Toast Conger
@toastchanges.com
Yes Toast. Topics I follow: change, NZ pocket friends, KDrama, weather, permaculture, weaving, she/her🌱🇳🇿
@[email protected]
@toastfloats elsewhere
@[email protected]
@toastfloats elsewhere
Can we can now all agree?
"This fucking guy..."
"This fucking guy..."
The 27-year old anthropic researcher at the heart of the last two weeks of media AI doomsday hype went on Fox News and said:
"I agree with President Trump’s tweet that global warming doomsday scenarios were overplayed."
"I agree with President Trump’s tweet that global warming doomsday scenarios were overplayed."
September 19, 2026 at 11:55 PM
Can we can now all agree?
"This fucking guy..."
"This fucking guy..."
All right, who ordered the wind machine Auckland?
September 19, 2026 at 11:55 PM
All right, who ordered the wind machine Auckland?
Obvs #TeamTakahe but honestly all of the above works too
Don't forget to vote for Bird of Year, last day to do so today
www.birdoftheyear.org.nz
Crossposted with @openvibe.social
www.birdoftheyear.org.nz
Crossposted with @openvibe.social
Bird of the Year ‹ Forest & Bird
Forest & Bird’s Bird of the Year recognises our unique birds and with each vote you give them a voice.
www.birdoftheyear.org.nz
September 19, 2026 at 11:52 PM
Obvs #TeamTakahe but honestly all of the above works too
Two eps into #theordinaryjackpot kdrama and wow. The acting. The script. Our ML is just as usual hitting it perfectly.
September 19, 2026 at 9:15 PM
Two eps into #theordinaryjackpot kdrama and wow. The acting. The script. Our ML is just as usual hitting it perfectly.
"overreliance on AI"
Sure team. Let's just keep letting them do whatever the f* they want with AI.
Sure team. Let's just keep letting them do whatever the f* they want with AI.
HUGE EXCLUSIVE from @bloomberg.com
Inside the US ‘Kill Chain’ That Destroyed an Iranian School
Pentagon investigators discovered that flawed intel, outdated imagery & overreliance on AI contributed to a missile strike that killed 123 children in Minab
🎁 www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202...
Inside the US ‘Kill Chain’ That Destroyed an Iranian School
Pentagon investigators discovered that flawed intel, outdated imagery & overreliance on AI contributed to a missile strike that killed 123 children in Minab
🎁 www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202...
Inside the US ‘Kill Chain’ That Destroyed an Iranian School
Pentagon investigators have discovered that flawed intelligence, outdated imagery and an overreliance on AI contributed to a missile strike that killed 123 children in Minab.
www.bloomberg.com
September 19, 2026 at 4:50 PM
"overreliance on AI"
Sure team. Let's just keep letting them do whatever the f* they want with AI.
Sure team. Let's just keep letting them do whatever the f* they want with AI.
Reposted by Toast Conger
Nice campaign by the Norwegian Consumer Council about the declining lifespan of products. Enjoy!
September 17, 2026 at 7:34 AM
Nice campaign by the Norwegian Consumer Council about the declining lifespan of products. Enjoy!
The AIs are not sentient. They are doing what they were programmed to do. The problem is that they were programmed with the same ethical baseline as the idiot savants who created them. In other words, a bunch pathological sociopaths made a machine which is doing illegal, dangerous shit. Surprise!!
September 17, 2026 at 6:15 PM
The AIs are not sentient. They are doing what they were programmed to do. The problem is that they were programmed with the same ethical baseline as the idiot savants who created them. In other words, a bunch pathological sociopaths made a machine which is doing illegal, dangerous shit. Surprise!!
Reposted by Toast Conger
Good thing New Zealand isn't blindly pursuing a massive investment in LNG importation infrastructure... That would be a very stupid and poorly timed decision.
European gas is above €82/MWh - the highest since late 2022. Hormuz remains largely shut and gas storage is at 68% going into winter.
None of this started in Europe but we pay for it.
The only exit is using less gas. Heat pumps, electrified industry, insulation.
None of this started in Europe but we pay for it.
The only exit is using less gas. Heat pumps, electrified industry, insulation.
September 15, 2026 at 9:48 AM
Good thing New Zealand isn't blindly pursuing a massive investment in LNG importation infrastructure... That would be a very stupid and poorly timed decision.
I wonder if SCOTUS has added 2+2 and realised that if Trump shot them on 5th Avenue as 'part of his official duties as president' there is literally nothing they could do about it because they gave him full immunity.
September 15, 2026 at 6:12 PM
I wonder if SCOTUS has added 2+2 and realised that if Trump shot them on 5th Avenue as 'part of his official duties as president' there is literally nothing they could do about it because they gave him full immunity.
Reposted by Toast Conger
This is a compelling argument well worth your consideration. I think that a convention which produced no substantive changes whatsoever would be a colossal failure, and that it would be worth doing as much as possible to prevent the convention process from replicating the Constitution's own flaws.
In which my colleague Dave Pozen and I articulate the (uneasy) case for a constitutional convention.
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
Back to Philadelphia? The Uneasy Case for a New Constitutional Convention
<p><span>No country has ever had a written constitution in longer continuous operation than the United States. Such resilience is cause for commemoration. But f
papers.ssrn.com
September 15, 2026 at 2:47 PM
This is a compelling argument well worth your consideration. I think that a convention which produced no substantive changes whatsoever would be a colossal failure, and that it would be worth doing as much as possible to prevent the convention process from replicating the Constitution's own flaws.
So sadly, the AI talent agent with whom I was enjoying an increasingly unhinged conversation is definitely a scam. Too bad. Would have loved the job described. Heh.
September 15, 2026 at 4:12 AM
So sadly, the AI talent agent with whom I was enjoying an increasingly unhinged conversation is definitely a scam. Too bad. Would have loved the job described. Heh.
I love how difficult it is to get your US passport renewed. Must print the form on 8.5 x 11 inch paper. Where the hell am I going to get that?
September 15, 2026 at 3:33 AM
I love how difficult it is to get your US passport renewed. Must print the form on 8.5 x 11 inch paper. Where the hell am I going to get that?
If the vibecession was a reflection of lived experience we should be able to find some “hard” empirical measure of the economy that predicts sentiment, since those measures capture people’s lived experiences.
That’s been difficult, suggesting the vibecession DOES NOT arise from lived experience.
That’s been difficult, suggesting the vibecession DOES NOT arise from lived experience.
The phrase [the subjective evaluation... measures] generally is followed by "when a system undergoes a regime shift, crosses a critical threshold, or experiences a fundamental change in context"
I think it's arguable we're seeing all three. The vibecession IS a reflection of lived experience.
I think it's arguable we're seeing all three. The vibecession IS a reflection of lived experience.
September 14, 2026 at 7:08 PM
This times 1000.
It's not that this tech isn't dangerous. It is, but virtually entirely because it's so damn literal and in the hands of complete assholes.
It's not that this tech isn't dangerous. It is, but virtually entirely because it's so damn literal and in the hands of complete assholes.
I'm not really sure what to say. We're not in danger of "super-intelligent" AI killing us all because they're super-intelligent. We're in danger because some idiot will plug it into something important and its "super-intelligence" won't understand that it shouldn't press the red button.
September 14, 2026 at 7:05 PM
This times 1000.
It's not that this tech isn't dangerous. It is, but virtually entirely because it's so damn literal and in the hands of complete assholes.
It's not that this tech isn't dangerous. It is, but virtually entirely because it's so damn literal and in the hands of complete assholes.
This letter is worth reading. We've been trained to think of courage in a very specific way that is only a fraction of where you can find real courage.
Free Palestine.
It's a genocide.
Supporting the Palestinian people against the current Israeli government is not antisemitism.
Don't be silent.
Free Palestine.
It's a genocide.
Supporting the Palestinian people against the current Israeli government is not antisemitism.
Don't be silent.
New: Macklemore says Robert Kraft — who owns Gillette Stadium, where Macklemore & Ed Sheeran were to perform later this month — called Sheeran.
Kraft rallied other owners together behind an ultimatum for Sheeran: if Macklemore stays on the tour, you won't be allowed in our venues.
Kraft rallied other owners together behind an ultimatum for Sheeran: if Macklemore stays on the tour, you won't be allowed in our venues.
September 14, 2026 at 6:49 PM
This letter is worth reading. We've been trained to think of courage in a very specific way that is only a fraction of where you can find real courage.
Free Palestine.
It's a genocide.
Supporting the Palestinian people against the current Israeli government is not antisemitism.
Don't be silent.
Free Palestine.
It's a genocide.
Supporting the Palestinian people against the current Israeli government is not antisemitism.
Don't be silent.
Reposted by Toast Conger
For how can tyrants safely govern home,
Unless abroad they purchase great alliance?
Unless abroad they purchase great alliance?
September 14, 2026 at 6:26 PM
For how can tyrants safely govern home,
Unless abroad they purchase great alliance?
Unless abroad they purchase great alliance?
Reposted by Toast Conger
We won’t even steal it
September 14, 2026 at 4:50 AM
We won’t even steal it
Reposted by Toast Conger
I did a somewhat deep dive into the recent OpenAI and Anthropic "hacks" for an upcoming interview.
IMO, the AI companies are better off running with the "rogue AI" story because the real story is actually pretty embarrassing.
Like making your Wi-Fi password "wifi" embarrassing. 🧵
IMO, the AI companies are better off running with the "rogue AI" story because the real story is actually pretty embarrassing.
Like making your Wi-Fi password "wifi" embarrassing. 🧵
September 13, 2026 at 1:12 PM
I did a somewhat deep dive into the recent OpenAI and Anthropic "hacks" for an upcoming interview.
IMO, the AI companies are better off running with the "rogue AI" story because the real story is actually pretty embarrassing.
Like making your Wi-Fi password "wifi" embarrassing. 🧵
IMO, the AI companies are better off running with the "rogue AI" story because the real story is actually pretty embarrassing.
Like making your Wi-Fi password "wifi" embarrassing. 🧵
Do you know what I just noticed? A bsky feature that went in at some point recently that I completely hadn't noticed and now know why isn't wasn't there all the time. If you post a three of multiple skeets, it numbers them for you now. Holy crackers how cool is that?!
September 13, 2026 at 7:44 PM
Do you know what I just noticed? A bsky feature that went in at some point recently that I completely hadn't noticed and now know why isn't wasn't there all the time. If you post a three of multiple skeets, it numbers them for you now. Holy crackers how cool is that?!
I'm in a 'discussion' this morning with a 'global talent acquisition' specialist. All the air quotes. Clearly, I'm engaging with an AI agent. I suspect the guy that set this up is still asleep, and when he wakes up he'll find the entire thread more than a bit embarrassing.
September 13, 2026 at 7:38 PM
I'm in a 'discussion' this morning with a 'global talent acquisition' specialist. All the air quotes. Clearly, I'm engaging with an AI agent. I suspect the guy that set this up is still asleep, and when he wakes up he'll find the entire thread more than a bit embarrassing.
Another day, another opportunity for Will Stancil to get into another stupid argument on social media choking the feed with ... well it's just blah blah blah on all sides. I need to mute him and everyone who are argues with him just to get to the NZ train pics which is really why I'm here today.
September 13, 2026 at 4:18 AM
Another day, another opportunity for Will Stancil to get into another stupid argument on social media choking the feed with ... well it's just blah blah blah on all sides. I need to mute him and everyone who are argues with him just to get to the NZ train pics which is really why I'm here today.
I'd try to explain the many players in this grand house of cards, but it may be unnecessary. The simple answer is that if they don't go public, the US economy collapses. It's quicker and easier to say. Never mind if this stuff is good, dangerous, bad, humanity changing... It's gonna crash for awhile
Saying it would be an “ill-advised moment” given current AI safety concerns, Sam Altman announced that OpenAI is delaying its IPO and will not go public this year.
Sam Altman confirms OpenAI won't go public this year, saying an IPO now would come at an 'ill-advised moment' given AI safety concerns | Fortune
"I would say not 2026. Yeah, we got a lot of stuff to do, like meeting this moment of what is going to be required for safety and alignment, and how the industry and governments can work together."
fortune.com
September 12, 2026 at 10:02 PM
I'd try to explain the many players in this grand house of cards, but it may be unnecessary. The simple answer is that if they don't go public, the US economy collapses. It's quicker and easier to say. Never mind if this stuff is good, dangerous, bad, humanity changing... It's gonna crash for awhile
So my # 3 and her partner now have working holiday visas in Germany. On the downside, I won't see them for a year. On the upside, they are absolutely living their best lives. So happy for them. Amazing experiences ahead!
September 12, 2026 at 9:55 PM
So my # 3 and her partner now have working holiday visas in Germany. On the downside, I won't see them for a year. On the upside, they are absolutely living their best lives. So happy for them. Amazing experiences ahead!
Reposted by Toast Conger
new zealanders!!! lol so wholesome cheesy in a good way
Chants of ‘Tunnel, Tunnel, Tunnel’ have rung throughout the train as the service departs Grafton and begins entering the CRL Tunnels.
September 12, 2026 at 8:41 PM
new zealanders!!! lol so wholesome cheesy in a good way
Mostly because I've not connected to another series in flight right now, I've slogged my way to the end of #TheEarlySpring and this guy just never gets any better. Even at 23, it feels like the end we're going to get is he basically muscles his way back into her life through emotional blackmail.
September 12, 2026 at 8:43 PM
Mostly because I've not connected to another series in flight right now, I've slogged my way to the end of #TheEarlySpring and this guy just never gets any better. Even at 23, it feels like the end we're going to get is he basically muscles his way back into her life through emotional blackmail.