Notices by Richard Littler (richard_littler@mastodon.social)

I'm watching The Hobbit / Lord of the Rings. It's essentially a punch-up between gangs of early-1980s goths, new romantics, and metal heads. But somehow The Wurzels win.

Anthropic: "AI may pose 'existential risks to humanity'"
World governments: "Extinction is such a hot market right now, and we want a fat piece of that mouth-waterin' extinction pie for ourselves! Invest everything we have in AI!"

Britain doesn't change. I'm rereading Sherlock Holmes. It's 1887 and the Daily Telegraph speculates that a murder must have been perpetrated by refugees or socialists, and advocates a closer watch over foreigners, while the Standard blames such outrages on a liberal government. It's in the national blood, isn't it? A Study in Red, White & Blue.

Climate protester with "I oppose this" placard [70 years in prison].

Corner shop owner with similar business name to a global tech firm [Sued for $19b].

Masked thug with illegal weapons endangering lives; and global tech firm with string of serious copyright, environmental, data & hacking violations ["Boys will be boys"].

#LinkedIn email: "[Someone you worked with briefly 30 years ago] just solved a LinkedIn puzzle game. Think you can beat their score?"

It's like someone phoning you and saying:
'Hi, do you remember Tony?'
'Tony who?'
'You worked with him for a summer when you left school. That Tony.'
'Erm. Ok. Tony. Yes, vaguely.'
'Well, I'm calling to say he just completed a crossword.'
'O...kay? And?'
'That's it, really. I thought you might want to know, in case you wanted to do one too'

The concept of royalty still makes no sense to me. It's like a cultural ouroboros or non sequitur.
'I am your self-appointed ruler. As such, I authorise my appointment as your ruler. Them's the rules, and I will humbly dedicate my life to upholding those rules; they're what make this nation great.'

Because the last years have seen one brainless absurdity after another, the NFT craze feels longer than 5 years ago. I just checked values. The Dorsey NFT, sold in 2021 for $2.9mill, was worth $280 by 2022. From 2021-2025, sales lost 93% of their value. Now, "95% of NFT art has no value at all".

RE: https://ohai.social/@dcoderlt/117058023861112124

In 30 years, you will either be a billionnaire or a climate activist that the billionaires have labelled a domestic terrorist. They seem hellbent on annihilating their own consumers. It's like a deranged cult. Fuck all of this datacentre shit sky high.

Today's visual obsession: Arnold Böcklin's Die Toteninsel (Isle of the Dead). Five variations painted between 1880 & 1886. The 4th was destroyed in Berlin during World War II. Only a b/w photo exists. A 6th 'lost' version (1901) attributed to Böcklin & his son, Carlo, came to light in 2022.
#art

"Burnham has appointed a minister for AI"
Unless her name is Sarah Connor, you can get fucked.

TV subtitles are worsening, right? Multiple errors in many shows/films.
"Fancy a brew, Natalie?"
subs: "Fancy a brute, naturally?"
"So, it's live or die, eh?"
subs: "So, it's leave or diet?"
"Summon the elves!"
subs: "Some of the shelves!"
Is it all auto-generated now?

Congratulations to the US on becoming a kleptocratic monarchy, 250 years after gaining independence from royalist colonisers. You must be *so* proud that your new king exemplifies, as William Burroughs said, the "American dream to vulgarize and falsify until the bare lies shine through".
#America250

Oh no.
I'm going to search Netscape and AltaVista for ways to help. I'll set up funding pages on MySpace and Friends Reunited. And I'll video a charity appeal on Betamax, convert it to Laserdisc, then send out copies that can only be watched on 3D-Ready TVs. I'll page you with more details ASAP.

#AI

"Andy Burnham is on his way to Downing Street to fulfill his Midsummer destiny..."

The White House vs. Isengard in Lord of the Rings.

Just rewatched Lord of the Rings. I'd forgotten that Sauron's seeing-stone is called Palantir. So, democracy-sceptic, demon-believing Peter Thiel names his company (and models its logo?) after a device that allows an all-seeing evil eye to "broadcast propaganda" and control what people can and can't see in the service of malevolence... And the UK gov thought: "Yes, let's hire that company to look after our defence, policing, financial and health systems"?
https://www.reuters.com/technology/uk-lawmakers-call-palantirs-role-public-sector-an-unacceptable-weakness-2026-06-02/

"Grandpa, what did it feel like living through the 2020s?"

In my experience, 2-3 out of 5 Amazon parcels delivered *by hand* were damaged and needed to be returned. I gave up. Dropping one of their poorly-packed boxes from a height of 2 or 3 metres really isn't going to improve matters.
"Hi, I ordered a single vinyl album and a new iron. They just arrived. The album is now an unplayable quadruple album, and you appear to have killed a 5 year old. And a dog."

https://www.bbc.com/news/videos/c0l21992z75o

Haunted food. My mum spiralised a carrot, and the result is like a cross between Thomas the Tank Engine, Pinocchio, and John Carpenter's The Thing.
#CursedCarrot

I've only just realised that #OpenAI's logo is a stylised anal sphincter. Apologies for my childish but apposite observation so early in the morning.
#sora