Notices by zenkat (zenkat@sfba.social)

@ajsadauskas @timnitGebru AI is receiving a huge amount of investment for a simple reason: they enable the *control* of huge numbers of people cheaply and at scale. In other words, they are instruments of power, and in this soon-to-be post-democratic and post-capitalist world, power is only game that matters.

Molding opinion via manipulation of social media. Fine-tuned propaganda at scale.
Detection and suppression of opposition movements. Detailed tracking of every aspect of your life. Monitoring and control of factory workers. Finding and punishing dissidents. Automated weapons of war.

Forget the blather about AGI, limitless abundance, and the Singularity. Pay attention to the man behind the curtain. Power is their only goal.

@WarnerCrocker A single battle dues not make a war. Battles can be fateful, decisive even, but the war is not over until we stop fighting.

In a way over territory, the side that loses a battle retreats to safe territory to regroup and fight over contested territory.

What is our safe territory? Some ideas: Blue states. Courts. Cities. Physical spaces. Academia.

Who do we regroup with? Everyone who has been attacked. All attacked "minorities", of course, but also scientists, federal workers, NGOs, unions, academics ... the list goes on. The attack surface is huge right now, which puts them at risk of being overextended.

Not a plan, to be sure -- but the direction we must go.

@WarnerCrocker Also remember that Musk is a private citizen. The civil courts are an interesting angle. Why not a class action lawsuit, with Musk and his instigators as defendants?

Yes, it's slow. Yes, it will get gummed up. But we need to fight.

@WarnerCrocker Fair enough. What's the next front?

@WarnerCrocker So how do we stop it? It's blatantly illegal, can he be sued? By citizens? Congress? The States?

@WarnerCrocker But it's illegal, and people will suffer direct harm. So someone must have standing.

Yes, Musk and Trump will likely tell the courts to pound sand. But that is no reason to roll over and give up.

@shibao
If you get to the end of your session and find that you've been daydreaming, or thinking about work, or running through weekend plans, and you've forgotten all about focusing on your breath, take it as a lesson. Thoughts are powerful, your mind's natural tendency is to think. Note this and resolve to "do better" next time.

Practice every day. I spend 15 minutes meditating. Even 10 minutes can be a good starting point. More serious practitioners spend 30 or 45 minutes daily. Don't try to start there. Like any exercise, it takes time to work. The most important thing is to make a habit of practicing daily.

@shibao I have always found breath meditation simplest. Sit comfortably (traditionally on a cushion, but tbh I don't really think it matters). Close your eyes. Focus on your breath. When your mind starts to wander (as it invariably does), note the thought arising, gently let it go, and return to focusing on your breath. Keep doing that for the duration of your session.

@shibao If you get bored, or anxious, or suddenly remember there is something you absolutely must do, note that those are merely thoughts arising. Let them gently go and return to focusing on your breath.

If you're convinced that you are doing it wrong, or that this is useless, or that you're stupid and never understand these things, note that these too are merely thoughts arising. Allow for the possibility that they aren't true, gently let them go, and return to focusing on your breath.

If you find that your thoughts just won't stop swirling and you can't stop thinking, relax. This is a fundamental part of the human condition, and a big part of mediation is about realizing that. Gently let those thoughts go, and return to focusing on the breath.

Unauthorized Bread is now a reality. Hooray?

https://tovala.com/

If only someone had warned us what a bad idea this is.

@pluralistic

@cstross oh that's horrible and so close to home

@foone there's already loads of trans wolf erotica out on the web, a bit extra won't do shit

@benroyce @JuliusGoat

Repeat for emphasis:

Standing aside and crossing yours arms while things get worse makes you complicit.

@kingrat Thanks for the link.

Love the vision, but the timing stinks. This made sense pre-covid, but that area of Market is already a ghost town and I don't see this helping. :-/

Any SF folks know what all the construction is on Market Street downtown?

Doesn't seem like the best time to be blocking the street and tearing up the sidewalks, given how hard the businesses down there are struggling.

#sanfrancisco #cityplanning

@Dhmspector @w7voa Perhaps because "the review — by both an independent panel of three experts and a subcommittee of the Harvard Corporation — found evidence that Gay did not cite properly in some instances but *that her actions fell short of more serious wrongdoing*, according to the summary."

This is pearl-clutching at it's most ridiculous. OMG a failure to cite properly? How long will we let such transgressions slide? /s

@yurnidiot Hey, hundreds of buses make that trip successfully every year!

only about a dozen fail

@vrandecic It's a bit like what the Yosemite ranger said about bears ... "There is considerable overlap between the intelligence of the smartest bears and the dumbest tourists."

Except replace "bears" with "LLMs", and "tourists" with "comments on social media".