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pollyannainhell.bsky.social

@pollyannainhell.bsky.social
179 followers 329 following 618 posts

Recovering lawyer, minor public official, (very) former sf/fantasy editor, occasional painter. This is the account I admit to in public.

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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Andy Craig @andycraig.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
The Constitution allows it. South Korea has proven it works. If you want to make impeachment viable—and so much else is pointless if you don't—then it can be done by a simple majority adopting a simple rules change: vote on the verdict by secret ballot.
theunpopulist.net
A Democratic Senate Should Adopt Secret Impeachment Ballots on a Priority Basis
Such a change, requiring no constitutional amendment, would free senators to vote their judgment instead of their fears
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
pumpkin spice doodlemancy 🎃 @doodlemancy.com · 05/10/2026
apparently nappy.co, an invaluable stock photo resource, is shutting down in a few months because, well, AI destroys everything. this blows. their statement: nappy.co/future just fucking sucks that AI dipshits essentially get to take away our choices because they're incapable of making their own
nappy.co
An update on the future of Nappy | Nappy
Nappy makes it easy for companies to be purposeful about representation in their designs, presentations, and advertisements.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Fanboys. These people are very rich Culture fanboys who badly want Claude and its ilk to be proto-Minds. But Iain Banks did that by authorial fiat. The Culture books aren't extrapolation, and longing is not going to make Claude grow up to be the Sleeper Service, or even Flere-Imsaho.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Seriously, I bet all of these guys are fans of the Iain Banks Culture novels. In which machines do have consciousness, and a ton of charisma too; but gentlemen all: those books are far future indistinguishable-from-magic books. Claude is not a proto-Mind, no matter how rich you are.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I needed the ring, only with eight tentacles. For reasons.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
It is. I can't believe there are silly people who try to cut this stone so that it looks like a diamond. I love diamonds, but why try to imitate them when this looks like itself, and itself is magical? You can tell some of the stones are better than others, but wow. Just wow.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
"Yes, we do know it, but do You really want us to tell them so?" Or, alternatively: Allegory of my city council. Only none of us, and none of our constituents, have the halos.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
"This is Nenya, the ring of adamant, and I am its keeper." Or, package 2 from @peculiarityshop.bsky.social. (Did y'all know this stone has significant color shift, from faintest blue-white to this blue?) Photography can't capture what this does with light. If I'd known I'd have tried to buy all 3.
A ring featuring a blue stone that bears a remarkable resemblance to a blue-white star, twinkle and all, on a delicate band that suggests the fiery trail of a meteor. It's better in person.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Charles Johnson @charles.littlegreenfootballs.com · 26/09/2026
The stupidest Republican talking point used to be their claim that intercepting drug shipments proved nobody was intercepting drug shipments. But amazingly enough, this one is even stupider.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Why push Andrew Cuomo for mayor? But the NYT did that, too.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Charles Johnson @charles.littlegreenfootballs.com · 26/09/2026
It’s grotesque and infuriating.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Or at least the most infuriating. Oh look, it's Rahm Emanuel and Hakeem Jeffries! Two great tastes that go together like mustard gas at the polling places.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Anil Dash @anildash.com · 25/09/2026
Age verification is an egregious privacy violation, an inexcusable form of surveillance, and… it’s also voodoo bullshit that doesn’t work. It’s one of the reasons I’m proudest to support @eff.org, who have been leading the fight against the horrible practice for years: www.eff.org/issues/age-v...
eff.org
Age Verification and Age Gating: Resource Hub
Age verification (or age-gating) laws generally require online services to check, estimate, or verify all users’ ages—often through invasive tools like ID checks, biometric scans, or other dubious “ag...
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Well, the question does ask how we'd *feel.*
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
The question is "how would you FEEL," not what would you think or how would you respond. That being the case? You might not tell a pollster that you're in favor of the military stepping in, but still acknowledge that your first and second response would be, America, fuck yeah.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Do you mean the post cards/flyers that muni candidates send out here in MA? I can send a bunch if so, but mostly they're all a photo, a statement that X is a proud graduate of the local high school, that our taxes are too damn high, and that they're a leading leader who knows how to lead.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Sooooo cool. I'm kind of hoping the two other buyers chime in with pictures. There were three pairs originally, and maybe one or both of them can take pictures of what they look like on the ear. I tried, but I'm too much of a klutz.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
They are awesome. For some reason my camera refuses to pick up the way that because they are rubies, they blaze under ultraviolet light. I can't wait to see them in full sunlight.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
When you get a package from @peculiarityshop.bsky.social, I think it's traditional to show off the shinies? These synthetic-ruby spikes are everything I love about modern jewelry, and the way it doesn't have to be precious about materials; and they're FABULOUS on. Thanks, team!
A badly-photographed ruby earring in the shape of a narrow spike. Worn by no one, because it's hard to take a picture of your own ear.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
My memory reaches back even to the Elder Days. I remember when AO3 and the OTW were glitters in the founders' eyes, because commercial platforms had proved over and over that fandom was just too weird for them. And now look at it. You reference it, you don't even have to explain.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
And a good thing, I guess, since I am not allowed to order anything else until the last order arrives, and I know how hammered you are so that might be a while and maybe these won't vanish while I can't look.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
National Security Counselors 🕵 @nationalsecuritylaw.org · 13/09/2026
Saoirse is in an afterschool program, and today she excitedly told me all about the SMART test for evaluating the credibility of information (source, motivation, author, review, two-sources). I can think of a lot of adults who would benefit from this class designed for 4th and 5th graders.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Photography by Alfie Goodrich @alfie.photography · 13/09/2026
Getty makes a ton of money out of selling public domain footage. Which is crazy. But that’s Getty. The footage is usually available free elsewhere but it’s hard to find. Great video that helps you understand where and how to find it. youtu.be/2dzqQItDmdg?...
youtu.be
I Killed A Business Model
YouTube video by Elroddd
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Going to say it one more time: We did not ban new data centers in reaction to the Chestnut River proposal. Yes, we like the MGHPCC, but we were concerned with the kinds of projects and impacts we'd seen elsewhere, and the ban proposal was filed prophylactically.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
American Rivers @americanrivers.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Maine's Royal River flows freely for the first time since the 19th century! 🎉 Our Northeast Regional Director, Andy Fisk, gives an update on the Bridge Street Dam removal progress. This restoration project will improve community safety and help restore migratory fish runs in the greater watershed.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
This is maddening. WTAF is any journalist or media outlet pretending this is anything but what it is: A blatantly illegal fantasy, that would get anyone else investigated and likely indicted before we even get to the impossibility of doing it?
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Matthew Gertz @mattgertz.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
For those who are new, Joe DiGenova has spent the last 30 years baselessly accusing Democrats of committing crimes. If he is saying publicly the Trump administration pushed him out because he wouldn’t bring cases because there was no evidence, things are really bad.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Didn't they already do this, only for Rick Santis?
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Underlying article is from Ha'aretz. I can't evaluate Israeli news media-I just don't know enough-but Marshall isn't as ignorant as I am, so I think this is worth passing along. Detailed, plausible, and in any normal universe would end Netanyahu's political career. He denies all of it, of course.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Please. My fault for the weird Pride and Prejudice reference, and you have all my sympathy. Anyway, grabbed. If these look as much like a falling star happened to fall right onto your finger as it looks like from the picture, you have two very lucky winners.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
I got the studs too. I didn't want to add to your stress by nagging earlier, and now I feel like a big winner.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
OK, I thought I asked for this days ago, but got no reply/link. Can I grab it now, at this price point, and we can forget the earlier attempt?
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Autumnal Astrid🍂 @namitomoon.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Somerville (left) and Cambridge (right) if they were lesbians instead of cities in Massachusetts
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Oh, Herself, for sure. The little smile of internal confidence, the fall of the pearls, the bejeweled hair. And the way the pleats in that skirt are nailed down and not out of control.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Alas, my issue is different, or I think it is. Mine is just random incoming not arriving, or arriving a day or two late. And it's intermittent, which makes troubleshooting it the actual worst. But YES, GODDAMMIT. If it's file size, they see it and they should bloody well tell you.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Damn, I'm having similar issues with Proton. They're trying to troubleshoot, but I can't give them the headers from emails that NEVER ARRIVED. Especially the ones where I didn't know they were being sent, and followups didn't arrive either.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Cf. Tolkien: "So deadly and ineluctable is the underlying thought, that those who in the circle of light, within the besieged hall, are absorbed in work or talk and do not look to the battlements, either do not regard it or recoil." Plenty of upset people, not regarding it as hard as they can.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Are you looking ahead for 2027, or is it still too early for that? (You already know this, but Massachusetts does all its muni elections on odd years. Every August-November is an election cycle here.)
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
I am fascinated by what's happening with moissy. The prices! The cuts! It was not like this ten years ago when I last looked, and I remain grateful to you for cluing me in. Looking forward to whatever you do with this, and maybe pictures.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Mike Boylan-Kolchin @mbkplus.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
There have long been algorithms that, e.g., reorder daily papers on the arXiv (where scientists post new results) based on keywords. These can sometimes be helpful but are also dangerous to rely on because they often miss papers of interest. LLMs as the gateway to literature supercharge this bias.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Ada Palmer @adapalmer.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Mountain lions are making American roads safer by frightening away deer. On Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, where cougars were most active, deer-vehicle collisions fell 76%. Deer kill up to 440 Americans a year; cougars have killed 29 Americans since 1868. buff.ly/9bDfEKZ #ShareGoodNewsToo
news.mongabay.com
Cougars cut deadly vehicle-deer collisions in the US by up to 76%, study shows
If you’re a black-tailed deer on the Olympic Peninsula in the U.S. state of Washington, you’re always surrounded by friends and family. You are free-range, with abundant food to forage in familiar…
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Not for long. The plane made an emergency stop some 15 minutes later so law enforcement could haul him off. Probably easier for everyone to keep him in first class near the doors.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Patton Oswalt @pattonoswalt.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Apparently people are sharing this far and wide on social media, which I think is horrible. This could cripple ICE operations. PLEASE do not share this.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
OK, in vain have I struggled, blah blah. I'll give one of these a home.
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pollyannainhell.bsky.social @pollyannainhell.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
@markey.senate.gov? I love you, I voted for you, I closed a polling station for you; but you're wrong about KOSA and this is why. Could you please revisit this, and regulate algorithms instead of trying to age-gate? That goes for you, @warren.senate.gov, too.
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Reposted by @pollyannainhell.bsky.social
Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Under pressure, the DOD just released the text of its secret 10-year agreement with the NIH. Here are the biggest revelations from the document 🧵
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Alyssa Harad @alyssaharad.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
A Japanese improvement (a really good one) on Paxlovid. I am so grateful for non-US research right now.
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Karl Bode @karlbode.com · 04/09/2026
nice quote from Mandami comms person Emilia Rowland to the New York Times
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Karl Bode @karlbode.com · 04/09/2026
I'm just utterly disoriented by any democratic staffer that is smart on media reform the party hasn't had a coherent media reform strategy in 50 years, which culminated in the right wing and their corporate friends building the biggest and most effective propaganda machine in human history
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