driver’s “associates” from the cameras they [both] pass…the system also reaches police case files, 911 dispatch logs, and commercial identity records, [so] those plates can be turned into names, home addresses, and relatives.  It can search for people in an area drawn on a map based on nothing more than a physical description…and [return]…arrest records, case files…Social Security numbers, dates of birth, phone numbers, email addresses, relatives and associates…One prompt Flock pre-loaded into the system reads: “Find me witnesses based on vehicles most seen in [neighborhood] during [last 14 days] during [daily timeframe]…Another prompt instructs the system to list everyone arrested more than twice in two years for “any offense”…and then…map where those people live…

Stalkers in Blue (#1660)

Cops will abuse warrantless surveillance for as long as it exists:

A [Polk County Florida cop named]…Christopher Anthony Goodson…was arrested on Aug. 11…[for using the Flock surveillance system to stalk his estranged wife 717 times in two years, and] was [rewarded with a] paid [vacation]…Goodson[‘s]…supervisor [had no clue about his behavior until the victim was]…contacted by The Washington Post, which…[had discovered the flagrant ab]use [while preparing a story]…Goodson [tried to excuse] his [crime by characterizing it as “]keep[ing] track of his children’s location when they were with her”…[but he tried to cover it up by inputting bogus] reasons for his searches, [accus]ing [her of] road rage and reckless driving, drug possession, traffic infractions, theft, fleeing police, and assault-battery offenses…other recent incidents [of Flock abuse include] a…Massachusetts…[cop named Jason Rogers stalking the ex-girlfriend he had abused, and a]…Wisconsin [cop named Cristian Morales stalking his then-current girlfriend]…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1660)

These things are designed to appeal to the dregs of humanity:

a…large number…of videos [have been] recorded at middle and high schools using [perve]rt glasses — almost always [Mark Zuckerberg]’s [Pervert] Glasses™, d[isguised as ordinary]…Ray-Ban [glasses] — and shared to…TikTok and Instagram…Much of the behavior on display is plainly harassment and bullying, often filmed without the subjects’ knowledge or consent and uploaded online to humiliate them further.  [Predictab]ly, every single one…[was] captured by teen boys — and their bad behavior was overwhelmingly directed at girls…[Unfortunately, even though] schools aren’t exactly public spaces…[and] several states…have two-party consent laws…[the schools themselves and the police state they serve have set a bad precedent by spying on students both in classrooms and out for years]…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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Torture, brutality, and abuse [are] endemic to New York’s prisons.  –  Jerome Wright

Vulture Watching (#1451)

I doubt this will do very much good until the current SCOTUS is neutralized:

…a U.S. district court judge in Idaho ruled that women have a constitutional right to abortion to preserve their physical and mental health.  Not just to save their lives, and not just to prevent a major health catastrophe—but to protect their ongoing health…Dr. Stacy Seyb challenged Idaho’s [near-total] ban…argu[ing] that the U.S. Constitution also protects abortion in cases where pregnancy worsens existing conditions, could lead to suicide, or involves fatal or severe fetal diagnoses…Judge Lynn Winmill largely agreed, ruling that health-preserving abortions are constitutionally protected…[but] declined to block Idaho’s ban on abortions for doomed pregnancies…Judge Winmill ruled that ending a pregnancy for health reasons is rooted in American history and tradition, writing that Idaho’s ban is an “outlier position that contravenes basic principles of our constitutional order”…

No Escape (ROTW #17)

Much, much more of this, please:

California prison officials have [allowed female prisoners to be subjected to] sexual abuse and harassment…for years, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a new report…[compiled] after hundreds of [the victims] filed legal claims [because of rape and other] sexual exploitation by staff…investigators said they found an “unbroken pattern” of staff sexual assault dating back over 20 years at California’s two women’s prisons.  The department concluded that prison officials knew women faced a substantial risk of sexual abuse but [simply did not care]…Investigators pointed to gaps in surveillance camera coverage, a lack of confidential reporting options, inadequate investigations and [refusal] to hold staff accountable…[due] to “deliberate indifference”…

Creepy Coppers (#1573)

One of the people the government empowers to police your sexuality:

A [California] probation [cop named]…Damon Jon Luecke…[has been arrested] and…held without bail…[for talking a] 13[-year-old boy into sending him]…sexually explicit…photographs and [trying to talk him into] meeting in person…the mother…fo[und out]…and…re[ported him]…Luecke [has an]…extensive history working with youth…[embroiled with the in]justice system…[including] 16 years…as a [screw in a] juvenile [prison camp]…

Torture Chamber (#1608)

Your “leaders” call this “correction”:

[New York screws]…locked Rahkeem Brown in a [cell with]…a mattress on the floor and…no running water…[after barfing the magic word “]contraband[“] in his [face]…they replaced his prison uniform with a [stained] hospital gown…which…smelled like feces…gave him…a…bucket…and told him to [magically produce an unnamed] item [from his anus] and give it to them [as though he could lay golden eggs]…he spent the next eight days in the room, giving [pervert pigs] stool after stool…but [they kept robotically declaring that]…the stool was…an “insufficient amount”…They gave him cups of water, but it was barely enough to drink and…the room’s overhead lights never turned off…[screws torture their victims] in similar rooms across New York’s state prison system…[all they need to do is barf the magic word] “contraband”…in 2019, [one victim] sued [a prison] for holding him in a “[shit] room” for 61 days…[but] courts dismissed the suit, [barf]ing…the [magic torture-justifying word] “security”…In 2021, another man sued the s[ame prison] for [lock]ing him in a [shit] room…for over two months…a court…award[ed] him [a mere] $6,390 …Yet another [gang of screws tried to justify two weeks of the torture by]…plant[ing drugs in the room after their victim was released]…

Walled Garden (#1620)

I’m afraid this will be far too little, far too late:

France’s top court has struck down a ban on social media for under-15s…[because] it infringed upon freedom of expression…the French president immediately [vowed to ram through]…a new [version designed]…to [circumvent] the cou[rt’s objections despite]…the Constitutional Council…[finding] that…the legislation…”is neither appropriate, necessary, nor proportionate”…

Moloch (#1643) 

Pigs in schools should be abolished, not given torture devices:

[Pigs paid to lurk in] 29 public schools across the Omaha area have access to gloves capable of [painfully] shock[ing students into submission] — the same technology [ICE]…is [handing to its goons]…The Omaha P[igsty admits] that the gloves have been used [at least] twice…on students [they wished to brutalize, an atrocity spokespigs euphemized as]…”the officer was able to secure that individual”…

Mad Libs (#1660)

Amazon only cares about books as a path to profit:

Amazon is buying massive quantities of books, scanning them for [chatbot] training…and destroying them in the process…404 Media…plac[ed] a tracking device in a rare book we suspected would be acquired by a…[chatbot pusher] and follow[ed] it around the country to its final destination…[which] was an Amazon warehouse in Las Vegas…[where] all they do is receive massive shipments of printed books which they then cut the bindings off in order to scan the books more quickly.  The printed book is destroyed in the process. The logo of the Amazon team that works at this warehouse, called VGT3, is a dinosaur, brandishing its teeth and with a book in its hands…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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The freedom to read is fundamental to a free society.  –  John Adams*

To Molest and Rape

When will amateur women learn cops are dangerous sex predators?

An Illinois [cop named]…Douglas Lee…was stripped of his [magic] powers and [arrested for]…drugging a woman while she was out with friends, taking her to a hotel…[rap]ing her…[then dump]ing her in her car [and leaving her in a parking lot] overnight…Lee…frequently visited the bar where [his victim] worked as a bartender [so she foolishly believed she knew him and drank]…a shot [he gave her]…the [next] thing she remembered…was [waking]…up in her car around 10:45 AM the next day [with]…her pants…inside out, her bra…on the passenger seat and her shirt…tucked into the pocket of her jacket…One [of her] friend[s told her] she had seen [her]…dancing [with Lee]…video footage…showed Lee [taking] the woman [out of] the bar [and when confronted he said she wanted it]…

Micromanagement (#965)

I’d really like to be wrong once in a while:

For more than a decade, New York City has been amassing…DNA samples…without…consent or any court involvement as a routine matter, specifically for inclusion in its “Suspect Index,” a rogue database not authorized by law…includ[ing] samples from people who…have been expressly excluded as suspects in a crime, [people] who have never been charged with a crime…and exonerated or acquitted individuals.  The Suspect Index currently contains 34,872 profiles…routinely collect[ed]…in an orchestrated, surreptitious manner through ruses involving straws, bottles, or even cigarettes, without…a court order…….from those who are merely brought in for questioning and even from children it tricks…

If Men Were Angels (#1406)

Psychopath Grady Judd never misses an opportunity for self-aggrandizement:

A [Florida] preacher…had sex with at least one underage boy and an adult man without telling them he was HIV-positive…Timothy Chaneyfield…[met] the…14-year-old boy…on a dating app before…[taking] their chats to Instagram, which [reported him] to [NCMEC]…Sheriff Grady Judd[, in his typical fashion, made the incident all about himself, using the opportunity to call someone far less dangerous than he is]…“a menace to society”…[and pretending] he [did not understand why]…authorities in Baltimore[, where Chaneyfield was when the arrest warrant was issued, did not want to play stupid cop games instead of simply letting Judd arrest him when he got back to Florida]…

Thought Control (#1501)

A Trumpist stooge declares that the First Amendment does not apply to Arkansas:

Arkansas Act 372 amends state laws by including librarians and booksellers among those who can be criminally charged [if any authoritarian Froot Loop anywhere in the world points at any book in their stock while barfing the magic words]…“harmful to minors”…Librarians and booksellers could face up to a year in prison if they’re [declared] to have “distributed” [magically abjured] material to those under the age of 18…[which] includes simply having the book sitting on a shelf…The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas…[permanently enjoined the law] in January 2025, [but wannabe censors appealed to the]…Eighth Circuit [and Trumpist henchman] L. Steven Grasz…[singlehandedly] overturn[ed] that court’s decision…[thus forcing] librarians and booksellers [to censor their entire collections or risk state violence]…

*Not the Founding Father, but an Arkansas attorney.

Welcome to the Future (#1572)

Giant fascist corporation makes it even easier for cops to lie:

Axon…has cornered the body cam market and is now…pitching products…that use [chatbots] to automate [cop] report writing…Draft One has been pitched as a time-saver…[that can] “potentially free up 25% of an officer’s time.”  Considering a lot of [cops] spend most of their time engaged in pretextual stops, this…just means [cops] will be able to violate rights more frequently with no perceivable benefit to public safety.  Then there’s the problem…[of chatbot] hallucinations…[such as the chatbot-generated] report…[that] claimed a Heber City [Utah cop] had shape-shifted into a frog…The other problem..is that [chatbot-generated reports also] generat[e] a new layer of plausible deniability.  If errors are found, cops can blame it on the algorithm…[and] if cops aren’t writing their own reports, they can’t [honest]ly claim these statements are their own under oath…

Panopticon (#1658)

There are good reasons warrantless surveillance is unconstitutional:

…in Wapello County, Iowa, the…usage policy…tells police…“DO NOT MENTION ALPR USAGE IN YOUR REPORT OR COMPLAINT UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY”…It is not just local police in small communities who are creating policies designed to obfuscate Flock usage…police in multiple states [are] told to “be as vague as permissible” about…Flock because their searches c[an] be obtained using public records requests…The [illegal] guidance…is reminiscent…[of] tha[t] on some other secretive police technologies.  For years, police tried to hide the existence of cell site simulators (popularly known as Stingrays), going as far as to drop criminal cases where it was likely that a judge would expose information about them…

The cop euphemism for lying in reports and courts about use of illegal surveillance is “parallel construction“.

Enshittification (#1660)  

Scenes from the early days of a dark age:

In January, [the mad emperor] posted two clips from a popular YouTube account [falsely claim]ing…[that] Walmart was closing hundreds of California stores…Gavin Newsom’s communications team [debunked] the posts on [Twitter, but]…the YouTube channel…[Trump parroted i]s mostly populated by sensational [computer]-generated videos that purport…to show various companies leaving California, grocery stores running out of food, and school teachers quitting en masse.  The…videos…look decent enough t[o fool chatbot-addled idiots, who don’t]…realize or care that they [are slop]…Newsom’s office…worked with YouTube to identify more than 700 accounts since January that were subsequently removed for violating the company’s terms of service through its…new support system for public figures, creators, and journalists that flags when someone’s face is used without their permission in deepfakes

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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In a few short years, the entire Western world might finally end the age of the open internet.  –  Kelsey Piper

Torture Chamber (#1445)

For a warden to be charged, there must be much more to this:

State p[igs] and [screwlords] are conducting a “potential criminal misconduct” investigation into…a Western Maryland prison after the latest in a rash of [murder]s of prisoners…on…May 20 [screws found] the body of Colin Wolf…[decomposing] inside his cell in the Roxbury [Dungeon]…Roxbury’s warden and chief of security are out…[and] 19 [screws have been given demerits, while]…eight medical staffers [have been banned] from facilities statewide…officials [are trying] to [figure out how to cover up the] homicides…[but] Wolf was the ninth [victim] this year…and the 33rd…since 2023.  [Politician] Carolyn Scruggs…wrote that…the [screws]…had violated “basic human decency”…to…[a greater] extent [than the ordinary violations of basic human decency inherent in locking human beings up in cages]…Just two weeks before Wolf’s death…Kelvin Hite…was also killed at Roxbury…

To Molest and Rape (#1577)

When will the mainstream media admit that pigs in schools are a menace?

A [typical and representative cop paid to lurk in]…New Jersey [schools in order to spy on, harass, and intimidate students has been arrested for] sexually assaulting an underage girl.  [Louis J.] Baselice…[groomed and enticed the girl by buying her] an electric scooter…a…cell phone…and…food.  [He was reported by her friends]…

Sexcrime (#1590)

Because this worked so well when it was tried next door in the UK:

[Irish politicians] seek…to [invent crim]es relating to the possession, production or distribution of extreme or violent pornography, and acts of necrophilia…Minister Jim O’Callaghan [promied the scheme by absurdly barfing]…”contributes to perpetuating misogynistic attitudes” [in a government know for misogynistic laws against abortion, sex work, etc]…

Feudalism Redux (#1605)

Most federal courts below the SCOTUS level are still doing their jobs:

…Mayday Health runs a website with information about where people can obtain abortion pills…[but] doesn’t provide abortion pill prescriptions itself…Nonetheless, South Dakota has been engaged in a monthslong First Amendment battle with the group, [absurdly claim]ing…the [First Amendment doesn’t apply to speech about]…abortion…Mayday sued…[over the] unconstitutional [censorship attempt and] U.S. District Judge Camela Theeler seems poised to agree…[as she has] issued a preliminary injunction against South Dakota enforcing the law against Mayday or against…[politician] Nancy Turbak Berry….[for] wearing a Mayday sweatshirt…with…the…[same] message…[as] on Mayday’s gas station placards…South Dakota’s abortion advertising law is a[n illegal] content-based restriction on speech…Commercial speech is generally held to receive less First Amendment protection than non-commercial speech.  But Mayday’s website is not commercial speech, as…”there is no evidence that Mayday holds an economic motivation for its advertisements…Rather, [it]…is a nonprofit organization expressing a moral belief and providing information for free”…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1622)

These things are designed to appeal to the dregs of humanity:

[Perve]rt glasses might seem like a great way of cheating on exams, [if you]…are [a moral imbecile], but…[it may result in legal] consequences …A…South Korea[n] man is facing criminal charges…after using [perve]rt glasses to cheat on a state-run fire engineer test in May.  [When] he was…[caught by the test] administrator…he…pretty much copped to the entire thing…This isn’t the first instance where [perve]rt glasses have been at the center of an academic cheating scandal, but it’s a particularly [serious] one given the context of the exam…it’s fair to say that someone’s competency could be a contributing factor in whether people live or die…

Walled Garden (#1651)

The open internet will soon be a thing of the past:

Senator Ed Markey…rolled out what he [advertises as] an “AI Accountability Agenda”…[but in reality] he wants to [put] unchecked power [to spy on and censor the internet]…into the hands of the American [government]…Two bills in the s[cheme]…move the internet toward a place where you prove your age before you read a page or say anything on it…[one is] brand[ed] COPPA 2.0…[and] lifts the age of a [restri]cted user from under 13 to under 17, then rewrites the rule that decides when a company is liable…[so] an ordinary website…has to judge whether some hypothetical reasonable person would have figured out that a visitor was under 17.  If you guess wrong, the Federal [Government] can [destroy your business].  The cheapest way to stop guessing is to card everyone at the door…Age gates…stand between a reader and everyone else’s expression, and they turn speaking up into a chore rather than a reflex…

Walled Garden (#1652)

Politicians love aping each other’s schemes while also ignoring their failure:

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signaled that a European Union–wide identity verification scheme for social media users may be coming soon…[saying] “It is up to [the government] to decide when children…can join social media”…[and] touting the European Commission’s [failed] age-verification app…In truly Orwellian fashion, von der Leyen claimed that “this is about putting power back into the hands of parents”…despite report after report suggesting that Australia’s ban is a flop…politicians in the U.S. and in the U.K. are rushing to emulate Australia.  Now, it looks like the whole of the European Union could be next…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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As a weird kid of the ’70s, I advise the weird kids of today not to trust any of your secrets to any adult who is an “authority” of any kind: not teachers, not clergy, not doctors or therapists.  If you want adult guidance, you need to find a cool, wise adult who cannot be compelled by law to tattle.  When I was a teen this was an easier decision to make, in a way; most adult authority-figures just spouted the party line, and very few pretended to be trustworthy people a troubled teen could confide in.  Plus, even if one guessed wrong about an adult’s discretion, there were no “compelled snitch” laws, so unless the wrongly-trusted adult was a complete asshole it was usually OK.  But teens of today live in a metastasizing surveillance state, and any adult in an position of authority can be threatened with violence and the destruction of their entire professional future if they refuse to aid governmental snooping into your private affairs.  I’m sorry my generational cohort failed y’all like this.  But if you have shitty parents, you’re going to have to assume that EVERYONE in loco parentis will be equally shitty.  You will need to find that rare specimen, an adult who respects your self-ownership.  And they can almost never be found in institutions.

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My supervisor…[saw a chatbot] as a digital priest whose primary purpose was to confirm that he was right and everyone else was mistaken.

The Last Shall Be First (#1523)

SCOTUS legalizes sexual assault of minor-age female athletes:

The Supreme Court…uph[e]ld…West Virginia’s and Idaho’s laws that [demand female] athletes [submit to unwanted physical examinations without parental consent]…[to] compet[e] in girls’ sports…[if someone accuses them of being transgender].  This decision has implications for 25 other states with similar laws…

As is typical in our sick society, most coverage of the story focuses on the supposed intent of the laws rather than the actual consequences to female athletes.

I Spy (#1533)

The mad emperor wants to use copaganda to wreck the medical system, establish universal surveillance, and excuse even more state violence:

The Trump [regime]’s new [mass surveillance] strategy [uses]…the [psychotic “]war[“] on [the important clinical medicine] fentanyl…[to justify] a national surveillance system [unconstitutionally] built from…[routinely-abused] prescription…[monitoring databases], toxicology results, wastewater, electronic health records, license plate scans, and [whatever other private information can be illegally gathered by cops, spooks, and goons]…the 2026 National Drug Control Strategy [threatens]…to “fully resource and empower” [Father]land Security Task Forces, “le[t chatbots kill people],” and “[violate the Privacy Act of 1974]” [in order]…to…[de facto abolish] HIPAA…[and make] patient privacy [a dead letter].  No[thing]…would prevent [the] system…from being used to monitor abortion, pregnancy, gender transition, methadone treatment, protest activity, or any other behavior a future [regime] decides to target…

Walled Garden (#1579)

The open internet is becoming a thing of the past:

Texas users of…Bluesky were [prevented from signing in without using an algorithm]…to verify their ages…[by] putting in the last four digits of their Social Security Number, inputting a credit card number or having their driver’s license scanned…the “App Store Accountability Act,” [which] requires companies that run app marketplaces like Google and Apple to verify all users’ ages…was [recently un]blocked by…[the deeply-authoritarian 5th circuit, but it does not require social media age surveillance].  Bluesky told some users who asked [tha]t the age verification [demand] was a “known bug”…

I Spy (#1604)

Thanks to fascism, this decision was stillborn:

The U.S. Supreme Court has…ruled…that “geofence warrants” count as a “search” under the Constitution and therefore trigger the Fourth Amendment’s safeguards against unreasonable searches and seizures.  The geofence warrant at issue in…Chatrie v. United States…was issued to Google…[and] led to the arrest of Okello Chatrie…[whose] lawyers argued that this police tactic amounted to…the very sort of sweeping assault on civil liberties that the Fourth Amendment was originally enshrined to protect…

Unfortunately, surveillance software from a company called Penlink, which is already owned by hundreds of cop shops and goon squads, allows pigs and goons to do this at will without having to go to court for a warrant or deal with Google.  So this is only a “win” on paper.

Aladdin’s Satellite (#1608)

Everything I read about modern work makes me happier I became a whore:

…numerous employees…spoke to Futurism about their experience with [chatbot]-obsessed bosses, relaying feelings of frustration and anger as managers and executives use the tech to barrage staff with nonsensical directives, unnecessary work, and perpetual pivoting…it’s a distinct new type of toxic work environment for the slop era.  Slate found more evidence for the phenomenon earlier this year; one worker told the publication that managers “are getting cavities in their brains” due to the tech.  In some cases, employees…felt as though their employers had started living in a completely different reality.  The workplace had become a constant battle between [actual] reality versus [chatbot-driven delusion]s — and their boss…always chose the latter…

Enshittification (#1642)

These companies need to be sued until they’re completely annihilated:

[A] coalition of [almost 400] local newspaper publishers [has] filed a federal lawsuit…against OpenAI and Microsoft…[because] the…companies systematically [plagiariz]ed copyrighted reporting…to train and develop [chatbots], including ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot, without permission or compensation…violating the Copyright Act and threatening the future of local journalism…OpenAI knowingly stripped copyright management information from publishers’ work — including author bylines, copyright notices, and terms of use information — in violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act…OpenAI founder Sam Altman…a[dmitt]ed during testimony before the British House of Lords that it would be “impossible to train [chatbots] without using copyrighted materials”…Although major national news organizations and prominent authors have previously sued OpenAI and Microsoft over similar [violation]s, the new case marks the largest coordinated legal effort by local and regional newspapers [to shut down these plagiarism machines]…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1648)

Government thugs don’t care how many lives are destroyed by their evil:

…Florida [cops] arrested a man and held him in jail for nearly three months based on a bad facial recognition result…In April 2025, a man in Jacksonville…purchased a car from someone he met in a grocery store parking lot.  When he learned the car was stolen, he reported the crime…[lazy pigs] ran [surveillance footage] through facial recognition software, which flagged Jalil Richardson…[despite the fact that he] lived in Charlotte, North Carolina—400 miles away…[and] time cards showed Richardson was at work when the suspect was selling a stolen car in Jacksonville.  But [cops didn’t care, so] Richardson was arrested in North Carolina and held for 33 days…[then] extradited to Jacksonville and held for another 53 days.  Prosecutors finally dropped the charges and released him[, but not before] he had…[l]ost…his job, his house, and custody of two of his children…

Jacksonville cops are just as psychopathically-unconcerned with the innocence of people they target as those in Detroit are.

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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Meta spent tens of billions of dollars on building the future of the internet, and all it has to show for it is a handful of bored children in the parking lot of an offbrand drive-thru restaurant.  –  James Ball

Without Let or Hindrance (#1459)

When the victim isn’t a nationally-known politician, this usually takes closer to 24 months to resolve than 24 hours:

[Democratic politician] Pete Buttigieg…and his [4-year-old] children were the [targets] of an [“]investigation[“] by Child Protective Services [because of a malicious] anonymous report…both children [were subjected to terrifying] forensic interviews where no family could be present.  Because he…[is a celebrity the ordeal was over in] twenty-four hours…”It’s not lost on me that this happened soon after we shared photos of our family on social media for Father’s Day,” Buttigieg said in his statement…

Shame, Shame (#1607)

An excellent essay on the failure of Zuckerberg’s “metaverse” fantasy:

Mark Zuckerberg was so convinced the metaverse was the next big thing that he renamed his company after it…investing more than $80bn…enough to…cover the UN’s humanitarian fundraising target for 2026—designed to support 87m desperate people worldwide—twice over…History…is littered with…major companies that bet on virtual reality…only to suffer extensive public humiliation and financial loss.  In 1995, at the peak of its powers, Nintendo launched the Virtual Boy, a [hyperbolically-marketed] 3D system…[which] was discontinued…within six months of its launch…CEOs and venture capitalists told us the future was the metaverse, which would definitely involve NFTs, the blockchain, virtual land and more…Almost overnight, all of them are now pronouncing with equal confidence that the future is, in fact, in artificial intelligence—and the story sounds familiar…But we weren’t consulted on the metaverse, either, and as it turned out that mattered a great deal more to the companies than to us.  There are limits to how far big tech moguls can impose their vision of the future…

Shame, Shame (#1609)

There is only one way to stop this: aggressive prosecution of Elon Musk:

[Elon Musk] has long promoted [MechaHitler] as a [more vulgar] kind of chatbot…the [reason he] has leaned so hard into that strategy despite [lawsuits, criminal charges and] PR disasters…[is] that NSFW activities account for “well over half” of [MechaHitler]’s traffic …That includes using [MechaHitler] to generate actual porn, as well as “adult role-play chats” and “huge volumes of requests for erotica.”  [MechaHitler] users have even apparently discovered that it’s cheaper to channel such requests through the company’s models intended for writing code…Some employees [are] less than thrilled with being assigned to work on “Ani,” [which is basically MechaHitler in drag].  Others [are]…”embarrassed and disturbed” by [MechaHitler creating]…sexualized images of…children…[unfortunately, the Trump regime doesn’t care and keeps shoveling billions into Musk’s money bin]…

Walled Garden (#1632)

The harder Australia tries to “crack down”, the more foolish it will look:

Australia’s prime minister vowed…to [magically] bullet-proof laws [enforc]ing a social ​media ban for under-16s as the government prepares legal action against platforms [for being unable to do the impossible]…The country’s [asinine] six-month-old experiment is being closely watched by many [wannabe censors] seeking to emulate it [as an excuse for mass surveillance of the internet].  Britain this month said it planned [to pratfall even hard]er [by futilely applying the attempt to] gaming and live-streaming platforms…also…85% of Australians aged 12 to 15 were still using social media three months after the ban took effect, according to a study of 408 adolescents…[but nitwits claim this is] a teething period…and teenagers [will surely start obeying] the [authoritarian] rules [any day now]…

Mad Libs (#1636)

Ford was shocked to discover that autocomplete can’t autocomplete cars:

Ford ha[d]…to rehir[e] hundreds of human workers after it…fired…[them under the idiotic delusion that chatbots could do their jobs.  It re]hired over 350 veteran engineers…over the past three years in order to [correct] mistakes made by automated systems…[which] cost the company billions of dollars…Ford had been increasingly relying on [computerized] inspection systems…[only to discover] that [computer programs can’t think]…After rehiring [actual] engineers, Ford experienced a marked improvement in its quality standards…[surprising no one who isn’t a complete fool.  Yet]…it [still refuses to] abandon its [attempts to replace humans]…

Mad Libs (#1649)

Medical privacy is going the way of the dodo:

…[Hospitals are attempting to] use…[chatbots] to detect or predict the risk of [domestic violence] in clinical notes, imaging reports, and other types of…data…The rationale is [supposed]ly well-intentioned…[because] only about 7% of [victims are willing to talk about it with strangers]…in clinical settings…However, [adults have the right]…to disclose [or not disclose private details of their lives] on their own terms…at a time and place that is right for them…[an algorithm] that detects [the “]risk[” of domestic violence violates that right.  Furthermore]…patients are not told that they are being screened, and there is no option…that allows [them] to opt out.  Only patients who are [informed of the snooping]…will know…[that their complex lives have been reduced and flattened into a “]score[” which becomes a permanent part of]…their medical record…[algorithm pushers pretend] the score is…only…available to the care team[, but that ship sailed long ago]…

Censorship Ascendant (#1651)

Goons are now being dispatched to intimidate people for wrongthink:

After two [of Trump’s goons] tracked down a Syracuse woman…to [threaten] her [because she was mean to their gang on] social media…they went to Rochester to [threaten] David Streever…[who] was with his seven-year-old daughter at Moominworld in Finland…[because he wasn’t there, the goons threatened] Streever’s wife [instead, because he had dared to criticize their former boss]…Todd Lyons [in January.  But after]…Streever and daughter Helen flew back to New York…[on June 25th, the goons tracked him] to [his] hotel, where they [would have barged in on him at 10 PM had]…the hotel staff…not [had the good sense to refuse to answer any questions about them]…Streever [later read] about [the same goons]…similar[ly threate]ning…Paigelynne Gonyea…[recognizing them from images captured by his doorbell camera.  He has contacted] his credit card company to start an investigation of how the [goons discovered which hotel he would be in and when]…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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