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David Hamilton

@davidneilhamilton.bsky.social
556 followers 469 following 2.2K posts

Consulting software engineer. Politically homeless; radical centrist; anti-fascist; advocate of electoral reform. Collector of cognitive biases + reasons why world is messy.

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Reposted by David Hamilton
British Library @britishlibrary.bsky.social · 02/10/2025
Hwæt! 🐉 Ever wondered what the epic poem Beowulf sounds like spoken in Old English? #NationalPoetryDay
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Rosamundi @rosamundi.bsky.social · 9h
Here is what that paragraph used to say (this is from the 1999 text).
screenshot from the previous edition of the catechism:
2267 Assuming that the guilty party's identity and responsibility have been fully determined, the traditional teaching of the Church does not exclude recourse to the death penalty, if this is the only possible way of effectively defending human lives against the unjust aggressor.

If, however, non-lethal means are sufficient to defend and protect people's safety from the aggressor, authority will limit itself to such means, as these are more in keeping with the concrete conditions of the common good and more in conformity to the dignity of the human person.Today, in fact, as a consequence of the possibilities which the state has for effectively preventing crime, by rendering one who has committed an offense incapable of doing harm - without definitely taking away from him the possibility of redeeming himself - the cases in which the execution of the offender is an absolute necessity "are very rare, if not practically nonexistent."68
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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 6h
Technologically very impressive but this stuff scares the crap out of me from a societal perspective. Just the sheer amount of fraud alone that these models will enable is chilling, let alone all the other harms.
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Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 7h
It's hard to tell which is weirder: the fact that these guys seriously suggest that models like Claude have consciousness/sentience or that they actually invest time and money (weird!) trying to convince the Pope as well as theologians and legal scholars of this belief.
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Tim Carmody @tcarmody.bsky.social · 8h
This is the funniest thing I've seen today, possibly ever
A tweet by SarahStarberry that says "oh god read the vertical axis" on top of a chart measuring AI models' release dates and model numbers rather than any real capabilities
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Keiron Pim @keironpim.bsky.social · 6h
In Spitalfields this afternoon, and I emerged from a cafe where I was reading this book to find that Yiddish hasn’t died out here quite yet.
Number 7 Princelet Street, which has been decorated with the Yiddish phrase ‘Mann tracht, un Gott lacht’ (Man makes plans, and God laughs’.
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Dorit Reiss @doritreiss.bsky.social · 6h
So in the latest vaccinated v. unvaccinated preprint, they: A. Got the math wrong - check their numbers. B. Got the ICD-10 codes wrong - badly. C. Didn't control for confounders. And more, as @aboutpediatrics.bsky.social explains. open.substack.com/pub/stopanti...
open.substack.com
Let’s Talk About Vaccinated vs Unvaccinated Children Again
That new preprint from Brian Hooker about vaccinated vs unvaccinated kids is what you would expect - poorly done propaganda.
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e.w. niedermeyer @niedermeyer.online · 11h
a society that is obsessed with computer automation but also isn't restrained by a single shared value once nobody is looking is gonna get itself into some interesting situations
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Zack Whittaker @zackwhittaker.com · 11h
"Microsoft has confirmed its X account has been compromised."
theverge.com
Is everything ok Microsoft?
The official @microsoft X account has been compromised. Microsoft’s X account followed a Clippy crypto account earlier today, reposted one of its tweets, and had its profile picture changed to a Clipp...
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I've been a member of the lobby for well over a decade. Not a single one of my lobby colleagues has said a word about the Conservatives banning me from their conferences, without any explanation. Contrast with the US where even Fox News stood in solidarity when Trump banned news outlets he disliked
bylinetimes.com
Kemi Badenoch's Conservatives Block Byline Times From Conference After Condemning Reform for Journalist Ban
The ban comes just weeks after the Conservative leader called Reform's barring of critical journalists from their conference an "authoritarian" attack on the free press
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Joshua Loftus @joft.bsky.social · 16h
“AI” in education Is like a fire in a library
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KittyKatGirl😻🙏💞🐞 @mary1kathy.bsky.social · 20h
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Samuel Moore @samuelmoore.org · 17h
It shows you how bad the problem is that limiting people to 24 submissions a year will make a meaningful difference.
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Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg @theradr.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
the only map of england everybody else needs (best selling music by territory, Actually Helpful for understanding some things; also Suck It Morrissey.)
map of england where every county is lableled by their best selling band
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Electronic Frontier Foundation @eff.org · 01/10/2026
AirTags make that noise "because you cannot make a tracker that does not alert a thief without also making ... a tool for stalking,” EFF’s @evacide.bsky.social told @sixcolors.com. “I think these people have, in fact, considered the implications and decided that they don’t care.”
sixcolors.com
Silencing AirTags enables stalkers and domestic violence
ElevationLab has released an AirTag product I find appalling, and I strongly urge they immediately withdraw it from sale and recall all inventory. The AirTag Silencer is a simple device: remove the…
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Ed Morrish @edmorrish.com · 01/10/2026
still seeing people making fun of tony blair’s gym photo and what you have to remember is that, as a catholic, he believes in the existence of hell, so it does make a lot of sense that he wants to put off dying for as long as possible
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Electronic Frontier Foundation @eff.org · 01/10/2026
With the launch of iOS 27, Apple is rolling out a variety of new AI features to Siri. But how are AI tools like these handling our data? Find out more with our latest issue of EFFector: www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
eff.org
📱 Hey Siri, How Do I Limit AI Data Access? | EFFector 38.17
With the launch of iOS 27, Apple is rolling out a variety of new AI features to its familiar voice assistant, Siri. But how are AI tools like these handling our data? In our latest EFFector
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Rosamundi @rosamundi.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I had no idea this was an option.
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Carl Quintanilla @carlquintanilla.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
“.. How is that .. number bigger than 100%? Apparently because earlier pledges were withdrawn.” @cnn.com www.cnn.com/2026/10/01/p...
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Charlie Warzel @cwarzel.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
For a long time I've wanted a sense of how trump has or hasn't interacted with chatbots (we know he posts a lot of slop sure). And this TIME anecdote about Grok arguably leading Trump into war is just extremely bracing
Since returning to office, Trump has marveled at AI’s capabilities. He is increasingly in thrall to the tech executives courting him. In December 2025, Elon Musk returned to the Oval Office for a clandestine meeting. Trump spent hours asking Grok, Musk’s AI chatbot, questions about his presidency and legacy, according to an official present. At the time, Trump was ordering missile strikes against Venezuelan boats he alleged were smuggling drugs into the U.S. He asked Grok how Venezuelans would react if the U.S. captured Maduro. According to the official present, the chatbot responded that Maduro was a repressive and deeply unpopular dictator and that many Venezuelans would likely celebrate his downfall. After Trump ordered the mission to seize Maduro, the following month, celebrations broke out in the streets. Trump, according to officials, came away thinking Grok was ingenious.
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David Hamilton @davidneilhamilton.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Have realised that AI generated materials are the perfect corporate business companion: soulless and bland. Why have character when you can have a bucketload of average?
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Peter Geoghegan @petergeoghegan.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
🔴 We asked Tony Blair's think tank about charging businesses £500k for political access at party conferences and why one of its sponsor's logos disappeared after our reporting last week on TBI's alleged cash for access scheme This is what they said
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Json Momoa @jotatx.eurosky.social · 01/10/2026
One of the issues highlighted here on this piece is how Marco Rubio diverted 1 million usd to a campaign to smear and dismantle the trust in the Brazilian supreme court and interfere in our elections, with more resources from untraceable channels expected to follow suit. clear US aggression here.
theguardian.com
Trump administration diverts human rights funds to push far-right agenda abroad
Support such as for white Afrikaners and anti-communism reveals how US is redefining what qualifies as human rights
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Cab Davidson @gnomeicide.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Art isn't just to please. It's also meant to challenge. Popular music, what charts, is already (this is studied and documented) less varied, therefore less challenging than at any time. AI gives you what you want, succeeds by keeping you engaged. It's the art we want. It isn't the art we need.
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Alex de Campi @alexdecampi.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
With alt text. I know someone who actually did this
kbarton1001
On my first big overseas client conference, I was at a dinner seated next to a drunk client who kept trying to fondle me under the table. I was young, distressed, and had no idea what to do. I moved my legs as far away from him as I could, moving into the space of the man next to me, who then started patting my legs! The Regional Manager was a French woman who caught my eye, gestured for me to go to the bathroom and when I came back had switched chairs with me. What happed next was epic. A few minutes after I sat back down, she raised her hand with his hand captured in hers and announced loudly "Does anyone know whose hand this is? I found it in my lap." There was dead silence at the table. She threw his hand back at him and said calmly "next time I pick it up with my fork." Then she started a new conversational thread and things moved on. After the meeting she found me, gave me a hug, and said seriously "Never be afraid to make some noise. It is their shame, not yours."
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Garth Marenghi's Catbus @catbus.phd · 30/09/2026
don't bother addressing a congregation unless you're in the baroque creature pulpit
Baroque pulpit ca. 1750, rebuilt 1856, Parish church in Dobroszów.

a fanciful scaled sculpture where the serpents open mouth serves as the pulpit
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Kemi Badenoch condemned Reform's ban on critical journalists covering their conference as "authoritarian", saying her own party would never do the same as "we believe in free speech. We believe in a free press." Now the Conservatives have banned Byline Times from their conference
bylinetimes.com
Kemi Badenoch's Conservatives Ban Byline Times From Conference After Condemning Reform for Journalist Ban
The ban comes just weeks after the Conservative leader called Reform's barring of critical journalists from their conference an "authoritarian" attack on the free press
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Jon Ayre @jonayre.uk · 01/10/2026
A real extract from the terms and conditions for Meta's cuddly Muse and OpenAI's fuzzy Dots: 7.1.2 Don't get them wet 7.1.3 Don't feed them after midnight
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Govt appears to have extended the temporary right to put up emergency school buildings on RAAC-affected sites from 3 years to 5, pushing expiry from Oct 2026 to Oct 2028. So schools that were given temporary classrooms in the 2023 RAAC crisis are now expected to need them for another two years...
Statutory Instruments

2026 No. 1056
TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING, ENGLAND

The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) (No. 2) Order 2026
Made25th September 2026
Laid before Parliament30th September 2026
Coming into force21st October 2026 
Amendment of Class CB of Part 4 of Schedule 2
6.  In Class CB of Part 4 of Schedule 2 (temporary provision of buildings for a school with a RAAC-affected building), in paragraph CB.1. (development not permitted), for “three” substitute “five”, and for “2026” substitute “2028”.
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Patricia Aas 🐢🏳️‍🌈 @patigallardo.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
These AI company valuations don’t make any sense, they are basically «if we took all jobs». Dude, then nobody has any money to pay for any of the stuff you’re selling.
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billkittle.bsky.social @billkittle.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
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Dan Neidle @danneidle.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Manchester City cheated Premier League rules, the Commission found. Did it also cheat HMRC? We've examined the decision and leaked Mancini documents. We think City likely failed to pay £12m in tax. There should be a criminal investigation. Thread:
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Ann @lifeinthepnw.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Dear Eric Schmitt: Other places where Jack Smith was not on February 3 — Skateboarding with Tony Hawk Watching a Howard Hawks film Visiting Ethan Hawke Jamming with Hamish Hawk At a Seattle Seahawks game At a Chicago Blackhawks game Birdwatching Cooper’s hawks …but now he’s watching you like a hawk
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Roland Smith @rolandmcs.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
This is the weirdest aspect of the RAF Fairford incident.
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Steve Doherty @stevedoherty.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
“Terrorists” ringing the police does sound a bit Four Lions, doesn’t it.
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New-Cleckit Dominie @ncdominie.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Great moments in Scottish engineering history: James Watt tries to work out how his phone attaches to his selfie stick.
Statue of James Watt. In his right hand he holds a telescopic stick with a frame at the top; in his left he holds a flat object about the size of a large smartphone. He is scowling at the possibly-not-a-smartphone as if he is tempted to yeet it into the sea. On that basis, it probably _is_ a phone.
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Harry McCracken @harrymccracken.com · 30/09/2026
Supers, ranked: 1. Superchicken 2. Superman/Supergirl (tie) 3. Super Mario 4. Super Elastic Bubble Plastic 5. Superfly 6. Superbad 7. Superdry 8. Krofft Supershow 9. Super Size Me 10. Supercuts 1,586 Super Intelligence
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shauna @goldengateblond.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
i thought about this old tweet tonight and how nothing has ever aged better
@Merman_Melville • Jan 24, 2019
Being a billionaire must be insane. You can buy new teeth, new skin. All your chairs cost 20,000 dollars and weigh 2,000 pounds. Your life is just a series of your own preferences. In terms of cognitive impairment it's probably like being kicked in the head by a horse every day
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Sahil Kapur @sahilkapur.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
A phenomenal moment in the Senate. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., claims he has evidence Jack Smith went to a HAWKS game in Atlanta. Smith denies it. Schmitt declares he has busted Jack Smith for perjury. Smith, vexed, says he went to HAWKEYES game in Maryland. WATCH IN FULL, UNINTERRUPTED
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Ed Zitron @edzitron.com · 30/09/2026
This is now a sycophancy test. Joking about it I’ll accept, barely, but anyone who even remotely indulges this is a coward
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Tom Gauld @tomgauld.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
My latest cartoon for @newscientist.com
A figure stands in a barren landscape; reaches for the lever on a large, eccentric contraption covered in wires, pipes, dials and buttons; looks over towards two figures inside a bunker and says:

"'Trust me, it's safe' would sound a lot more reassuring if you weren't saying it from inside a concrete bunker."
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Alasdair Beckett-King @misterabk.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Is it me, or does Michaelmas start earlier every year?
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David Hamilton @davidneilhamilton.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Priceless…
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Andrew Rait @andrewrait.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Meanwhile some other non-entity has gone the full picnic
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Roland Smith @rolandmcs.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Wouldn't it be good if news organisations had to display a little symbol whenever this kind of situation arose? Basically, 'we're obliged to tell you this but don't take any notice'. Wouldn't ever happen though, sadly. Oh well, come the Smithian revolution...
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Roland Smith @rolandmcs.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
This is one of the purest examples of where the public's view of important news should be entirely at odds with the media's. They must report it, while we must take no notice of it.
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Roland Smith @rolandmcs.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
An American government politician has said something about Fairford. We should totally ignore it.
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Katelyn Burns @katelynburns.com · 29/09/2026
Oh bsky.app/profile/ecmc...
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Jo Wolff @jowolff.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Rare opportunity to invest in no future.
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Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · 29/09/2026
It’s time to stop being polite about the triple lock. It's not fiscally sustainable for the State Pension to grow faster than earnings indefintiely. State Pension spending accounts for nearly half the projected increase in social security spending by 2029-30 ➡️ buff.ly/FY93tV6
chart showing that State Pension spending accounts for nearly half of the projected increase in social security spending by 2029-30. Of a total £30.5bn social security spending, the state pension is projected to be £13.8bn, with £2.2bn spent on pensioner other.
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