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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems

@upine.bsky.social
6.5K followers 268 following 25K posts

Analysis of effects of disinfo on social systems, writer Medium.com/@upine "All that is necessary for evil to prevail is for good people to do bothsidesism."

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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 14m
Candidates are not responsive to pressure from non-constitutents.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 39m
She's in South Carolina. Is that where you are?
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 54m
Thanks for the link. It will be interesting to see where this goes. It--or a later similar case--may end up answering the question of what courts will do about personhood of AIs or lack of it--& what courts will decide that means exactly in terms of legal obligations or lack thereof.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 56m
He hasn't answered yet & may not. But my guess is that he thinks a machine that can solve problems a bit more complex than another one, is the closer one to being conscious, LOL.
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Reposted by Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems
🗽LOLGOP🗽 @lolgop.bsky.social · 1h
A friendly reminder! iwillvote.com
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The Mouthy Renegade Writer @mouthyrenegade.bsky.social · 3h
Take yourselves, Y'all. You gotta be ready to party like it's 1999 when the Blessed Event finally happens.
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Reposted by Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems
𝕊𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕒𝕖 𝔾𝕦𝕣𝕝 @sundaedivine.lol · 2h
Daughter: “Mother, I think I’m a boy.” Mother: “Phew. I thought you were going to say Republican.”
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 1h
I think fed gov officials shdn't be involved in local sports team decisions. GOP only is bc they feel they can win elections from it. Maybe she feels she must say they shdn't play women's sports to agree w most of her constituents. If she is Dem, trans & every1 wd have more rights w her than w GOP.
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Scott Horton @robertscotthorton.bsky.social · 1h
Sunday Telegraph: Donald Trump has just shown us, unambiguously, that he is Putin's man. Time to wake up to that fact. www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/2026...
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 1h
IDK if making an AI into a legal person would necessarily mean it has to have insurance. Perhaps the courts could rule that one of these is so and the other not. Court rulings don't necessarily make logical sense, nor are they necessarily just.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 1h
Has there been a lawsuit? When/if there is, we will find out what legal ruling(s) will be made that other courts may have to abide by.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 1h
What specifically are you referring to? Do you have a quote or a link?
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Charles Johnson @charles.littlegreenfootballs.com · 2h
Stop watching Bill Maher. This is my message for tonight. Just stahp watching his pathetic libertarian shitshow. Please. Just stahp. It’s bad for your mental health.
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Nicole Chung @nicolechung.bsky.social · 1h
one more day to apply!
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Dr Emma L Briant 🇬🇧 in 🇺🇸 w/ 🐕 @emma-briant.co.uk · 1h
Had the scientists just not been to the island before to 'discover' them? Or was this a sudden increase in population due to mass tortoise orgy-producing conditions? Like extra spicy aphrodisiac salad or something...
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Curly sue @moocowsue.bsky.social · 6h
Tallarico’s been back in the game for less than 24 hours and he’s already met and spoken with more constituents than Ken Paxton has in the last month.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 1h
The problem is that most media/social media are Right Wing now. So most ppl are conned by RWng media lies and "know" a lot of things that are not true. bsky.app/profile/upin...
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Andy Craig @andycraig.bsky.social · 6h
It's already illegal. Congress banned it near-unanimously in 2022. That law allows the ban to be lifted only if Russia withdraws from Ukraine. He's simply breaking the law that's already on the books.
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Charles Booker @booker4ky.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Tonight was supposed to be the first Senate debate between myself and Andy Barr. We even held it in his Congressional District! He is too afraid to face me, so just like his tenure in Congress, he is a no show. Corrupt Andy Barr won’t show up for Kentucky, but I always will.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
Not if the courts didn't require AIs to carry insurance, bc they rule, as usual, in favor of tech bros, who wdn't want to pay for the insurance for their AI.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
Yes. And this is why billionaire tech bros want personhood for AIs too--to have an extra layer of protection beyond what they already have. So AIs can be targets legally, socially, morally etc. rather than the co. owners who failed to program reasonable restrictions into the AIs.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
Then why have courts at all, in that case? It helps billionaire tach bros to have SCOTUS rulings in their favor, bc then lower courts are obligated to follow those rulings also. And lower courts are not as partisan as SCOTUS is, so that would be a big change.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
Courts usually rule in favor of T admin & their billionaire donor tech bros. And such rulings wd certainly be in their favor.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
Lindsay Graham's sister.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
AIs could be persons but they currently own no money, so nothing could be gotten from them in a lawsuit.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
True that they do. But courts will decide who you can legally sue, and will decide who won the lawsuit.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
The courts would decide these sorts of things. And many courts, including SCOTUS, rule in favor of T admin & its tech bro billionaire donors almost all the time. Their decisions often make no sense. They simply give every possible legal advantage to the T admin & its tech bro billionaire donors.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
Your lawyer would advise you on which entities or persons to sue.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
AI cos are constantly trying to make AIs seem more human like, seem like your irreplaceable best friend that you can easily empathize with, whose feeling you don't want to hurt. Not good.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
If society ends up mostly conditioned to see AIs as ppl, then a lot fewer ppl will sue Tesla & other cos over damage caused by AIs. And the few who do won't win bc courts will uphold AI personhood. We need to stop ourselves & others from being conditioned to think this way B4 it hurts us very badly.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 3h
Yes. The "equipment failure" idea makes the owner a victim. But so does the "AI is conscious" idea--if the AI ends up taking the blame for the human co. owner's failure to program in reasonable restrictions on what the AI ought to be doing.
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T is ALWAYS angry @t-is-always-angry.bsky.social · 4h
There's a lot to unpack here. A lot. I'm thinking the district might want to re-evaluate some hiring/employment practices. Multiple DUIs, a harassment charge, and this person is a counselor? I don't think that's working out the way they intended.
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digby @digby56.bsky.social · 3h
FOX Business obtained the response from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to the latest request for information from Senator Elizabeth Warren. He's really a snotty little bitch isn't he?
"Finally my offer of a Foreign Exchange for Dummies tutorial still stands and if you receive a passing grade in the Yale metric not the Harvard curve, I would be happy to include a Fixed Income for Dummies. Sincerely, Scott Bessent

Happy Indigenous Day in advance to you and your family.
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Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 4h
"Boosting US oil supplies with Russian diesel unlikely to have much impact on prices, experts say." apnews.com/article/trum...
apnews.com
Boosting US oil supplies with Russian diesel unlikely to have much impact on prices, experts say
A new pact that calls for Russia to boost the U.S. supply of diesel over the next few months is unlikely to make a dent in painfully high prices at the pump or elsewhere, energy policy experts say.
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bistatelady @bistatelady.bsky.social · 4h
This is perfection.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
It's additional shielding beyond what they have--legally, morally, socially. Society is getting conditioned to think of AIs as "responsible" rather than their creators. So ppl are less likely to sue if AI kills ppl/causes billions in damages bc the co. owner didn't program in reasonable restrictions
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
Oh, I see. In their actions, T donor billionaire tech bros are already taking personhood away from ppl who already have it. They could formalize that into law also, I suppose.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
AI being persons wd be an extra layer of shielding beyond what corp owners now have. Also moral/social shielding, bc society gets conditioned to believe AI co. owners aren't responsible 4 AIs. So why sue? Tho owners cd suffer from loss of value of the investment, just as now, w "Corps are ppl" rule.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
bsky.app/profile/upin...
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
She should. She's got no other connection to politics or public policy.
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HELL Kennedy @helenkennedy.com · 5h
They have been dealing secretly with Putin for weeks over this. Impeach. Impeach. Impeach.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
By the reverse you mean what?
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Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 4h
Somebody got fooled ... "Fuel from South Korea being shipped to Russia as Ukraine war grinds on Exclusive: Guardian analysis finds more than 150,000 tonnes of fuel was shipped to Russian ports in July and August, some using sanctioned tankers." www.theguardian.com/world/2026/o...
theguardian.com
Fuel from South Korea being shipped to Russia as Ukraine war grinds on
Exclusive: Guardian analysis finds more than 150,000 tonnes of fuel was shipped to Russian ports in July and August, some using sanctioned tankers
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_ent...
timesofisrael.com
Iran able to replenish its missiles and drones, getting arms from Russia, officials tell Bloomberg
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Schooley @schooley.bsky.social · 4h
Trump can’t stop talking about vomit and Texas barbecue
Republicans need President Donald Trump to use his swagger to hype up embattled U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton. He keeps talking about barf.This is how I win meme
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
@jeffjarvis.bsky.social @markjacob.bsky.social @willbunch.bsky.social
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
Corps wd be responsible. That's what I said. It's the OWNERS who are shielded--legally, morally,socially. Corp. owners who failed to code reasonable restrictions into an AI, wd get off scot free, personally, tho they may lose investment value. Like T bankrupting lots corps & still a billionaire.
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Lindsay Beyerstein @beyerstein.bsky.social · 5h
When Trump inevitably loses, he'll take it as proof the election was rigged and as a pretext to seize the voting machines. He already told us he regrets not doing it last time.
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Julie Hotard Ph.D., writer, effects of disinfo on social systems @upine.bsky.social · 4h
@jeffjarvis.bsky.social @markjacob.bsky.social @willbunch.bsky.social
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Dan Froomkin/Press Watch/Heads Up News @froomkin.bsky.social · 4h
This should be the lead story with a screaming headline on every news website: “Trump sides with Putin in Ukraine war.” “After a long, friendly chat during which Putin offered Trump a political lifeline, Trump called for Ukraine to surrender.”
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