Notices by Jürgen Hubert (juergen_hubert@thefolklore.cafe), page 5

The Devil is known for being a master architect. Large constructions such as barns or even churches are but a night's work for him.

#Germany #folktale #folklore #Devil @germany @folklore
https://www.patreon.com/posts/devil-as-master-55988038

If you play cards in church during mass, the Devil might fetch you right then and there and drag you to Hell!

I am not sure if the same applies to playing on your smart phone, but personally I would not risk it.

#Germany #folktale #folklore #Devil #ghost @germany @folklore
https://www.patreon.com/posts/devil-punishes-39505609

If you would steal from the dead, you should be willing to accept the... consequences.

#Germany #folktale #folklore #ghost #ghoststory @germany @folklore
https://www.patreon.com/posts/dead-brides-48659085

@FlashMobOfOne @germany @folklore

Eh, I am pretty sure that the pagans would have developed their own ways of being jerks.

Saints have a long history of being a downer at pagan parties.

#Germany #folktale #folklore #saint @germany @folklore
https://www.patreon.com/posts/saints-and-holy-35840297

After the people of Wilster had offended them, witches sunk the whole town beneath the ground on one Sunday morning.

#Germany #folktale #folklore #witch #witchcraft @germany @folklore
https://www.patreon.com/posts/that-sinking-30536135

"Blood label" was a popular slander against Jews.

#Germany #folklore #antisemitism
https://sunkencastles.com/2024/01/29/antisemitism-in-german-folklore-part-2-blood-libel/

Everything you've learned of kobolds from #DnD is wrong.

#Germany #folktale #folklore
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzR8RyNk2ig

George Kurtz, the CEO of #CrowdStrike , was also the Chief Technology Officer of McAfee in 2010, where an update caused widespread malfunctions in Windows XP SP3 systems.

I am sure that Kurtz will find another job to fall upwards in, such as the CEO of Google. Or maybe he will join the Trump Transition Team as the Tech Expert.

@AnarchoNinaWrites

'But several reliable, well-informed sources confirmed the idea that Hitler's anti-Semitism was not so genuine or violent as it sounded, and that he was merely using anti-Semitic propaganda as a bait to catch masses of followers and keep them aroused, enthusiastic, and in line for the time when his organization is perfected and sufficiently powerful to be employed effectively for political purposes.

A sophisticated politician credited Hitler with peculiar political cleverness for laying emphasis and over-emphasis on anti-Semitism, saying: "You can't expect the masses to understand or appreciate your finer real aims. You must feed the masses with cruder morsels and ideas like anti-Semitism. It would be politically all wrong to tell them the truth about where you really are leading them."'

- The New York Times

It is unwise to abuse a kobold who serves you.

For if they are freed, their revenge will be terrible.

#Germany #folktale #folklore #kobold @germany @folklore
https://www.patreon.com/posts/concerning-part-30538661

Out of curiosity, what are people's experiences with self-hosting their own #Mastodon instance?

What do you need to watch out for? What would you recommend to others doing the same?

2/ For the record, I absolutely understand why Facebook is doing this.

Because LLM-assisted replies "increase engagement", and thus advertising revenue.

We are truly in hell.

Okay, I've found yet another reason to stick to the #Fediverse .

Because you just _know_ that climate change deniers and fascists will be using #LLM generated comments to absolutely flood #Facebook and other social media sites to attack any political view they disapprove of, if they aren't doing so already (and I suspect they are). After all, their goal is to demoralize the opposition - especially people who like to argue with actual facts, since writing fact-based comments take a _lot_ more time than AI-generated troll posts.

The Fediverse isn't perfect, but at least it's possible to block the instance from which such garbage posts originate.

https://www.techradar.com/computing/social-media/facebook-will-let-ai-generate-comments-and-this-is-just-another-sign-of-the-impending-apocalypse

Okay, seriously: What are the actual use cases of #LLM beyond, say, random generators for #ttrpg ideas?

@tob @mekkaokereke @doctormo

Nothing about this is "fair" to Black people.

In the long run, maybe #Mastodon and the #Fediverse could become a better haven for Black people. But that will require a lot of work and self-reflection by the people who are currently shaping the discourse around here - starting with reading up on why #BlackTwitter bounced off so hard around here.

And it goes further than that - I mean, by all accounts Mastodon is still overwhelmingly white and European / North American. There is very little representation from, say, Africa or South Asia.

And if people from these communities don't come here because they feel they would be screaming into the void... well, the best we can do is listen to the concerns of those who _are_ sticking around.

Learn all about the dwarf realm hidden beneath Plesse Castle - and their secret war in the realms below!

#MythologyMonday #Germany #folktale #folklore #dwarves
https://www.patreon.com/posts/silent-people-99648738

@woo @Catawu @mcc I dunno, but I don't think it's a coincidence that (a) much of the USA denies felons the right to vote, and (b) the USA mass-produces felons on a scale unsurpassed by almost any other country in the world.

I get the feeling that a lot of these people behind bars shouldn't be there in the first place.

@cstross And "First Past The Post" really makes this a lot worse.

@TruthSandwich @cstross

The problem is when the extremists _are_ one of the two main political parties that the system permits.

See also: The current problems in the USA and the UK.

I also think that democratic parties should have incentives to offer more than just "Vote for us, or the fascists win!" There should be viable choices between _different_ democratic parties, and the voters should not feel that their vote is "lost" even when they are not voting for one of the "Big Two".