Zach Lipton
@zachlipton.com
🌉🚌🚲 || San Francisco || Data infrastructure @COVID19Tracking alum || To stop the train in cases of emergency pull down the chain; penalty for improper use, five pounds (he/him)
Reposted by Zach Lipton
Potential cuts to San Francisco’s public transit system would be significantly worse for the city’s economy than the effects of a proposed parcel tax to fund it, according to a new analysis from the controller's office.
via @kellywaldron.bsky.social
missionlocal.org/2026/09/san-...
via @kellywaldron.bsky.social
missionlocal.org/2026/09/san-...
S.F. economy will take a hit if Muni measure fails, controller warns
A report from the controller's office San Francisco’s GDP would grow $310 to $400 million over 15 years by passing the parcel tax measure.
missionlocal.org
September 16, 2026 at 8:45 PM
Potential cuts to San Francisco’s public transit system would be significantly worse for the city’s economy than the effects of a proposed parcel tax to fund it, according to a new analysis from the controller's office.
via @kellywaldron.bsky.social
missionlocal.org/2026/09/san-...
via @kellywaldron.bsky.social
missionlocal.org/2026/09/san-...
Reposted by Zach Lipton
"moderator of r/doordash by the reddit username u/i_love_femboys6969 attempts to commit an act of terror on behalf of ISIS" is the most 21st century headline I've ever read.
September 15, 2026 at 9:44 PM
"moderator of r/doordash by the reddit username u/i_love_femboys6969 attempts to commit an act of terror on behalf of ISIS" is the most 21st century headline I've ever read.
Reposted by Zach Lipton
GEFILTE PHISHING
Just got a phishing email from someone posing as my Rabbi, so that's a fun escalation.
September 15, 2026 at 10:30 PM
GEFILTE PHISHING
Reposted by Zach Lipton
NGL, “modeltov-ribbentoken pact“ is gold.
i suppose that's a matter of different bubbles here lol i've only seen like one post about this while a quarter of my TL has been clowning on bernie for his modeltov-ribbentoken pact
September 15, 2026 at 5:16 PM
NGL, “modeltov-ribbentoken pact“ is gold.
this weekend's shenanigans: one very confused Casper the Cockatoo
September 15, 2026 at 6:39 PM
this weekend's shenanigans: one very confused Casper the Cockatoo
Reposted by Zach Lipton
An 18-year-old with measles encephalitis. An absolutely brutal way to die. bsky.app/profile/dori...
Another measles death. 18 years old. Unvaccinated. See also: www.pa.gov/agencies/hea... H/T @melodyschreiber.com @tom.medsky.social
September 15, 2026 at 5:32 PM
An 18-year-old with measles encephalitis. An absolutely brutal way to die. bsky.app/profile/dori...
Reposted by Zach Lipton
This Thursday, we're kicking off the ground game for the Regional Transit Measure, with events in each of the 5 counties. There are 50 days until the election. In that time, we need to convince Bay Area voters to invest in public transit!
In San Francisco? Come rally and then talk to BART riders!
In San Francisco? Come rally and then talk to BART riders!
Yes on RTM Day of Action: Rally in Downtown San Francisco + BART Crawl! · Luma
We're kicking off the Yes on RTM campaign in San Francisco at the Powell St. Cable Car Turnaround! Hear from elected and community leaders about how vital it…
luma.com
September 14, 2026 at 8:52 PM
This Thursday, we're kicking off the ground game for the Regional Transit Measure, with events in each of the 5 counties. There are 50 days until the election. In that time, we need to convince Bay Area voters to invest in public transit!
In San Francisco? Come rally and then talk to BART riders!
In San Francisco? Come rally and then talk to BART riders!
Reposted by Zach Lipton
I just wrapped my biggest project at @marinbike.org, our 2050 Marin County Vision Network.
It is our proposal for how Marin can become the most bike-friendly county in the US over the next quarter century.
I put a ton of work into this and I'm very proud of it.
marinbike.org/news/marin-c...
It is our proposal for how Marin can become the most bike-friendly county in the US over the next quarter century.
I put a ton of work into this and I'm very proud of it.
marinbike.org/news/marin-c...
A Vision for Marin’s Future Bike Network
MCBC has launched its 2050 Vision Network, an ambitious proposal for the county's all ages and abilities bike network to be completed in the next 25 years.
marinbike.org
September 14, 2026 at 8:17 PM
I just wrapped my biggest project at @marinbike.org, our 2050 Marin County Vision Network.
It is our proposal for how Marin can become the most bike-friendly county in the US over the next quarter century.
I put a ton of work into this and I'm very proud of it.
marinbike.org/news/marin-c...
It is our proposal for how Marin can become the most bike-friendly county in the US over the next quarter century.
I put a ton of work into this and I'm very proud of it.
marinbike.org/news/marin-c...
Rincon Center has never been the same without the atrium fountain, sadly
Yank Sing, the famed San Francisco dim sum restaurant, will close its Rincon Center location, which opened in 1999. Its Stevenson Street outpost remains open.
A 68-year-old S.F dim sum institution will close its largest location
Yank Sing, the famed San Francisco dim sum restaurant, will close its Rincon Center location, which opened in 1999. Its Stevenson Street outpost remains open.
bit.ly
September 14, 2026 at 7:18 PM
Rincon Center has never been the same without the atrium fountain, sadly
Reposted by Zach Lipton
technology only counts as transformative if the funding creating it carries a Protected Designation of Origin seal from the Sand Hill Road district of Palo Alto
September 14, 2026 at 6:48 PM
technology only counts as transformative if the funding creating it carries a Protected Designation of Origin seal from the Sand Hill Road district of Palo Alto
look I know the urbanist joke is that everything comes down to parking policy, but I did not expect even the Kennedy Center's finances to have a parking policy angle
Congress definitely has to do it (bankruptcy for gov't units barred by 11 U.S.C. § 101(27))--and already had to do it in the past! It required Congressional legislation just to sort out its parking garage bonds.
www.gao.gov/assets/ggd-8...
www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/...
www.gao.gov/assets/ggd-8...
www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/...
September 14, 2026 at 5:17 AM
look I know the urbanist joke is that everything comes down to parking policy, but I did not expect even the Kennedy Center's finances to have a parking policy angle
what I don't understand here is that if open weight models are running just ~6 months behind the frontier, doesn't slowing down just amount to fast forwarding to the inevitable day where the open weight models are good enough and nobody needs to pay a premium to OpenAI or Anthropic?
“.. It was a rare display of unity by Elon Musk, Sam Altman and Dario Amodei, who have been spending tens of billions of dollars to develop evermore powerful artificial intelligence models.”
@wsj.com
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/anth...
@wsj.com
www.wsj.com/tech/ai/anth...
September 13, 2026 at 1:31 AM
what I don't understand here is that if open weight models are running just ~6 months behind the frontier, doesn't slowing down just amount to fast forwarding to the inevitable day where the open weight models are good enough and nobody needs to pay a premium to OpenAI or Anthropic?
Reposted by Zach Lipton
Get your new covid vaccines! I know two people just this week who have gotten covid, and there's no reason to put it off!
www.kqed.org/news/1209893...
www.kqed.org/news/1209893...
A New COVID Vaccine Is Here (Without Much Fanfare). When Should You Get It? | KQED
The updated 2026-27 COVID-19 vaccine is now rolling out across California. What to know about where to get yours — and what’s covered by insurance.
www.kqed.org
September 12, 2026 at 3:09 PM
Get your new covid vaccines! I know two people just this week who have gotten covid, and there's no reason to put it off!
www.kqed.org/news/1209893...
www.kqed.org/news/1209893...
Reposted by Zach Lipton
People simply cannot stop requesting window signs to show their support of Sunset Dunes/No on G: over 1000 signs requested by 850 people in just one month
September 12, 2026 at 4:14 AM
People simply cannot stop requesting window signs to show their support of Sunset Dunes/No on G: over 1000 signs requested by 850 people in just one month
Reposted by Zach Lipton
"what about the epstein files" is an obvious and available rejoinder to "what about trans girls in sports" if the question is truly "how do we keep our kids safe" and dude took the worst route
September 12, 2026 at 4:32 AM
"what about the epstein files" is an obvious and available rejoinder to "what about trans girls in sports" if the question is truly "how do we keep our kids safe" and dude took the worst route
tfw you just wanted to enjoy a nice park with your friends and now you're a case study
Sunset Dunes: Representation, Risk, and the Politics of Public Space
Harvard Kennedy School Case Program is the world's largest producer and repository of case studies designed to train public leaders.
case.hks.harvard.edu
September 11, 2026 at 9:51 PM
tfw you just wanted to enjoy a nice park with your friends and now you're a case study
Reposted by Zach Lipton
I don't care which agency - MTA, CTA, MTC, UCSF, BAAQMD, the fuckin Planning Department - SOMEBODY needs to set up a baseline traffic study around UCSF campuses immediately before this really sets in
UCSF is announcing an agreement to greatly expand the use of the all-agency Clipper BayPass from 8,300 to 36,000 students and workers
September 11, 2026 at 8:16 PM
I don't care which agency - MTA, CTA, MTC, UCSF, BAAQMD, the fuckin Planning Department - SOMEBODY needs to set up a baseline traffic study around UCSF campuses immediately before this really sets in
I mean that all sounds insane until you think about how attacking Iran was supposed to make the people rise up against their government too, and well that also sounded insane
This piece was fascinating, getting at a point I'd never considered: bin-Laden's entire concept about what 9/11 would do to America was just... wrong. www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
September 11, 2026 at 9:27 PM
I mean that all sounds insane until you think about how attacking Iran was supposed to make the people rise up against their government too, and well that also sounded insane
Reposted by Zach Lipton
i've spent a lot of time following/covering law enforcement aviation but this is pretty bonkers
2 Oakland police officers faked helicopter pilot certifications: prosecutors
Two Oakland police officers allegedly faked some FAA helicopter pilot certifications, prompting the police chief on Thursday to post a message on Instagram, saying he is working with federal authoriti...
www.ktvu.com
September 11, 2026 at 7:33 PM
i've spent a lot of time following/covering law enforcement aviation but this is pretty bonkers
Reposted by Zach Lipton
AN URGENT EXCLUSIVE: Ahmed Soliman, the 30-year-old gay man ICE expelled in April to Equatorial Guinea, a country he has no ties to, was arrested this morning and cannot be located, his attorneys say. They fear he may be in one of EG's torture prisons. prospect.org/2026/09/11/i...
Immigrant Trump Sent to African Hotel Prison Arrested After Speaking With Media, Lawyers Say - The American Prospect
Ahmed Soliman’s attorneys fear he may have been sent to one of Equatorial Guinea’s notorious torture prisons.
prospect.org
September 11, 2026 at 4:42 PM
AN URGENT EXCLUSIVE: Ahmed Soliman, the 30-year-old gay man ICE expelled in April to Equatorial Guinea, a country he has no ties to, was arrested this morning and cannot be located, his attorneys say. They fear he may be in one of EG's torture prisons. prospect.org/2026/09/11/i...
Reposted by Zach Lipton
This is almost as pathetic as trump promising $5000 checks if republicans win the midterms. Wonder wh— oh. www.si.com/mlb/giants/o...
September 10, 2026 at 7:00 PM
This is almost as pathetic as trump promising $5000 checks if republicans win the midterms. Wonder wh— oh. www.si.com/mlb/giants/o...
it's definitely possible to answer this question, but I'm not convinced it's possible without sounding utterly Yudkowsky-level insane
"well the chatbot running the paperclip factory could trick people into making gray goo that converts all human atoms into paperclips" probably doesn't fly on CNBC
"well the chatbot running the paperclip factory could trick people into making gray goo that converts all human atoms into paperclips" probably doesn't fly on CNBC
Actually, idea: @carlquintanilla.bsky.social next time you have one of these guys on CNBC who says stuff like this, can you ask them to... be specific? Like how? How is AI going to "Destroy humanity?" I want to know details. I legit only trust you to do have these guys on your show and ask them.
September 10, 2026 at 6:00 PM
it's definitely possible to answer this question, but I'm not convinced it's possible without sounding utterly Yudkowsky-level insane
"well the chatbot running the paperclip factory could trick people into making gray goo that converts all human atoms into paperclips" probably doesn't fly on CNBC
"well the chatbot running the paperclip factory could trick people into making gray goo that converts all human atoms into paperclips" probably doesn't fly on CNBC
"the frontier labs have no real secret sauce that can possibly justify their valuations compared to open weight models running on commodity compute," part #539881
September 10, 2026 at 5:05 PM
"the frontier labs have no real secret sauce that can possibly justify their valuations compared to open weight models running on commodity compute," part #539881
Reposted by Zach Lipton
It has never ended, it will never end
September 10, 2026 at 4:48 PM
It has never ended, it will never end
Reposted by Zach Lipton
I heard on the news this morning that the average American is on track to spend between $5k and $6k on gas in a year. You can get at least TWO nice ebikes for that much.
3 separate people asked me about my #ebike today while I was out running errands. My answer to all three of them when they asked how much it cost: "more than you think, but probably less than you'll pay for gas this year"
if you were thinking about getting an ebike to reduce your number of car trips to save on gas, the best time was earlier this year but the second best time is now!!!!
September 10, 2026 at 3:42 AM
I heard on the news this morning that the average American is on track to spend between $5k and $6k on gas in a year. You can get at least TWO nice ebikes for that much.