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Alison Preston

@alisonserene.bsky.social
904 followers 1.3K following 931 posts

“We are the luckiest bastards alive. We can’t also be the most self-interested bastards alive. They can’t be the same thing.” —David Modica AI sucks, we don’t need to debate it or anything. "Come down off the cross, we can use the wood." —T. Waits

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David Gerard @davidgerard.circumstances.run.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026
henstomper

oh my god the slot machine company says i have to keep putting coins in their machine or Im Gonna Get Left Behind. thats so scary. and it has to be true because they know more about slot machines than i do

oh my god the slot machine company says if we dont give them money to build the world's biggest slot machine the chinese are gonna build it first and win all the prizes. and then there wont be any prizes anymore
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Will Bunch @willbunch.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
This keeps happening
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Rodger Sherman @rodger.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
A goose saying "what adversity?"
the same goose chasing a man yelling "what adversity was Deshaun Watson dealing with?"
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Brian Finucane @bcfinucane.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
When it comes to a US president enabling mass slaughter abroad, really it is the private frustration that is most important.
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Jesus Lizard Superstar 🖤 🐀🐀🐀 @acekatana.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
What a disaster of a country
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Liliana Segura @lilianasegura.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
The tortuous, botched execution of Christa Pike is truly horrifying. And while it feels unique in some ways, in reality it is also only the latest in a history of botched executions going back years — YEARS — in numerous states. Please know: this is the reality of the death penalty in this country.
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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
George Saunders on using AI: "Writing is the most precious way one person can communicate their essence to another person. I’ve spent a lifetime trying to get better at making myself present in my writing. Why would I want to sacrifice even one iota of that?"
Have you spent time trying to write or revise with AI? Is there an experiment that would be interesting enough to try?

I have not. Not for a second. To me, this whole idea of using AI to write is . . . anathema. A thing to be most radically avoided.

Writing is the most precious way one person can communicate their essence to another person. I’ve spent a lifetime trying to get better at making myself present in my writing. Why would I want to sacrifice even one iota of that? Not even in an email and certainly not in a short story or novel.Who are we ceding our authority to, exactly, when we let AI write for us? And why? Why surrender our agency (that amazing ability we have to reach across time and space, with our strange, idiosyncratic phenomenon, and land within the sensibility of another human being) to something that, by its very design, pushes the individual sensibility aside? And in the name of . . . what, exactly? Ease, I guess? Efficiency? The person who chooses to write with AI has also sacrificed, from the start, the opportunity of experiencing difficulty, of struggling to say what he wants to say, of making himself evident in his prose, of trying to find out what he believes. By this, he sacrifices a chance to know himself and his mind better. To me, that’s a shame. And it’s dangerous, because, as we are now finding out, it affects the brain and lessens our capabilities. Thanks, but no thanks, get thee behind me, etc.
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Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I've been covering the death penalty in depth for a dozen years now, and few nights have been as disturbing and dispiriting as tonight. This was a moral, ethical, and legal failure on several different fronts from many different actors. It wasn't *just* SCOTUS, though they sure were a key part.
lawdork.com
After SCOTUS allowed Tennessee execution to go ahead, Tennessee botched the execution
SCOTUS, over the liberals’ dissent, cleared the way for Tennessee to kill Christa Pike. The alarming order from DC was followed by even more disturbing developments in Tennessee.
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The Flytrap @theflytrapmedia.com · 29/09/2026
HAPPY FLYTRAP TUESDAYY!! this week, @andreagrimes.com writes about hideous Christian fashion and how it blends into normie fashion to normalize fascism: www.theflytrapmedia.com/maga-makeove...
theflytrapmedia.com
The 'MAGA Makeover' is Over, and Its Replacement is (Even More) Terrifying
Fascists are using fashion to normalize radical perspectives and groups into normie society.
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Ian Coldwater 🧊🚫 @lookitup.baby · 30/09/2026
BREAKING NEWS: “Do geese see God” is a palindrome
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Sergio Perez @sergioperez.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Trump & ICE have done this to 25,000 people & counting. The government is abducting our neighbors and disappearing them to places with abhorrent human rights records. Often, they’re stranded there without money or identity papers. These aren’t deportations - they’re renditions.
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The New Republic @newrepublic.com · 27/09/2026
Trump is banning students majoring in degrees that don’t make enough money from taking out college loans. Degrees for social work, art, religious studies, teaching aides, and music will be hit the hardest. trib.al/kQdKbY1
trib.al
Trump Moves to Cut Off Student Loans for Tons of Degrees
Under a new rule, if your degree doesn’t make enough money, you won’t be able to get a student loan.
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Paul Cezanne @cezanne.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Portrait of a Man, 1864 botfrens.com/collections/43/content…
Portrait of a Man
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Rob Delaney @robdelaney.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Claude how do I “wipe my ass?”
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Tressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Don’t believe people who tell you ai can be liberatory or any other misappropriation of movement talk or justice frameworks. Find some people who are preparing to rebuild and cast your lot with them. Then read a bit more. Just keep your wits about you because they are trying to run game.
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Lisa Diedrich @lisadiedrich.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Reading is a practice of freedom.
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Tressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
context. sentiment. inferences. People seriously cannot do these things anymore. That’s why they angrily demand you spell out every joke, every reference, super duper promise you mean something only this one prescribed way. They cannot do it for themselves or tolerate the any ambiguity.
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Steve @yinzer.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Friday
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Henri Matisse @henrimatisse.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Studio under the Eaves, 1903 botfrens.com/collections/48/content…
Studio under the Eaves
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Alison Preston @alisonserene.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Nothing—nothing!—like stepping out of a hot shower after a crappy day and @awarmarterialspray.bsky.social has signed off work and put on a ragu.
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Gillian Brockell @gillianbrockell.com · 23/09/2026
ICE snatched up a Senegalese college basketball player with an ACL injury in a Kentucky airport. She’s “in so much pain” and needs surgery, but is being transferred from camp to camp with little more than ibuprofen. www.kentucky.com/news/state/k...
A picture of Amina Seck in her Kentucky State jersey on a basketball court.
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Eric Columbus @ericcolumbus.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
On two fronts—WH press access and third-country removals—the administration appears to be ignoring court orders.
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David Kaye @davidakaye.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
to be clear, the admin is alleged to have deported AT LEAST 25,447 individuals TO COUNTRIES THAT ARE NOT THEIR OWN with, evidently, ZERO PROTECTIONS. this is a scandal and crime of historic proportions.
forbiddenstories.org
The Deportation Project Map
Between 2025 and August 2026, the Trump administration deported over 25,000 people to countries other than their country of origin. Very few of these removals were publicly announced by the US. The De...
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Joe Walsh @walshfreedom.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
The United States government killed another innocent person.👇
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David M. Luebke @davidmluebke.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Good answer
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Radley Balko @radleybalko.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Just a remarkable choice, this headline. No other leader of any other country in the history of the UN would get that headline after giving an address with that quote.
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Eric Umansky @ericumansky.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
What we already know about the latest ICE shooting: Agents drove into Wilber Rafael Garces Perez’s car An agent fired at Garces Perez 4 times--while he was still in the car The agents didn't give Garces Perez immediate medical attention They didn't have body-cams www.nytimes.com/2026/09/22/u...
nytimes.com
Videos Reveal New Details About ICE Shooting in Austin
A video analysis finds that a federal immigration officer was standing to the side of Wilber Rafael Garces Perez’s car when the officer apparently fired through the rear passenger window. But the even...
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Katiesaurus @katiesaurusseven.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
"The Evanston resident briefly detained and bloodied by federal immigration agents Sunday morning was walking to a pharmacy the day after a hospital emergency room visit"
evanstonnow.com
Victim in ICE stop was walking to pharmacy, witness says - Evanston Now
Agents drove off, leaving the man bloodied on the pavement.
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Luke O'Neil @lukeoneil47.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
There is no such thing as art without a human on one end of the line and a human on the other end. In communication with each other.
A city that exists
There is no such thing as art without a human on one end of the line and a human on the other end. In communication with each other. Like a closed electric circuit (?) I could explain that better but I spent my life appreciating art. There are pieces of writing that stand on their own without any supplementary information but there's a reason that when we read a classic poem or short story we usually soon after want to know when and where and under which conditions it was written. Same with music. You can hear a song you like and appreciate it knowing little but the first question people often ask when you play them something by a new band is where are they from? It’s funny that you should ask because they are from a city that exists. Art is a conversation where the particulars of the world are made universal and the universal is made particular. Think about how powerful an engine of imagination it is for a young person hearing a band and learning that they are from some far off place – Tokyo or New York or even somewhere gross like the UK. It is a time portal. It is magic. It even works if the artist dead. So too with a painting. The little information plaque in the museum is an extraordinarily powerful tool. What if it said no one painted this nowhere? Well then you’d be looking at nothing. And now what would you be?
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Brandy Zadrozny @brandyzadrozny.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Bonus for whoever wrote this chyron
Trump speaking at UN — MS NOW chyron reads: Trump touts being a peacemaker while asking if he should annihilate Iran
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Remedios Varo @remediosvaro.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Breaking off botfrens.com/collections/69/content…
"Breaking Off" by Remedios Varo features a solitary figure in flowing robes descending a staircase, surrounded by architectural elements and ethereal, bird-like forms. The artwork reflects Varo's signature style, characterized by mystical themes and dreamlike landscapes, capturing the surreal exploration of individuality and transcendence.
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Al Jazeera English @aljazeera.com · 22/09/2026
More than 500 children are now in shelters, their parents missing or declared dead since the August 26 floods.
aljazeera.com
‘Orphaned' by floods, more than 500 Nepali children face uncertain future
More than 500 children are now in shelters, their parents missing or declared dead since the August 26 floods.
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Equal Justice Initiative @eji.org · 21/09/2026
On this day in 2011, Georgia executed Troy Davis despite new evidence of his innocence. The evidence was so compelling that three of his jurors urged the government to stop the execution.
calendar.eji.org
Sep. 21, 2011 | Troy Davis Executed in Georgia Despite Evidence of Innocence
Learn more about our history of racial injustice.
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southpaw @nycsouthpaw.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
“Briefly detained” = beat half to death
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Kashana @kashana.blacksky.app · 20/09/2026
Americans: oh, look, a systemic issue. I will solve it individually
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David Rothschild @davmicrot.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Trump saying we urgently need well stocked sniper nests overlooking the nation’s main location for political protest should ring alarm bells.
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Smooth Dunk @smoothdunk2.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
when ai leaves u behind
7 panel comic.

Panel 1:
A Red Guy with AI across his chest looks like he’s about to run away. A Yellow Guy stands next to him. Red Guy says “I’m the future, buddy. You comin’?”
Yellow Guy replies “Nah”

Panel 2: 
Red Guy is almost out of the panel. He leans in and says “Enjoy getting left behind, pal”
Yellow Guy replies “ok”

Panel 3:
Yellow Guy stands alone.

Panel 4: 
Close up on Yellow Guy, there is a quiet “huff-huff-huff” noise coming from behind him

Panel 5:
Yellow Guy turns to look behind him

Panel 6: 
Close up on Yellow Guy’s face as if from the point of view of an attacker.
Yellow Guy yells “Jesus Christ”

Panel 7:
AI Red Guy is now chasing the Yellow Guy. 
Red Guy: “Use me”
Yellow Guy “No”
Red Guy “USE ME”
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Ryan Boyd @ryanboyd.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Guy who is obviously on drugs: I built a supercomputer that is God and now I need subsidies
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Stephen R Bissette @stephenrbissette.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
I'm 71. For ALL my life, so-called 'Conservatives' and damn near every Republican in America has wielded "the children! the children!" as an ideological club. NEVER AGAIN, you bastards. You'll NEVER AGAIN do so. The GOP tortures, imprisons, trafficks, kills children. www.yahoo.com/news/us/arti...
yahoo.com
Trump ally Stephen Miller leads sweeping push to accelerate removal of migrant children
Exclusive: key White House loyalist orchestrating multi-agency effort condemned by critics as cruel and racist
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Alison Preston @alisonserene.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
In what way is this not textbook apartheid?
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Alison Preston @alisonserene.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
How are we just going on about our business? A Central African Hotel Has Become a Nightmare Prison for U.S. Deportations www.nytimes.com/2026/09/18/w...
nytimes.com
A Central African Hotel Has Become a Nightmare Prison for U.S. Deportations
Witnesses say men were hooded and beaten in Equatorial Guinea. The autocratic government there is a partner in President Trump’s deportation program.
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Gregory Hays @aristofontes.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Aunt Lydia haz a sadz
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Alex Ip 葉清霖 @alexip718.com · 18/09/2026
This guy who assaulted a sitting member of Congress got 28 years and 10 months less jail time than a Texas resident who transported a box of zines that contained constitutionally protected content opposing ICE reason.com/2026/06/25/t...
reason.com
Texas man gets 30 years in prison for transporting 'anti-government' pamphlets
The case stems from a violent anti-ICE protest, but critics say the government's prosecution threatens First Amendment rights.
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Jessica Valenti @jessicavalenti.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Abortion, Every Day spoke to a woman whose state refused to let her cross state lines for an abortion. Don’t tell me Republicans will never criminalize travel—they already do. Pieces like this make me so proud to work with @kylietcheung.bsky.social
jessica.substack.com
She Wanted An Abortion. The State Wouldn’t Let Her Leave
Travel bans are already here—we just don’t talk about them
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Alison Preston @alisonserene.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
I like Reddit a lot sometimes until someone dumps on one of my favorite books. I just totally lose it and delete the app.
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WOR$T GIRL IN ACADEMIA @medievaliste.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Once again, the median pay for an adjunct professor in the United States of America is $3,500 per course. Not per month, per course.
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Kate Tuttle @katekilla.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
This is infuriating. Rowe is really good at her job, and faces disrespect like this — when ESPN is hiring as many dumb shouty guys as they can.
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Nina Metz @ninametz.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
www.vulture.com/article/tom-...
Tom Cruise's Digger Press Tour Kicks Off With a Lot of Nothing
By Fran Hoepfner

For a guy who insists he's "not afraid to be afraid" in a new and rare longform interview with GQ, it sure seems like Tom Cruise is afraid to say something - anything - incisive or reflective about his career in the lead-up to Digger, his big awards-season gambit and the first non-IP movie he's made in over a decade. In what feels like an
eternal conversation with Zach Baron, Cruise (sometimes paired alongside Digger director Alejandro G. Iñárritu) talks himself in circles about his image, "the movies," and loving people and stories. It is largely gibberish, hilariously and frustratingly incoherent. Like, can we please get back to Robert Pattinson's little voices or John Malkovich's clown outfit when it comes to the forthcoming Best Actor race?

No, it's Digger from Digger's time to shine, and he's got a whole lot of nothing to say.

Though the conversation with Baron tackles real issues and points of interest in Cruise's career - his decision to step away from auteur-driven cinema to make action movies with his BFF Christopher McQuarrie; his apparent and ongoing death drive; what he does on his day off - Cruise circumvents real answers left and right. When forced to “reflect back" on his life, Cruise says he has "no idea" what people's biggest misconception of him is. "I'm not sitting here thinking about that stuff. I never think about that. I'm more looking out. For me, I'm more in present and future," he explains. What little insight we get is that he loves Amores Perros, Inárritu's debut film; he thinks Brad Pitt is a great actor; and he loves being as far away from his phone as possible. For a guy who is more or less campaigning on the idea of being the mayor, if not the president, of the Movies™, it'd be great if he were able to talk about them in a little more detail. If theres one thing we know (or think we know) about Cruise, it's that he sees a lot of movies.

Instead of waxin…
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Andrew Lawrence @ndrew.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
reporters werent “barred” from recording, the powerful people they are covering asked them not to record and they immediately complied and hid whats happening from their audience
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Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
See, it's funny that his coach was a dick to a seasoned ESPN reporter, but it's even funnier when you imagine him getting physically violent with her. Did y'all see that? Did y'all see that? Man, that was FUNNY.
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