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Posts Tagged ‘New York’

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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I’ve always believed that music, like space, is about exploration.  –  William Shatner

Though this Irving Berlin song (provided by Rick Horowitz) is about Hitler, it has taken on a new meaning in our day.  The links above it were provided by Anarres Ansible, Jesse Walker, Ryan Marino, Kevin Wilson, Mike Stabile, Nun Ya, and Savannah Sly, in that order.

From the Archives

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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[Zuckerberg]’s vision of the future may be antisocial and bleak, but we have the power to reject that reality.  –  Amanda Silberling

Welcome to the Future (#1500)

Surveillance, propaganda-spouting, and thought-crippling in a repurposed sex doll:

A [repurposed sex doll] is being [synchronized with a chatbot and fobbed off on American Indian students]…at Salamanca high school in…New York…The robot, [call]ed Sally, was…[built by] Realbotix, formerly Tokens.com, [which]…purchased [sex-doll manufacturer] Simulacra…in April 2024…Realbotix [l]ied [that it did not buy] the sex doll company [despite the acquisition being public record], and denied…that the dolls – [which are obviously repurposed sex dolls to anyone with eyes] – are re[purposed sex dolls]…Melinda Pearson…of the New York State United Teachers…said…“The answer to the challenges in education is not more screens, it’s not more algorithms, not more robots. What we need in our schools right now are more caring adults and more human connection”…

Note they aren’t trying this in a school for white kids.  See also “Mad Libs” below.

Welcome to the Future (#1551)

Another of the many reasons not to play with chatbots:

A trove of chat logs and projects created with Anthropic’s Claude [chatbot]…have been left exposed to Google, making them searchable to anyone on the web…when Claude users opt…to distribute a given chat or project to colleagues or associates using the chatbot’s “share” feature…[the program] notes that sharing will create a “public” link, and “anyone with the link can view.”  The warning, though, doesn’t alert users that shared content could wind up being indexed by a search engine…Such artifacts…include…a detailed medical report of a real patient, clinical trial results that include…patient names, documents sharing the names and phone numbers of primary school-aged children…and employee reviews that include…personal information…This isn’t the first time this has happened at Anthropic…and…[both] ChatGPT and [Mechahitler] chat logs…have [been] discover[ed] in Google…

Thought Control (#1565)

The logical endpoint to Florida’s censorship jihad:

Florida has been ground zero for book bans in the United States…under…[censorship] laws…[which demand banning] any book [even] a single [Froot Loop points at, even if they aren’t a] resident…of [the] district…[now the lunatics who run Clay County are] considering…eliminating school libraries altogether…[because although it] has removed more books than…any [other] district in the state…[that still isn’t enough to satisfy their crazed lust for thought control.  These people are so stupid they actually can’t grasp that the reason]…the circulation rates [of their libraries] are less than in most schools—less than one checkout a day…[is because there aren’t enough books left to check out.  And yet local politicians]…are frustrated by the inefficiency of [the censorship process]…their discussion centered not on whether to ban books but on how to do it faster…when asked what might replace the library space…[politicians absurdly suggested “]school stores[“]…and [“]computer labs[“]…

Not To Be Taken Internally (#1641)

Apparently this nitwit never heard of heavy metal poisoning:

[Online idiot] Connor Murphy [poisoned himself by] injecting gold into his body [because he imagined he would] gain “superhuman” powers…he…also [believed he was]…increas[ing] his attractiveness [by deforming his head into a distorted parallelepiped] as…[part of “]looksmaxxing[“.  One of his disciples described the cognitive damage done by toxic metal injection as]…“tapp[ing] into a level of consciousness that most people never will”…Police in Thailand were…called to [his] rental…after complaints of a man screaming inside, where they…found him in an “agitated” state.  He…fle[d] the [cops and then jumped in]…a…[nearby] lake [and drowned himself]…

Is there some reason this dude wanted to look like Sinestro?  And what are those neck lumps?  Was he carrying acorns in there?

Mad Libs (#1650)

Training kids not to think from an early age:

[Facebook] is working on a…storytelling [chatbot] called StoryKit, which creates [autocomplete]-generated children’s stories with custom characters, settings, lessons, and music.  As the App Store listing assures parents, “You don’t need to write a single word.”  At last, a tech company has found a way to outsource humanity’s oldest pastime: using our imaginations…To generate a story in the app, [nitwits] first select a character…by “[snapping] a photo of their favorite toy or person”…then…choose a lesson…it could be a lot worse.  [Facebook] regularly ships boneheaded ideas like Instagram deepfake generators…“pervert glasses”…[and] virtual reality work meetings…but it has always been possible to survive bedtime without using an inherently uncreative technology that calculates the most predictable response to a prompt…Perhaps the moral of the story here is that we can choose not to live in a world where children are raised on bedtime stories written by large language models…

Pyrrhic Victory (Nosey Parkers)

These things need to be banned entirely:

The promoter behind some of the biggest comic and entertainment conventions in the UK has banned [pervert] glasses from its events to stop…secret filming…of guests and attendees.  Monopoly Events said a number of guests had told the company they would be reluctant to appear at Comic-Con shows again after cases of recordings taking place without their knowledge.  The ban is [also] applicable to…any other “wearable recording devices”.  Attendees caught using the devices will be asked to leave the convention…Earlier this week the ferry operator CalMac paused bridge visits on its vessels after a passenger used [perve]rt glasses…without permission…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1658)

Every weapon eventually begets a defense:

A growing number of eyewear brands are developing glasses designed to interfere with facial recognition systems and surveillance cameras,…Solir Optics…sells “anti-facial recognition” sunglasses priced between $70 and $100…[which] are designed to block a broader range of light, including infrared and blue light…[so as to] interfere with retinal scans…Zenni Optical is also offering a lens coating called “ID Guard,” which…adds a pink tint to the surface of the lenses that reflects infrared light used by some facial recognition cameras…[and designer] Kerin Rose Gold…created Handle With Care, a[n overpriced] line…[which] use[s] black-and-white patterns intended to disrupt the sensors used by some facial recognition systems…

 

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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Welcome to the future.  –  Joel Feder

Pyrrhic Victory (#1620)

The backlash isn’t nearly severe enough yet:

[Pervert] Glasses…are so [morally repugnant] that [even] some [who were sociopathic enough to buy them] are now leaving their expensive [gewgaw]s at home…men…have been using the glasses to…non-consensually…capture footage of…women [they] attempt…to hit on…then post[ing them] online…Some…have even attempted to extort victims of covert recordings for cash.  That’s on top of serious…privacy breaches by [Facebook]…and…the simple fact that [normal] people just really don’t like the idea of the world’s largest [psychopath collective]…facilitating abuse and surveillance in this way…[fortunately] the intensity of the [online] response [has] made [even moral imbeciles] think twice…[about being publicly recognized as] a predator or a creep…

Panopticon (#1643)

Here’s hoping Flock backlash will snowball:

The Los Angeles Police Department is ending its agreement with Flock…surveillance…”This contract is not being renewed because of serious concerns around civil liberties and civil rights issues, particularly around privacy and the data that is being collected from these cameras,” [oinked a spokespig, but in reality cops]…are continuing discussions with Flock…[in order to] revis[e the contact to give]…LAPD…[more control of the] data…

Panopticon (#1646)

If this guy had brown skin, he’d probably be dead now:

…On an otherwise normal Sunday afternoon in late June, I’d decided to take the…Range Rover I was testing that week out to run some errands…and [ended up] surrounded by police…in a Kohl’s parking lot in suburban Minnesota…after a tense hour…the [cops finally admitted they] had been tracking me for days using Flock…cameras…because they thought I’d stolen the Range Rover…[due to] a simple data error made 2,000 miles away in California…that Flock’s [cop-siccing chatbot] was unable to handle…

Panopticon (#1648)

In surveillance, fascism beats communism hands down:

Cops across [California] accessed the Orange County Sheriff’s Department’s…Flock S[urveillance]…ALPR…system at least 145 times to track protesters within the span of a year and seven months…Eleven [cop shops]…as far as…400 miles away, searched for protesters…on or around dates when protests against ICE were held…Cops are required by state law to list the reason for [warrantless] searching…but the[y]…have been [trained to “be as vague as permissible” so most “reasons” are]…vague one-word responses…A Flock [mouthpiece absurdly barfed]…“leverage”…[and] “crimes” [at reporters]…and…OCSD…[idiotically denied the word “protest” means] Flock is…used to track protesters…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1651) 

This is only the beginning:

An internal Madison Square Garden database…a[ssigns]…“risk [scores” to]…roughly 400 celebrities…[out of] 39,539 entries in the so-called “talent” database…which…is part of a much larger trove of documents published last month by ShinyHunters, a[n anti-fascist] hacker collective…a celebrity…marked with a risk score…means “you’ve done something [on]…social media…that has caught the attention of the wrong people”…People…are ranked on a scale…“Flag” is the lowest…next is “low risk” [including] Falco, [Tracy] Morgan, and Ben Stiller…After that is “medium risk” [including] Lily Allen, her ex David Harbour, and…country singer Morgan Wallen) and “high risk” (the hip-hop stars Freddie Gibbs, Lil Jon, DaBaby, and A Boogie Wit da Hoodie).  The rapper Lil Tjay…is “BANNED FROM MSG”…The…database also tracks some celebrities’ race, gender identity, and sexual orientation; 93 entries are marked as “LGBTQIA”…

Mad Libs (#1654)

Which is greater, Zuckerberg’s greed or his psychopathy?

[Facebook] quietly announced that [its pervert] glasses’ Conversation Focus feature will soon be limited to three hours of use per month, unless [owner is willing to] pay for a $19.99 M[onthly] subscription…The Conversation Focus feature, which amplifies the voice of [nearby people so as to facilitate eavesdropping]…runs on-device, using the chips inside the glasses…[which don’t] require an internet connection …[the feature] isn’t as [morally repugnant]…as…facial recognition [but Zuckerberg is apparently banking on the moral imbeciles who buy these surveillance tools wanting to hear while they leer]…

Stalkers in Blue (#1656)

With warrantless surveillance, no woman is safe from cops:

A [Florida cop named Lamar Roman sped] 70 MPH down a two-lane highway…over a bridge in the Florida Keys…passe[d two] dump truck[s] in a no-passing zone…[and] nearly caus[ed] a head-on collision…[while stal]king and chasing a woman that he met and harassed on the set of the…TV…show Bad Monkey, [for] which he had worked a security detail shift…After…catcalling her and harassing her for her full name and Instagram details, the [dangerous sleazebag] illegally looked up her vehicle information on DAVID, a Florida Department of Motor Vehicles database for [cops]…He then put her license plate details on a surveillance “hotlist,” meaning he would get a notification in real time anytime she drove by an A[LPR]…Roman…was caught and arrested in March…[his victim] told investigators that she tried to be “standoffish” to deter him…[but] Roman would not leave [her] alone….[and threatened] to pull [her] over…in the [future]…

 

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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This technology is a free, easily accessible weapon put into the hands of the worst people in the world.  –  “Jane Doe 4”

Shame, Shame (#1504)

It’s only a year since Zuckerberg was forced by public outcry to cancel this:

[Facebook has] launched its inaugural [CGI] model…in…[an] effort to compete with the likes of…GPT Images…and Google’s [moronically-named] Nano Banana 2 in the [slop] race [to the bottom].  The new model, called Muse Image, [has been embedded like a tick] into the Instagram app…public Instagram profiles are now automatically opted into being [slop] fodder for [strangers.  In a typical display of cluelessness, Zuckerberg is trying to sell this as a good thing]…If you want to avoid [your personal pictures being turned into creepy cartoon porn], you’ll have to dig into the app’s settings…

Facebook has already backed down (again) after being threatened with lawsuits from celebrities’ agents.

Neither Addiction Nor Epidemic (#1550)

Blaming bad behavior on an imaginary “addiction” is the opposite of admitting responsibility:

A Philadelphia man who planted hidden cameras inside public bathrooms on the Ocean City Boardwalk was sentenced to five years of probation…Harold Perkins…will be required to…undergo…mental counseling, hav[e] no [unsupervised] contact with children…and receiv[e] treatment for sexual addiction [even though there is no such thing]…

Enshittification (#1620)

It won’t be long until Google becomes completely useless:

For decades, publishers have done everything in their power…to rank as highly in Google Search as possible…[because] traffic from the search engine was their single greatest source of audience and, as a result, revenue.  Now though, a handful of influential players in the digital media ecosystem have begun…laying the groundwork for what was once unthinkable:  removing themselves from Google Search…Beginning Sept. 15, all new websites signing up for Cloudflare…will have the default settings…set to block “multi-purpose crawlers”…mean[ing] that any crawler that scrapes for both search indexing and [chatbot] training will be turned away at the door, unless the site owner decides otherwise…the primary, unnamed target of this action is Google, which infamously uses one crawler to both index sites and train its [chatbots]…forc[ing] publishers to make an impossible choice: They either allow…Google to scrape their content to…regurgitat[e] their data [in “AI summaries”] without compensation; or they shut off both functions and disappear from Google Search…

Stalkers in Blue (#1635)

Warrantless surveillance is abusive by its very nature:

A…Milwaukee [cop who was supposedly] investigating a [crony]’s misuse of…Flock license plate reader[s actually]…misus[ed] it himself…Tehrangi Chapman…[ab]used the technology to stalk a victim and [her] family…and a[lso hid] a GPS device on [her] vehicle…[but the] audit…which…[exposed] Josue Ayala…[also] revealed…Chapman[‘s abuse despite his attempts to cover up by entering]…“test” and “training” [in the] justification [field]…

To Molest and Rape (#1650)

Cops should not be allowed anywhere near legal minors:

A…[typical and representative] NYPD [cop named]…Joshua Acosta…was a[rrested and]…charged…with…rap[ing a minor relative repeatedly over a five year period, starting when she was under 13, but NYPD thought the most important piece of]…information was [that he wasn’t wearing his magical clown suit at the moment of penetration]…

Shame, Shame (#1652)

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

…a proposed class action lawsuit [against MechaHitler has now been] expanded…[because Elon Musk is] shielding child predators by obstructing police investigations into [MechaHitler]-generated child [porn].  In March, a girl’s stepfather [killed himself] after cops discovered that he had used [MechaHitler] to create 7,000 sexually explicit images using one photo taken when his stepdaughter was 11 years old…[including] extreme images depicting incest and rape…the c[hatbot]’s child safety system only intervened after the man input a prompt for “gang rape”…which alerted [NCMEC].  Yet [even]…then…[Musk] repeatedly refused to help cops or NCMEC identify the user, [instead]…“obstruct[ing] this investigation at every turn”.  Eventually, the stepfather was arrested…and…two days after…release…on bail, he shot himself…A[pparent]ly, [Musk] avoids sharing this information to prioritize profits over child safety…and [pretends the] child sex images [do not exist]…In addition to adding more victims…lawyers also added Stability AI as a defendant…[because its] model…“serve[s] as the basis for…‘nudify’ apps” [including MechaHitler]…

The Cop Myth (#1654)

Cops and “journalists” conspire to hide a murderer’s identity and culpability:

A [New Hampshire cop murdered his neighbor]…Jack Hutchings…[in the street in front of]…his young children…[cops are hiding the identity of] the [murderer and are trying to work out a way to pretend it was]…self-defense…

 

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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This is worse than a game of whack-a-mole.  –  Judge Katherine Failla

Ashley Madison (#571)

Is this an Ashley Madison for gay men?

…Goose [is] a [new] dating and friendship app for gay men with the slogan “for the boys,” which allows users to “meet guys through the life you already have”…[but] the…[Instagram] accounts [promoting it] were [all] created in May [or June]…have fewer than 10 posts…a high following-to-follower ratio…and…[CGI] avatars…Created by…influencer Derek Chadwick…Goose positions itself as a Grindr alternative for gay men who want to build lasting relationships…[but it appears to be infested with bot] accounts…[which] frequently comment on each other’s photos, [us]ing the same [words] and…emojis…

Legislators Gone Wild (#1271) 

In which the fanatical, unhinged Guinasso, his pet fantasist, and Morality in Media, all demonstrate their total lack of ethics:

Morality in Media…and [fanatical anti-sex lawyer Jason Guinasso]…apparently can’t make it through a filing without fabricating citations — and then doubling down when caught…[Morality in Media’s] lawyers…were supposed to review [Guinasso’s work] and then didn’t…when the[ir intended victims, Nevada’s Chicken Ranch brothel, point]ed out th[at their filings had been written by a chatbot and therefore contained the usual] hallucinated citations, [the] lawyers tried to attack the defendant and play down the hallucinations…in a filing with more hallucinated citations…Guinasso [tried to use his fucked-up personal life as an excuse for committing an offense for which he should be disbarred, but Morality in Media had]…six…attorneys o[f it own who]…were supposed to double-check his citations…So…the judge order[ed] the plaintiffs lawyers…and…Guinasso…to pay the defendant’s legal fees…

The Last Shall Be First (#1568)

Judges need to start presenting a united front against dictatorial abuses:

…a federal judge [has] granted patients’ request to block the [In]justice Department from seeking or obtaining invasive patient information about transgender minors…in New York City.  It was the first such ruling to block DOJ’s escalated effort to obtain the information through grand jury subpoenas as part of the Trump [regime]’s broader effort to “reduce or eliminate” such care altogether …Judge Katherine Failla [granted] the classwide temporary restraining order…because…the…DOJ’s request “shocks the conscience” by seeking the “most personal and sensitive information a medical provider could hold” without providing “any legitimate government interest“…the only reason the patients even knew the government was [surreptitiously] seeking this information…was due to NYU Langone’s view that New York law required it to inform patients…

Counterfeit Comfort (#1577)

If you’re a fan of “sex offender” registration, meet one of your bedfellows:

A [Texas] woman [was arrested and] charged…[for using] the internet to harass a [man condemned by the state to the “]sex offender[” registry] and his family…Darien Lombrana is…out on bond after being charged with harassment [by] post[ing] about the family “over and over” on social media sites and community pages…she posted their address online with the [specific] intent to…harm…[his] children…Lombrana’s actions have caused one family member to lose a job, another to get rejected from a college program, and another to get assaulted…

If Men Were Angels (#1592)

Religious communities very often punish the victims instead of the rapists:

The…[Old Apostolic Lutheran C]hurch…sets itself apart from the world and teaches that even the most [heinous crimes] can be…not just forgiven, but [memory-holed] and never spoken of again.  So…[when] a rural Wyoming…man…sexually abus[ed] young girls hundreds of times in the pews during Sunday services…the preacher…never reported it to police…[but] instead…told the man to seek therapy.  In Minnesota, a man…[regularly molested] his daughter and son at night [starting] around [age]…12.  He and his siblings…were sexually abused themselves, and then he repeated the abuse with his own children.  And in Washington state, preachers [let] a member of their congregation…sexually abuse…young boys [for years]…the OALC…teaches its followers that heaven is reserved just for them…[and shifts] the burden of sin…from the person who committed the act to the person who refuses to let the matter rest…one of the biggest obstacles to breaking the cycle is the way church members move among congregations spread across the U.S. and Canada, often hundreds of miles apart but tightly bound by large, multigenerational family networks…elders from…the…mother congregation in Sweden…[vomit the cop excuse “]isolated incidents[” at victims]…

Mad Libs (#1644)

Schadenfreude is even sweeter when the bad outcome was 100% predictable:

Companies across tech, entertainment, banking, and many other industries are throttling their employees’ [chatbot] use…and pleading with workers to [think for themselves very slightly more] to stop [chatbot] costs from spiraling out of control…The news shows the looming fallout from companies [forcing employees to train chatbots in hope of eventually eliminating their positions], and [chatbot push]ers’ moves to [use-based] charge[s]…rather than a flat fee…Citi, for example, has shut off access to Claude’s and ChatGPT’s latest models entirely…[and] is…monitoring daily Copilot usage…“Crazy, we go from no more leaderboard to actual usage limits in two weeks,” one Amazon employee said…

The Cop Myth (#1644)

When it’s unauthorized by boss hogs, ramming another vehicle is described honestly instead of euphemized as “a PIT maneuver”:

A Hermitage [Pennsylvania cop] is [actually] facing…charges [because] he intentionally rammed a[nother] vehicle, injuring multiple people inside…Derek Jeziorkowski…[started] chasing a vehicle…[because he claimed one of the passengers was mean to] his son at…Walmart…the victims turned around to try to escape [so] Jeziorkowski [made an illegal U-turn] and continued to [chase] them…Jeziorkowski [then]…pulled in front of the victim[s’] vehicle…[and] rammed…[it], causing it to run off the road…[hit] a…[guy] wire [and] a tree[, then] flip…over onto its roof…[as the] four victims [(one adult and three teens) lay injured, the deranged]…Jeziorkowski went up to the[m] and [started screaming], “This is what happens when you fuck around with my kid,” [bizarrely adding] “You would do the same thing if it was your kid” [despite having just assaulted three kids in a shockingly-violent manner]…Jeziorkowski has been [rewarded with a paid vacation, and the cop shop is hiding his picture]…

 

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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If there are no punishments for violating someone’s rights, they’re not really rights at all.  –  Hemant Mehta

Size Matters

The only religion which it’s actually free to practice in the US is Christianity:

The Supreme Court has made it official: Religious freedom only applies if you’re a conservative Christian…[by] rul[ing] 6-3…that a Rastafarian man whose hair was cut off against his will—violating his religious beliefs—had no legal remedies available to him…Damon Landor…hadn’t cut his hair in decades because he follows the Nazarite vow—which includes a reference to Numbers 6:5: “… No razor may be used on their head… they must let their hair grow long.”  He continued that vow even after entering two Louisiana jails in 2020, for a five-month sentence…[but] when he was transferred to a third [dungeon]…Landor worried they might try to cut his hair to fit in with [victim subjugation] policies, so he showed [screws] paperwork [of]…The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000…[which] says prisons that receive federal funding can’t violate someone’s religious beliefs unless there’s a really good reason for it…They threw his paperwork in the trash, handcuffed him to a chair, and shaved off his hair.  He later sued…both the prison and the individual [screw]s for violating his rights…[but] writing for the majority, Justice Neil Gorsuch said [because the screws didn’t want to follow the law]…they couldn’t be held accountable…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1301) 

This is only the beginning:

Madison Square Garden compiled a list of activists who have publicly criticized [its] use of facial recognition…in…a document…accessible to [anyon]e in…the company…MSG[‘s owner] Jim Dolan[, who also owns Radio City Music Hall]…has…a reputation for being pernicious against his perceived enemies, [and] is…keeping track of specific people who take issue with [his creepy surveillance]…The…list…[includes] three people who have criticized MSG’s use of facial recognition: Evan Greer…of…Fight for the Future; Albert Fox Cahn…of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project…and…[Adam] Schwartz…of [EFF, and]…includes background information…social media handles and…screenshots of [criticism]…“The fact that MSG is creating dossiers on activists who say things they don’t like shows exactly why private companies should not be allowed to use dangerous surveillance technologies like facial recognition,” [said] Greer…“Given their recent treatment of a trans woman trying to use the bathroom…I’m also not surprised they misgendered me”…

Censorship Ascendant (#1529)

Goons are now being dispatched to intimidate people for wrongthink:

Two…[ICE goons threaten]ed…a Syracuse [New York] woman…[in an attempt] to [censor her] social media account[, claiming she was mean to them]…PaigeLynne Gonyea said she believes they [we]re referring to a January post where she named the [goon] who [murdered] protester Renee Good.  Gonyea was working as a poll worker…at the Central Library…when [the goons showed up].  She…invited them in[side because]…she did not want to meet them outside alone…The [goons] handed [her] a form letter [full of Trumpist] threats…[of] prosecution…“They tried to scare me into signing it”…she said…she does not intend to delete her post…[but instead contacted] the attorney general’s office…[her US representative, the] Mayor [of Syracuse] and the New York Civil Liberties Union…

Only Rights Can Stop the Wrongs (#1532)

Never forget that this started with censorship of internet porn:

Anastasia Ovsyannikova…has been detained [in Russia for being] on [OnlyFans]…She gained fame through her collaborations with Diana Shurygina, wh[o]…was [also] arrested in Moscow earlier this month [when cops staged a theatrical raid] on her apartment and [stole] cameras and [other] filming equipment…the…p[er]secution is part of a growing wave of cases targeting women over online adult content.  In a separate case, a woman named Anastasia F. was detained in Yekaterinburg on similar charges [for] posting explicit content on OnlyFans…The Kremlin has for several years sought to position the country as more [puritanical]…But this stance hardened a[s part of its propaganda campaign to draw attention away from its disastrous] invasion of Ukraine in February 2022…

Walled Garden (#1595)

Western nations are competing to out-China China:

[Politicians have]…unveil[ed] a [uniparty collaboration] on [the massive internet surveillance and censorship bill named]…KOSA…[which] now…includes age verification for [any website that any politician points at while belching “]sexually explicit[“, plus provisians allowing the government to control the design of] video game[s] and…social media…platforms…[plus threats to attack]…platforms [which refuse] to silence users [enough for politicians’ tastes]…

The Vultures Descend (#1645)

This was always the endgame, regardless of claims to the contrary:

In its quest to outlaw abortion across the country, the [forced birth] movement has [long courted the wishy-washy by claiming they want]…women who get the procedure…spared punishment, while doctors and others who make it available should be p[ersecuted]…But a growing number of [forced-birth fanatics] are starting to [drop the mask,] argu[ing] that the only way to stop women from ending their pregnancies [is] to arrest them.  The [unmasking] is coming as [forced-birth fanatics] express frustration that the number of abortions happening now is higher than [before] Roe v. Wade was overturned, largely because [women don’t want fanatical strangers controlling their bodies]…

Mad Libs (#1649)

Reason needs to be far more skeptical of the outlandish claims of chatbot pushers:

…Utah has passed several laws and initiatives to [funnel]…healthcare [money into the hands of chatbot purveyors], including a[n ill-considered scheme] launched earlier this year to allow…chatbots to fill prescriptions…[via a fascist collaboration named] Doctronic…[so far] the project [only allows algorithmic refills of ongoing]…prescriptions and medication for asthma, diabetes, and other c[hronic] health conditions. Patients still need to visit a[n actual] doctor for new prescriptions…but…[as AMA executive John Whyte points out] “It’s really a concern about a slippery slope. Do we start here with prescriptions, then all of a sudden, is it going to lead to diagnostic tests?”…Doctronic [claims] its platform is guided by the opinions of board-certified physicians[, but the exact same statement is made by insurance companies about the medical washouts whom they employ to deny claims]…

 

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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They were having a pancake and sushi luncheon.

I was not familiar with Ibrahim’s work, but I quite liked this piece Jesse Walker selected to accompany his obituary.  The other links above the video were provided by IncarcerNation, Nun Ya, Mike Siegel, T. Greg Doucette, Radley Balko, Missy Mariposa, and IncarcerNation again, in that order.

From the Archives

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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