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Out of Town

@thepurley.bsky.social
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Hypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · 11h
“Elgin Community College staff notified Flock in October 2025 that they wanted to cancel their contract and have the cameras taken down. Within a day, Heinrich said, Flock rejected the request and refused to uninstall the equipment on the basis that the company had not breached their agreement.”
wbez.org
To protect immigrant students, a Chicago-area college told Flock to remove its cameras. The company refused.
Elgin Community College resorted to covering the surveillance cameras with trash bags and zip ties. Public records show that federal immigration authorities have accessed Flock data at other Illinois ...
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Chris Hayes @chrislhayes.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
I've been immersed in research on Reconstruction in Lousiana and it's a very difficult truth to absorb that the white terrorist movement in the South was among the most successful terrorist movements in global history. Took 10 years but it won a total & complete victory through murder and atrocity.
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Rachel Maddow @maddow.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
"Among the first to appear before the judge was Angel, a 13-year-old. He had no attorney. “Would you like to request voluntary departure, or should I issue a removal order?” the judge asked “I don’t know,” Angel said, bursting into tears: “I have no one. I have nothing.” www.cnn.com/2026/09/28/p...
cnn.com
Inside the Texas courtroom where toddlers face immigration judges | CNN Politics
Migrant children as young as 2 are showing up at immigration courts nationwide, many without attorneys, to try make their case to stay in the US and avoid deportation.
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mtsw @mtsw.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
look, if you're worried about being remembered, don't try to pursue immortality or whatever, the smart move is to start selling substandard copper and then make sure anyone who complains deposits a physical copy of that complaint in a site that will later be archaeologically significant
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FinTwitter @fintwitter.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
US Senate blocks legislation to cap electricity bill increases tied to data centers
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Anne Helen Petersen @annehelen.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
This is *the* piece. Kate Manne, professor of philosophy at Cornell, speaks truth to the totality of failures at the university — and why students protesting the war in Gaza have faced far harsher consequences than any of the Cornell 7: www.thecut.com/article/what...
thecut.com
What It Feels Like at Cornell Right Now
As a professor at the Ivy League school, Kate Manne has known many, many victims. There’s a palpable feeling on campus, she writes, that this is big.
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Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · 29/09/2026
If you like me are a survivor of rape who is maybe losing her mind a bit this week, I recommend a few movies about surviving men/holding them accountable: “Sorry, Baby” “Is God Is” and “Supergirl” Supergirl was, in a way, about fraternity rape culture I discuss them here:
news.chanda.science
You should go see Supergirl
It's pop art that is unapologetically political.
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Kat Tenbarge @kattenbarge.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
One of the Cornell students accused of gang rape, Scott Kretzschmar, denies it and says through his attorney that they are going to “confront” the survivor through the court system. I can already tell you that means victim-blaming, DARVO, and smears. She is going to need a lot more of our support.
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Faine Greenwood @faineg.com · 27/09/2026
Women trying to succeed in Silicon Valley AI and effective altruist spaces are reporting feeling serious social pressure to attend sex parties - where people have reported being sexually assaulted, like below. Events like Aella’s “Slutcon,” which is happening again this weekend.
Ann Pierce
@itsannpierce
20h
I am disheartened by this as well. I already lost a bunch of followers for agreeing with @tautologer, but it's saddening to see local nerdy women being caricatured as Karen-like outsiders and getting pushed out of the scene. This is exactly why you hear so few concrete, names-attached stories of sexual harrassment and assault. I'm told there is a history of discrediting these because the "slut normalization" thing is top priority and these stories get inconveniently in the way of spreading this ideology.
I got roped into attending last year's Saturday Slutcon party because so many local and out-of-town friends were there (to echo sentiments @tautologer expressed about "slut events becoming central to the larger scenes). Mostly I hung out with people I knew and that was great. But in the course of my 3-ish hours there, there were 2 times my "no" was not accepted by a man I didn't know, and I was physically pushing a huge guy off of me who was rubbing his penis on me, who continued to do it despite my physical force against him, and after I finally wriggled away from him, told him I wanted to dance alone etc., he came back and did it again.
This was scary and bad, but it didn't even cross my mind to report this because one of the other people who didn't accept my "no" earlier in the night was the bartender (an officially sanctioned authority at the event), and I knew the event was organized exclusively by women into CNC (who are vocal about how rapey behavior turns them on), so I figured this sort of thing would just get me laughed at. And anyway, I heard there were a lot of other incidents like it. Later though, someone encouraged me to report this story to the organizers, and despite my embarrassment I did, so *they know* that this and other incidents happened. This is why they cut the Saturday night party this year and created a larger training program for the flirt girls - *because* of things like this last year. Yet the narrative bein…People who haven't been to Slutcon are saying "it's just group therapy," "it's just innocent flirting." But the environment is much like a sex party in that many people are nude, there is making out and sex acts happening out in the open. I think it's pretty unreasonable to expect that every nerdy girl who likes rationalist bloggers or is into EA/AI safety should automatically be comfortable with this! That if she's not, there's something wrong with her, we don't want her in our scenes, etc.
Not to mention, it's explictly an event *for men*, where men are the clients and the "flirt girls" are the product. Last year I overheard an exchange where a man felt "led on" by a flirt girl and was trying to get her punished/kicked out. (A dynamic that seems inevitable in this context!)
Anyway- it does sound like they've upped their consent education a lot this year, are more organized, and that's good! As I've told my friends who are attending: I hope they have fun!
I heard several accounts last year of women who had no problems and really enjoyed the event. That's great!
Just... can we live in reality about this? There are real reasons why male-female sexual dynamics are tricky.
Encouraging autistic men who can't yet read body language to go around asking to see womens' boobs is maybe a bit ill-advised. Maybe not everyone should be/identify as a slut; maybe it's not for everyone.
And yeah, filtering the Bay Area Al safety scene down to only women who are super comfy with this eliminates *most* women - including many of the really smart, nerdy, weird women who've been in the larger scenes for years. What a loss for humanity.
I absolutely understand why people with a minority sexuality would want to create belonging, would want to create spaces for people like themselves. But why do it like this/at this cost?
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David Roberts @volts.wtf · 27/09/2026
I love this paper so much. If I had my way every single journalist, pundit, analyst, and politician in the US would read it & then read it again. I want to quote all of it. www.frontiersin.org/journals/soc...
frontiersin.org
Frontiers | The problem with polarization research in an age of extremism
"I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block i...
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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 25/09/2026
The Bulwark community has raised more than $100,000 for the Haitian Support Center in Springfield, Ohio, which is helping families with food, transportation, legal assistance, and other basic needs. If you’re able, please consider donating.
lnk.thebulwark.com
The Bulwark Community Stands With Springfield
Over the past year, we’ve been telling you about what is happening to Springfield’s Haitian community, and about the extraordinary people there who have stepped up to help their friends and neighbors through an incredibly difficult time. Now we’re asking the Bulwark community to step up with them. We’re raising money for the Haitian Support Center, which is on the ground in Springfield helping families with food, transportation, legal assistance, and other basic needs.
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pauljefferson.bsky.social @pauljefferson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
No *Derry Girls*?
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Dmitry Grozoubinski @explaintrade.com · 25/09/2026
More broadly I think "how much time do you spend affirmatively championing your cause versus using it as a permission structure to abuse those you disagree with," is a revealing question well beyond the statue pfp bros.
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Max Berger @maxberger.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
One of my most galaxy-brained takes is that politicians and political groups should talk more about workers’ share of national income. It's one of the clearest, simplest ways to describe how billionaires and corporate elites captured so much of the economy--and something policy can change.
axios.com
U.S. workers' share of national income falls to a new low
Labor's bargaining position has worsened markedly in the last half-decade.
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Noah Berlatsky @nberlat.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
this isnt' getting a ton of traction, but I do think it's kind of important, and I don't see these dynamics re zionism being much discussed, so... www.everythingishorrible.net/p/trump-thin...
everythingishorrible.net
Trump Thinks Jews Should Be America’s Tools
That’s the Zionist bargain
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Matthew Eadie @mattheweadie.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
BREAKING: Evanston police confirm a U.S. citizen was briefly detained by federal agents Sunday morning near Howard and Dodge before being released The man was taken to the hospital for injuries to his head, neck and teeth after agents drove off
evanstonnow.com
Federal agents detained U.S. citizen Sunday morning - Evanston Now
Police chief says officers responded to a man with injuries to head, neck and teeth on Howard and made contact with agents involved.
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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 21/09/2026
incredible
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Out of Town @thepurley.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Some gremlin referred to Tilly Norwood as a "virgin" in an article like it was a good thing (and a thing that an algorithmic output can be) and just...it haunts me. What? Why? What???
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Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
The AI debate has forced me, somewhat agst my will, to grapple a bit more closely with the "longtermists", basically a movement or subculture of morons who propose novel forms of moral reasoning based on sci-fi ideas they imagine might happen hundreds, thousands or millions of years in the future.
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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 15/09/2026
enjoyed making this one youtu.be/zGYmIwM4T90
youtu.be
Smart Answers to Stupid Comments About Slavery
YouTube video by Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie
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Out of Town @thepurley.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
In my professional opinion, no
static.klipy.com
Gumichan the Laughing Bird Says No
Alt: Gumichan the Laughing Bird Says No
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 14/09/2026
In states with abortion bans, medical providers are hesitating or flat-out refusing to terminate ectopic pregnancies, lawsuits allege. “I genuinely thought I was going to die,” said Kyleigh Thurman, who couldn’t get care in Texas.
propublica.org
Ectopic Pregnancy Deaths Have Nearly Doubled. It’s Worse in States With Abortion Bans.
With prompt and appropriate medical care, experts say, people shouldn’t die from an ectopic pregnancy. Women in Texas and Oklahoma have sued over delays in care, which, coupled with our new analysis, ...
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Out of Town @thepurley.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Imagine trying to keep WHITE children's toys looking good I mean...
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Allison Gill @muellershewrote.com · 11/09/2026
Okay everyone. Here’s the YouTube interview with @jimmykimmel.com and @jamestalarico.bsky.social You know what to do. Watch it. Share it. Donate. Bury them. youtu.be/WLDE9LrGpNk?...
youtu.be
Jimmy Kimmel’s Interview with James Talarico That the FCC Doesn’t Want You To See
YouTube video by Jimmy Kimmel Live
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Radley Balko @radleybalko.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Here's a gift link to my 9/11 essay in the NYT. Civil libertarians long warned that before giving government new powers, we should consider how an administration with authoritarian ambition might abuse them. We were told that America was too exceptional to elect such a person. Well here we are.
nytimes.com
Opinion | Civil Libertarians Knew This Would Happen. We Should Have Listened. (Gift Article)
The civil libertarians’ warnings have come true.
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Courtney Milan @courtneymilan.com · 04/09/2026
Apparently some agents are trying to claim percentages on the Anthropic settlement, and I do not REMOTELY think they should do this, what the fuck, stop that shit!
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Politico @politico.com · 02/09/2026
NYC school system to ban AI for elementary, middle school students
dlvr.it
NYC school system to ban AI for elementary, middle school students
The Department of Education is unveiling new guidelines following backlash.
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Peter @notalawyer.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
it’s deeply embarrassing that they keep trying to come up with a comprehensive definition of “wokeness” when the actual definition is “lib shit that annoys me”
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Screamer Jim @screamerjim.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Jesus
washingtonpost.com
College student steps into traffic, is killed after losing immigration status
Pierre Damas Bel’s family said he took his own life on a busy highway after the Trump administration canceled protections for thousands of Haitian immigrants and ICE officers placed him in an ankle mo...
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Chico Escuela @blaqdocdown.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
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Lisa Jarvis @lisamjarvis.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
A newborn was one of the 2 measles deaths in Pennsylvania. My god. www.inquirer.com/health/measl...
inquirer.com
A newborn baby was one of Pa.’s two measles-related deaths, state says as RFK questions whether they were ‘fabricated’
The measles-related deaths announced Tuesday of two Lancaster County residents were the first in Pennsylvania in 35 years and led to a spat between Josh Shapiro and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
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W.E.D.em Boyz @leftistwonk.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
ICE has fallen out of the headlines but July marked the largest number of migrant detentions ever on record. Five migrants have died in ICE custody in the last two months. It's also currently impossible to legally migrate to this country, as 100% of visa applications have been paused.
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Bradley P. Moss @bradmossesq.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
These people had protected status. They lived here legally. They worked, they paid taxes. They made lives. Raised families. Now we’ve dehumanized them. Ripped away that protection and told them to get out. This is a stain on the soul of this Nation.
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James Fallows @jfallows.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
This chart will figure prominently in a future historian's best-seller, "Self-Destruction: The End of the American Era."
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Rep. Justin J. Pearson @justinjpearson.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Even billionaire Bill Gates is sounding the alarm on the dangers of unregulated AI development. We shouldn't fear technological advancement, but we must be cautious. The longer this goes unchecked, the greater the risk to our health, environment, & jobs. www.semafor.com/article/08/2...
semafor.com
‘This is crazy. This is insane’: Bill Gates has changed his mind about AI and jobs
The Microsoft founder says human-only jobs and token taxes will be required at “a unique moment in evolutionary history.”
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Charlotte Clymer @charlotteclymer.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Y'all... the Band of the Coldstream Guards performed "9 to 5" in front of Buckingham Palace in honor of Dolly Parton.
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Out of Town @thepurley.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
The Oklahoma City bombing
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JosABats @thejoshbanks.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Cribbed from r/BlackPeopleTwitter
Michael Harriot O 
@michaelharriot
Here's a quietly wonderful thing I noticed:
If you talk to someone who was in choir or band at a majority Black HS, you'll eventually discuss those annoying fundraisers for uniforms, instruments, etc. & a
SURPRISING number will casually say:
"Oh, Dolly Parton paid for ours"
10:00 AM • Oct 6, 2022
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Bert’s Books @bertsbooks.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Feels like the only sensible thing to do today is sit and read from 9 to 5… - Michael
I always loved books. I don’t remember learning to read, it was just something I always did - Dolly Parton
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Jay Willis @jaywillis.net · 25/08/2026
I have really enjoyed the experience of reading story after story about how good and selfless and beloved a recently deceased famous person was
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Jane Coaston @janecoaston.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
I am so sorry to have to tell you all this but Dolly Parton has passed away. A true queen has left. www.youtube.com/shorts/AOxsQ...
youtube.com
Dolly Parton & Patti LaBelle play 'Shortnin' Bread' on their Acrylic Nails
YouTube video by Happy Mag
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Out of Town @thepurley.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
If you have $95k to spend on this, I don't think that it is the gap year that is creating the "edge" for your kid...
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Aaron Huertas @aaronhuertas.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Every subsequent U.S. president who tries to do a modicum of good via foreign policy or trade is going to be sitting across from someone thinking yeah sure, okay, but what about the next guy. Absent political reforms, tribunals and truth and reconciliation, that credibility is gone forever.
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Congresswoman Delia C. Ramirez @ramirez.house.gov · 21/08/2026
Residents in Gary, Indiana remain without power for more than a week after devastating storms. Residents are facing desperate conditions – spoiling food, no break from the heat, no way to keep medical devices charged. It is unacceptable!
npr.org
'Survival mode': Indiana residents endure a ninth day without power
Tens of thousands of people in Indiana are entering a second week without power after a deadly storm toppled trees and power lines. Schools remain closed and businesses have been unable to reopen.
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Written by Uju ✍🏽 @writtenbyuju.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Your childhood may explain you, but adulthood makes you responsible for who you choose to become.
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kilometres d’avis @wwwwww.website · 16/08/2026
From Wikipedia:

The purpose of a system is what it does (POSIWID) is a heuristic in systems thinking coined by the British management consultant Stafford Beer,[1] who stated that there is "no point in claiming that the purpose of a system is to do what it constantly fails to do".[2] It is used in systems theory, and is generally invoked to counter the notion that the purpose of a system can or should be read from the intentions of those who design, operate, or promote it. When a system's side effects or unintended consequences reveal that its behaviour is poorly understood, then the POSIWID perspective can balance political understandings of system behaviour with a more straightforwardly descriptive view.
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Atticus Finch (of Georgia) @atticus59914029.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
This is simply, objectively speaking, a great political ad.
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David Roberts @volts.wtf · 29/07/2026
This is morally monstrous behavior. These are ordinary, innocent people that Trump is condemning to suffering & death out of political vindictiveness. Every decent human being, regardless of political party, should condemn it. Where is the fucking *anger*? From the press? From civic leaders? Pols?
eenews.net
FEMA said yes to Democratic disaster requests. Trump killed them anyway.
President Donald Trump cast aside bipartisan precedent when he rejected eligible disaster requests from four blue states.
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Aubrey Gordon @yrfatfriend.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
One of the many ways we've gotten in the wayback machine on conversations about fatness: straight size people think once again that they are the primary targets of anti-fatness. Those objections to the anti-fatness they feel comes wrapped up in profound anti-fatness against plus size people.
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