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Ben Plume

@pittbaster.bsky.social
1K followers 1.5K following 1.2K posts

I like nature, sci-fi, books, and being Dad. Live in the Maryland DC suburbs with a pretty cool spouse. Admittedly tired.

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Ben Plume
Melissa Nadia Viviana 🐸 @resistrebelrevolt.net · 17h
🤣😂 Anytime a company offers a new AI integration.
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Atrios @eschatonblog.com · 23h
Related: her predecessor quit suddenly and many journalists likely know why and aren’t telling
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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Cartoon Walton Goggins: <takes cigar out of mouth> <draws pistol> Goodbye, Kitty
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Nash @radiodeadair.com · 04/10/2026
The fucking stupidest people in the world have all the money. These are the kind of thoughts you couldn't torture out of me.
futurism.com
AI Bros Are Having a Meltdown Because the Associated Press Stylebook Clarifies That AIs Don't Have Feelings
The Associated Press Stylebook posted a reminder not to anthropomorphize AIs because they can't think, trigger a meltdown among AI bros.
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IbanezForever @ibanezforever.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
"Henry Shevlin, a philosopher and AI ethicist at Google DeepMind, suggested that the AP was being hypocritical because it anthropomorphized none other than Optimus Prime" in a MOVIE REVIEW. This is so far beyond stupid I don't have words for it.
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Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Again, <only Republicans> ever get to talk like this. If a single municipal level Democrat ever did, it would be a national outrage &spark a wave of “civility” discourse, & op-eds about how Dems must Respect Real Folkz & talk across difference. Democracy is incompatible with this double standard.
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Dana R. Fisher (aka the Apocalyptic Optimist) @fisherdanar.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
My thoughts on the permitting reform bill being discussed everywhere. TL;DR: "this deal provides clear evidence that the US system is not designed to represent the people’s interests and not prepared to protect us from the dangers of our warming world." danarfisher.com/2026/10/03/w...
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Hoodlum 🇺🇸 @nothoodlum.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Community Notes for the win here, Megyn Kelly. 👌
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Tyler King @tyleraking.com · 03/10/2026
Meta has enabled Muse to build extensive and ever-growing profiles on the orbit of people in a user’s life. Based on user input but also “publicly available information.” Whether that means a web search, Facebook’s own extensive data, or buying data broker info…we don’t know? And we can’t opt out.
wired.com
Muse Creates Detailed Profiles of All Your Friends and Family
Millions have downloaded Meta’s AI agent Muse. But getting it to do your bidding comes with privacy costs.
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Meidas Sassy™ 🐬 @filosia.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
"Caring for each other shouldn't cost you your life. It doesn't take extra to care... <>... We are here today not not out of anger and not out of hate. We are here because Renee's love and legacy demand a better world. For her children. For this community. And for this country!" #WeThePeople
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JoGo @mywitsend.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Eight years ago today the Saudi government murdered WaPo columnist Jamaal Khashoggi. Today they own 49.5% of the biggest media/news company in America.
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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Oh right, Pitt has a Friday night game let’s see how— Oh. Oh huh. That’s. It’s something.
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Joseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
This is huge: a judge ruled a Flock search was 'indiscriminate mass surveillance' and unconstitutional. Says the search by a cop, who did it because a passing car had a plate from a different state, violated the driver's rights. Meaning, Flock should require a warrant www.404media.co/federal-judg...
404media.co
Federal Judge Rules a Flock Search Was ‘Indiscriminate Mass Surveillance’ and Unconstitutional
Flock’s nationwide network is quickly “approaching dragnet-type law enforcement practice” and the cop should have got a warrant, the judge wrote.
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Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
In actual democracies, it doesn't matter "which party runs elections." You don't "need a plan to vote." There aren't never-ending pitched legal battles to maintain access to suffrage. The authoritarian nonsense isn't tolerated. We could be like other, more serious countries, & just have elections.
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emma (toys) @freeuse.toys · 02/10/2025
🍂 this has been rotating in my mind for the last week and it won't fucking stop
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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
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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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Hey. Hey men? We gotta fucking do better.
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Gwen C. Katz @gwenckatz.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Things Gavin Newsom has vetoed this week: -A ban on secretly recording people with smart glasses -A ban on ICE agents working for the state government -A ban on websites selling your data -A bill giving native tribes more say over water rights -A bill protecting transgender healthcare providers
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Gwen C. Katz @gwenckatz.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
And, for the coup de grace, two bills protecting fire survivors from predatory insurance companies, which he vetoed, deliberately, to punish fire survivors for rejecting his "reform" bill that was actually a huge payout to SCE for starting fires. calmatters.org/economy/2026...
calmatters.org
Newsom vetoes insurance-claim bills: Is it ‘petty’ politics?
California governor rejects legislation sponsored by LA fire victims, who had spoken out against his wildfire-liability effort.
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Christopher Webb @cwebbonline.com · 01/10/2026
This is the most heartbreaking stories I’ve heard in a long time. ICE detained 2-year-old Orlin Hernandez Reyes’ mother. She begged to be reunited with him before deportation. ICE refused. What happened next is horrific. No matter how you feel about immigration, normal people don’t like cruelty.
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Laura Haynes👩‍🔬⚾️🐾💙 @drlaurahaynes.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This is what happens when America devalues science 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽
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Elizabeth Taylor @elizabethtaylor47.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Do Americans realise most liberal democracies have solved this issue by… not killing our own citizens?
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Bathroom Barry @bathroombarry.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Old woman gave me a weird look for laughing when I saw this
Grocery store candy display stand advertising HERSHEY, the upcoming biopic from Angel Stufios that is sure to be a warts and all look at the life of Milton Hershey
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John Michael McGrath @jm-mcgrath.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
AAAAAAHHHHH!!!! AAAH! AAAH! AAAH! AAAH!!!! AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!
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emptywheel @emptywheel.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Renee Good's family filed two lawsuits today. The first, against, USG, is a standard wrongful death. The second is a Klan Act lawsuit against Jonathan Ross, AND STEPHEN MILLER and Greg Bovino. It names Nick Shirley and Christopher Rufo as non-party co-conspirators for their racist propaganda.
44. At all relevant times, Defendants Ross, Miller, Noem, Lyons, Homan,
Bovino, and the John Doe Federal Agents acted under color of federal law and within the
scope of a joint enterprise with the private actors described below. Defendant
Lewandowski acted in part under color of federal law and in part, as alleged below, as a
private person, his federal status having been limited to a temporary part-time designation
that his conduct exceeded. Shirley, Rufo, and Ben Bergquam, and the other non-party
private actors described below, agreed to and in fact participated in the conspiracy alleged
here: each acted in concert with, and with the knowledge and encouragement of, federal
officials.
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David Crowley @davidcrowley4wi.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
If you are wondering who Tom Tiffany works for, it’s not Wisconsinites. It’s the THREE Republican Billionaires who’ve dumped $34 million into his campaign. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/01/u...
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parlemag.bsky.social @parlemag.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Rick Ross’ attorney reportedly asked Judge Mindy Glazer to expedite his release because of his celebrity status, but the argument didn’t exactly go as planned. 😭
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Melissa Nadia Viviana 🐸 @resistrebelrevolt.net · 22/09/2026
Co-ops are awesome! 💪🏼🤍
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Faine Greenwood @faineg.com · 01/10/2026
I will also note that lots of genuinely intelligent and highly qualified people HAVE made brutally effective rebuttals of Yudkowsky/rationalist arguments: the thing is that they're essentially a cult, not actual honorable opponents, so they write these off or ignore them. Don't waste your time.
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Faine Greenwood @faineg.com · 01/10/2026
The Yuddite/rationalist primary defense mechanism is spurting out a big ink-cloud of thesaurus and number-laden complete nonsense, and then demanding that you waste your time "debating" them over it. The good news is that this trick is easily defeated by simply refusing to play the Debate Me game.
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Faine Greenwood @faineg.com · 01/10/2026
This is a classic example of Yuddite Defense Mechanism Logic, which bears the implication that if you don't waste your wild and precious life debating insane people, you must be stupid and wrong. Do not fall for this nonsense. bsky.app/profile/ther...
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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...
podcasts.apple.com
Could AI Really Kill Us All?
Podcast Episode · Science Vs · September 17 · 45m
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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
AI tools can make it easier for evil people to do evil things. The existential threat is *people.* A lot of folks have made very cogent counter arguments against AI killing us all, but the AI cultists dismiss them without actually offering anything other than “yes they could.”
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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
All of the “is an existential threat” arguments are vague nonsense, and so when something happens that seems a little alarming it is easy to point to them and say “see! This loosely fits the pattern!” But for the “paperclip problem” to be real, the AI needs access to the physical world.
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Merc with a 🫦 in 🎃SpOoKy Mode🎃 @mercuryal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
September 30 October 1
Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s Willow smiling wearing a rainbow knit shirt with stars.Dark Willow shooting purple lightning from her hamds and smirking wickedly, in an all black outfit.
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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This stances may be “controversial” but often the truth is.
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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Crazy Military thing will be led by three of our nation’s dippest of shits. Also they’re evil.
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Rob.(?)(!) @barackomamba.blacksky.app · 30/09/2026
static.klipy.com
Hannibal Buress on Eric Andre Show: Hahahahaha
Alt: Hannibal Buress on Eric Andre Show: Hahahahaha
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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
This aligns exactly with what we know about noncitizen voting; it is extremely rare (9 noncitizen votes in MN out of 3,253,920 in the 2024 election, or 0.0002%), and when it occurs it’s most often green card holders who were mistakenly told they could vote (none of these people are undocumented).
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David Avallone @davallone.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
100% this. And the hypothetical is still nowhere near reality: regulated ethical AI with no environmental footprint is not imminent. To say the least.
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Marie 🇨🇦 @pawbaby2.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Trump launched a new government AI. It said Biden won in 2020, climate change is largely human-caused, and Trump’s name appears in the Epstein files. Then suddenly it stopped answering political questions. 🤣 Even Trump’s own AI needed to be silenced. #USDemocracy qz.com/trump-americ...
qz.com
Trump's America.gov AI contradicted his claims at launch
The site confirmed Biden won in 2020 and that climate change is human-caused before pivoting to refuse political inquiries within minutes
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Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Tech industry is laser focused on solving the problem of humans enjoying each other’s company bsky.app/profile/down...
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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Yeah, so much focus on the obvious blunder (deservedly) that it’s easy to gloss over how even without the mistake it would be nonsense. Are we all now implicated in everything that happens in every city we travel to?
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Scott Horton @robertscotthorton.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
The White House Accord on AI: • We Do Not Want to Be Regulated • We Will Not Be Regulated • Donald Trump is really, really smart • We promise to pay him in crypto all he wants
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Princess Vimentin PhD | Cancer Biologist @princess-vimentin.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Jack Smith: "History teaches that the rule of law is rarely destroyed all at once. It's often weakened by attacks on the institutions and the public servants sworn to uphold it. Since January 2025, we have witnessed precisely such an effort." 🎯 #pinks
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Faine Greenwood @faineg.com · 29/09/2026
oh man, I just tried it and america.gov really does get REAL weird when you tell it to “play Minecraft”
america.gov
America.gov
Find answers from official government sources and clear next steps for the services you need with America.gov.
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Ben Plume @pittbaster.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Average investor class: Right, but like, I get all the money first right?
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John Scalzi @scalzi.com · 29/09/2026
Today in "absolutely not"
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Simon Rosenberg @simonwdc.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
If this goes ahead it is Trump overtly taking Russia's side in the war against Ukraine and Europe, aligning the United States with China, Iran, and North Korea. Like the Putin G20 visit, it cannot be allowed to happen. We must fight.
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Robert Evans (the Only Robert Evans) @iwriteok.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
yes when i think of the people in my life I've watched weep in despair for lack of affordable childcare options i think "urban, affluent voters"
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