Notices by David Carroll (profcarroll@federate.social)

In a new wide-ranging interview, DT grad student Shawki Izzat gets me to gab about the sordid state of this country and stuff https://youtu.be/qm32Ok3wbEo

During Trump 1.0, esp. in the aftermath of Cambridge Analytica, people demonstrated significant concerns about our data privacy. Consider how Apple & Google deployed Covid Exposure Notifs to be data protecting. During Trump 2.0, we’re witnessing an all-out destruction of our data privacy under Musk & RFK Jr as intentionally decentralized databases are illegally consolidated/appended/blended and feasted upon by crony silicon vulture backed govt contractors. #DataPrivacy #USPOL #Trump #DOGE #RFKjr

Yikes: DOGE deploying AI to hastily port SSA’s COBOL to Java. https://www.wired.com/story/doge-rebuild-social-security-administration-cobol-benefits/

The Greatest Hack is underway! https://techcrunch.com/2025/02/05/the-biggest-breach-of-u-s-government-data-is-under-way/

The Cambridge Analytica scandal taught us that where on earth your data “lives” really matters. That same notion is ultimately what animated the Supreme Court TikTok decision today.

‘“I do apologize for any strife and trauma, but it had to be done.” The manifesto mentions UnitedHealthcare by name, noting the size of the company and how much money it makes, and also broadly condemns health-care companies for placing profits over care, the official said.’ (New York Times)

Has anyone checked in on Tulsi? Normally, I could give a rat’s ass.

Mandate? Votes hadn’t all been counted.

Trump is now under 50% in the popular vote with his margin ranking 44th out of 51 elections since 1824.

4 Democrats won Senate seats in states Trump carried—compared to zero in 2016 and 2020.

GOP poised for its smallest House majority since the U.S. had 50 states.

- CNN’s Harry Enten reports via https://bsky.app/profile/kfile.bsky.social/post/3lbaam2cejc2i #uspol

M. Gessen on the shift from “rule of law to law of rule” https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/15/opinion/donald-trump-orban-putin.html?unlocked_article_code=1.aE4.wCAN.f6DRi_q8BrQA&

Another sudden growth spurt on #Bluesky is notable right now. It seems to me that the Starter Pack feature on there is accelerating migration and re-followership/discovery from Twitter/X since #November5th

To women, trans people, and immigrants in the USA right now feeling it, I am none of the above and feel overwhelmed with the anguish of loss and nightmarish imagining of what’s to come. I see you.

I went to Denmark this week and showed folks how Musk was using Snapchat microtargeted ads on Gaza to divide and deter in battleground states via 404 coverage and they were horrified while I also reassured them that the GDPR is a shield from this kind of toxic data abuse. It’s like building climate crisis resilience infrastructure.

@BeAware these were deep qualitative interviews/not quantitative analysis; it was accepted into the most competitive/prestigious tech conference on the planet; perhaps read the paper prior to posting critiques?

New research paper on the experiences of serving as Mastodon admins to be presented at ACM SIGCHI conference next month, based on 16 admin interviews (including me) #MastoAdmin #fedi #CHI https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:9e9ea5d1-f02b-4f65-8f83-9a72e9e46213

Don’t miss @justinhendrix interview @kissane for Sunday’s #TechPolicyPress #Podcast discussing #Fediverse Governance Report #FediversalistPapers co-authored with @darius supported by @DigInfFund
📝https://fediverse-governance.github.io
🎙️https://player.captivate.fm/episode/aaf1f847-89df-4a72-8bef-9c828876b2d0

#Milton charging toward a state that officially denies climate change.

NGL: Worried Netanyahu attacks Iran’s oil facilities at least partly in an attempt to surge energy prices as the “October surprise” to swing the US election to his preferred candidate.

Menstrual Surveillance is on the ballot. #uspol #privacy #dobbs #databrokers
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/trump-camp-says-state-menstrual-surveillance-programs-are-a-ok

Mozilla’s #Mastodon instance only had 270 active users even though backed by a big budget with an admin drawing a generous six figure salary (based on the original job description I noticed). The Mammoth app will fall back on Mastohost, which is what my instance runs on. (it’s all you need!) https://techcrunch.com/2024/09/17/mozilla-exits-the-fediverse-and-will-shutter-its-mastodon-server-in-december/

Harris demonstrated in her debate performance how Trump can be defeated by imagining him as an opponent in Mike Tyson’s Punch Out on Nintendo. Hear me out. You observe his obvious fight pattern: he only has 1 move: Roy Cohn’s “hit-back-harder” but that’s it. There’s variation in whataboutism and/or projection but it’s simplistic to beat once Harris used it to bait and trigger him while dressing him down for her turn to punch, and he was too busy pulling his pants back up to fight back. #debate