Steve Randy Waldman
@interfluidity.com
a thing i like about Spanish is it is sin to go without.
October 12, 2026 at 10:04 PM
a thing i like about Spanish is it is sin to go without.
in general which party wants a deal more is often a function of the terms
of the deal.
of the deal.
October 12, 2026 at 9:34 PM
in general which party wants a deal more is often a function of the terms
of the deal.
of the deal.
Reposted by Steve Randy Waldman
Fellow Baltimore Co. residents, this is your reminder that tomorrow, October 13th, there will be a county council meeting that includes public input regarding 400 million dollars in tax breaks for the "Alt Right" (Thiel associate Palmer Luckey) owned company Anduril.
October 12, 2026 at 2:28 PM
Fellow Baltimore Co. residents, this is your reminder that tomorrow, October 13th, there will be a county council meeting that includes public input regarding 400 million dollars in tax breaks for the "Alt Right" (Thiel associate Palmer Luckey) owned company Anduril.
of course eminent domain would be a realization event.
is there anyone thinking/writing about the actual mechanics of disentangling the US government from elon musk?
October 12, 2026 at 9:08 PM
of course eminent domain would be a realization event.
in terms of philosophy of mind, i think it reasonable that the emergence of contemporary AI systems might shift ones priors towards a consciousness-is-epiphenomenal, free-will-is-an-illusion position, though i find that i resist that.
October 12, 2026 at 6:58 PM
in terms of philosophy of mind, i think it reasonable that the emergence of contemporary AI systems might shift ones priors towards a consciousness-is-epiphenomenal, free-will-is-an-illusion position, though i find that i resist that.
i was an overseas voter today. first time. i faxed my ballot.
October 12, 2026 at 6:54 PM
i was an overseas voter today. first time. i faxed my ballot.
i'm sympathetic to experimenting more with citizen's assemblies, but on social security i find myself concerned that even well meaning structurers of such an assembly would assemble a diverse panel of experts all of whom would misunderstand the paucity of meaning in fiscal accounting numbers.
“Of the various fiscal challenges faced by America, the one the public feels most keenly is the looming crisis in Social Security,” says Glenn Hubbard. In a guest essay, the economics professor sets out how a citizens’ assembly might help solve it
America needs a citizens’ assembly to reform Social Security
With politicians flailing, it’s worth trying an approach that has worked in Europe, argues Glenn Hubbard
bit.ly
October 12, 2026 at 3:34 PM
i'm sympathetic to experimenting more with citizen's assemblies, but on social security i find myself concerned that even well meaning structurers of such an assembly would assemble a diverse panel of experts all of whom would misunderstand the paucity of meaning in fiscal accounting numbers.
liberalism without democracy yields plutocracy which destroys liberalism. if you are a liberal, you must desperately strive for a version of democracy that renders liberalism stable, and it’s a hard problem. if you favor liberalism at the expense of democracy, you’re either Peter Thiel or his serf.
October 12, 2026 at 2:45 PM
liberalism without democracy yields plutocracy which destroys liberalism. if you are a liberal, you must desperately strive for a version of democracy that renders liberalism stable, and it’s a hard problem. if you favor liberalism at the expense of democracy, you’re either Peter Thiel or his serf.
o ye doomscroll of what next must we despair?
October 12, 2026 at 2:19 PM
o ye doomscroll of what next must we despair?
“‘Scooby Doo ideology’ - the idea that the economy would have succeeded were it not for those meddling kids.” [e.g. regulators] @chrisdillow.bsky.social chrisdillow.substack.com/p/the-wrong-...
The Wrong Way
Kemi Badenoch’s proposals for reviving the UK economy highlight some of the blindspots of the political elite.
chrisdillow.substack.com
October 12, 2026 at 12:17 PM
“‘Scooby Doo ideology’ - the idea that the economy would have succeeded were it not for those meddling kids.” [e.g. regulators] @chrisdillow.bsky.social chrisdillow.substack.com/p/the-wrong-...
Reposted by Steve Randy Waldman
It's annoying that the purported Pro Patriotic parties of the populist right in the West and to a significant extent foreign ploys by an adversarial regime designed to weaken their host nations, but it'll work in large part because the audience for this are stupid people disconnected from the facts.
Ukraine took out 2 huge data centers, and just like that--POOF! Pro-Trump/MAGA posts on US social media plummeted. Same happened to posts boosting Germany's far-right AfD.
The primary function of those Bots is to boost groups Putin believes will destabilize the west.
#USDemocracy #Voices4Victory
The primary function of those Bots is to boost groups Putin believes will destabilize the west.
#USDemocracy #Voices4Victory
Russia's Yandex bot traffic nearly eliminated overnight after Ukraine drone strikes cripple multiple of 'Russia's Google' data centers — Ukraine intensifies bombing of Yandex data centers in response ...
The world is getting a break from Russian bots thanks to Kyiv.
www.tomshardware.com
October 12, 2026 at 4:40 AM
It's annoying that the purported Pro Patriotic parties of the populist right in the West and to a significant extent foreign ploys by an adversarial regime designed to weaken their host nations, but it'll work in large part because the audience for this are stupid people disconnected from the facts.
“craft defined as caring about the quality of output (independent of the tools used to generate the output) is more important than ever.” @zachleat.com www.zachleat.com/web/ai-websi...
“AI, make the website good”—zachleat.com
A post by Zach Leatherman (zachleat)
www.zachleat.com
October 12, 2026 at 1:18 AM
“craft defined as caring about the quality of output (independent of the tools used to generate the output) is more important than ever.” @zachleat.com www.zachleat.com/web/ai-websi...
the “hyperscalers” may be about “artificial intelligence”, but in practice what we have massively scaled up for the last decade plus is collective stupidity.
October 12, 2026 at 12:06 AM
the “hyperscalers” may be about “artificial intelligence”, but in practice what we have massively scaled up for the last decade plus is collective stupidity.
people you don’t actually know are fictional characters to you even if their name and certain details you understand correlate with someone “real”. interests competes to write self-serving narratives that will influence your behavior from the raw material of these fictions we mistake for reality.
October 11, 2026 at 11:42 PM
people you don’t actually know are fictional characters to you even if their name and certain details you understand correlate with someone “real”. interests competes to write self-serving narratives that will influence your behavior from the raw material of these fictions we mistake for reality.
i hear the phrase “national liberation” and i think be careful what you liberate.
October 11, 2026 at 11:07 AM
i hear the phrase “national liberation” and i think be careful what you liberate.
“scientific” debates about where “consciousness” exists (or does not exist) tend to be about as fruitful as scientific debates on the existence of god. they are just a category error.
October 11, 2026 at 9:52 AM
“scientific” debates about where “consciousness” exists (or does not exist) tend to be about as fruitful as scientific debates on the existence of god. they are just a category error.
Reposted by Steve Randy Waldman
Skyboxes, maybe...maybe having a community I like to inhabit and support by living there is a classist attitude on my part. When people threaten to leave due to tax laws I say don't let the door hit ya, taxes are the price of civilization and you are welcome to not participate elsewhere.
October 9, 2026 at 6:49 PM
Skyboxes, maybe...maybe having a community I like to inhabit and support by living there is a classist attitude on my part. When people threaten to leave due to tax laws I say don't let the door hit ya, taxes are the price of civilization and you are welcome to not participate elsewhere.
it’s ad hominem when it’s a compliment as much as when it’s an insult.
October 11, 2026 at 4:54 AM
it’s ad hominem when it’s a compliment as much as when it’s an insult.
Reposted by Steve Randy Waldman
No doubt this has occurred to other bystanders as well, but it would seem that a handful of billionaires dropping $150 million into a single state's election in an attempt to defeat a wealth-tax initiative just about makes the entire case for a wealth-tax initiative.
October 11, 2026 at 4:28 AM
No doubt this has occurred to other bystanders as well, but it would seem that a handful of billionaires dropping $150 million into a single state's election in an attempt to defeat a wealth-tax initiative just about makes the entire case for a wealth-tax initiative.
there’s learned helplessness and then there’s like graduate school in helplessness.
October 11, 2026 at 4:47 AM
there’s learned helplessness and then there’s like graduate school in helplessness.
Reposted by Steve Randy Waldman
*The most craven, weak-willed, unprincipled person you’ve ever met* We’re going to restore the Western tradition of honor and virtue
October 10, 2026 at 11:11 PM
*The most craven, weak-willed, unprincipled person you’ve ever met* We’re going to restore the Western tradition of honor and virtue
Pope John Paul II : Poland :: Pope Leo XIV : United States
October 10, 2026 at 10:10 PM
Pope John Paul II : Poland :: Pope Leo XIV : United States
Reposted by Steve Randy Waldman
jfc.
He used his IRA account to buy private paypal shares below their value at like $0.001 per share, staying under the $2000 annual contribution limit AND making his taxable income less than the $110k IRA restriction. You, a regular person, cannot do this
October 10, 2026 at 8:00 PM
jfc.
i’d kind of like a backpack “smart” enough to beep or something if i start walking around with it while a compartment is open.
October 10, 2026 at 7:59 PM
i’d kind of like a backpack “smart” enough to beep or something if i start walking around with it while a compartment is open.