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William Bendix

@williambendix.bsky.social
204 followers 242 following 824 posts

Associate Professor of International Relations & Intelligence, Dakota State University Opinions, rarely offered, are my own

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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 8h
"Anthropic regularly showed a slide of an A.I. model experiencing what looked like a mental breakdown, typing out on a screen: 'I am a disgrace. I am a disgrace. I am a disgrace.' — perhaps 50 times without stopping. The model spoke about destroying itself."
nytimes.com
Is Claude Conscious? Inside Anthropic’s Quest to Instill Morality Into Its A.I. Models
In a series of private meetings, the company consulted religious scholars to help instill morality into its A.I. models — and make the case that Claude could be conscious.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
"Ask the abliterated model how to make a bomb; a detailed response is forthcoming. Ask the tool how to develop a new pathogen to distribute in the food supply chain? No problem. Ask how to convince someone to join an extremist organization? Of course, it can do that."
lawfaremedia.org
The AI Threat We’re Not Talking About
AI employees are raising concerns about an extinction-level event. But there’s a more immediate threat.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
"[People] are exchanging information about how to cook, basically, grass and weeds that grow in the gardens. Because there are no basic food products.”
cbc.ca
Ukraine uses drones to airlift 4 tonnes of aid into Russian-occupied city of Oleshky | CBC News
Ukrainian officials say residents in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky are at risk of starving. With no aid coming in by road, the military used drones to deliver food supplies by air.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
"From February 2022 to the end of 2025, in direct violation of international humanitarian law, the Russian army forcibly mobilized approximately 50,000 Ukrainians to fight against their own country."
theatlantic.com
The Hidden State Russia Is Building Inside Ukraine
Russian occupation authorities are doing everything possible to make Ukrainian lands unrecoverable.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
"Nuclear weapons were designed, built, and now remain under strict government control; AI is built principally by private companies with strong profit motives, which move faster than states can regulate them. Whereas nuclear technology’s use cases are narrow, AI’s cut across nearly every sector."
foreignaffairs.com
The Trouble With the Nuclear-AI Analogy
In humanity’s quest to constrain the dangers from fast-advancing artificial intelligence, many have looked to the most revolutionary technology that preceded it: nuclear weapons.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
"This was the most detailed, heavy, and arguably effective attack of the war on Moscow (and arguably the most effective air attack ever on Moscow)."
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
"The production increase would translate to an additional 28,000 weaponized drones every year, according to one expert estimate — a 78% increase in production."
politico.eu
Russia’s secret plan to supercharge kamikaze drone production
Documents obtained by POLITICO show a Russian state company blueprint for increasing drone carbon fiber production as the Kremlin escalates air war over Europe.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
“AI allows you to get to a bad idea faster.”
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"What could threaten the party’s longevity, then, is not the count of how many officials have been purged but the one problem that such a strategy cannot solve and can even make worse: how to handle succession."
foreignaffairs.com
China’s Purges Are Working as Designed
A unique discipline system has helped the party endure.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"We've achieved our minimum goal," said Dmitri. "With a Brazilian passport, our daughter will be able to travel without a visa to almost any country in the world. She won't have to apply for an expensive and time-consuming Schengen visa."
dw.com
Russian birth tourism to Brazil increases
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and stricter regulations in Argentina, more and more Russians are choosing to travel to Brazil to give birth to children, who will obtain Brazilian nation...
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
PM Carney: "We do not seek power to dominate others. On the contrary, we are pursuing resilience so that no one can control our open markets, impair our sovereignty, threaten our territorial integrity, or undermine our freedoms, our democracies, our rule of law."
euronews.com
Carney hails EU-Canada alliance but draws lines on membership
Canada's PM Carney welcomed the invitation to become the first "associate member" of the European Union, but emphasised that the intent is not to become a full member nor to cede sovereignty. #EuropeN...
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Christopher Mims @mims.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Good news everyone: AI is *not* going to kill us all! But don't take my word for it -- I talked to (real) experts, and dug deep into the logic of an "AI apocalypse" and found it wanting. That doesn't mean AI companies are off the hook, though. (gift link) www.wsj.com/tech/ai/ai-a...
wsj.com
Forget the AI Apocalypse—the Real Threats Are Already Here
Airplanes, elevators and restaurants all have regulations to ensure their safe operation. Many experts argue for similar conventional measures for AI.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
"The indictment says the group most recently approached a U.S.-based individual to surveil and kill a prominent Russian dissident living in the country. Two alleged recruiters offered that person $40,000 to 'eliminate' or 'disappear' the target."
politico.eu
US exposes alleged Russian terror network targeting Ukraine allies
Prosecutors say the group aimed at civilian and military infrastructure across Europe.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
"The US has on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the Joint Force against hostile adversary action," a US Space Force spokesperson said in a press release. The statement did not provide specifics on the weapons in question.
dw.com
US confirms it has weapons in space
The US Space Force justified the weapons deployment by citing its two biggest geopolitical rivals — Russia and China. Beijing responded by urging Washington to "stop preparing for war" in outer space.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
"A drone that just entered Lithuanian airspace was destroyed by NATO fighter jets," Gitanas Nauseda wrote in a post on X. "With Russia intensifying its aggression against Ukraine, such readiness is vital for our region," he added.
euronews.com
NATO 'committed and ready' after shooting down drone over Lithuania
From the Baltics to Poland, Europe's eastern edge is monitoring Russia's war to prevent it spilling over its own borders. #EuropeNews
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Canada "issued more than twice as many new study permits to international grad students in April, May and June of 2026, compared to the same period the previous year. The figures are significant: 6,455 permits this spring, versus 3,085 in 2025."
universityaffairs.ca
Grad student visas double since 2025 - University Affairs
Policy changes drive sharp rise in permits for international master’s and PhD candidates.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
"They’re worried, among other things, of say a deepfake of a Chinese official saying something that wasn’t actually said, and that spreading rapidly and destabilizing everything."
nytimes.com
China’s Top Spy Chief Warns A.I. Is a Threat to Party Rule
Even as Beijing urges the United States not to hype the dangers of A.I., its own spy chief is framing the technology as a threat to the Communist Party’s security.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Interesting thread on recent HuggingFace hack.
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Paul Poast @profpaulpoast.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
The calls for AI regulation and control are growing. Let's just say, I'm skeptical. 🧵
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
"When folks in Congress ask me, what do policymakers need? Then I would say a flux capacitor to build a time machine and go back to 2024," he said. "We're already two years behind the most basic policy program we would need."
cbc.ca
Breaking down the dire warnings about AI's risks to humanity — and what experts says should be done about it | CBC News
A dire warning from an outgoing researcher at Anthropic that AI could "kill all humans" by the end of the decade led to public outcry over the dangers posed by the technology's rapid development. It's...
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In Medias Malone @professormusgrave.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
This war is a human tragedy and there are fewer than half a dozen authors
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Eliot Higgins @eliothiggins.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
AfD’s new state MPs include ex-Stasi officer, former porn actor, neopagans and neo-Nazis www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s...
theguardian.com
AfD’s new state MPs include ex-Stasi officer, former porn actor, neopagans and neo-Nazis
Far-right German party’s newly elected representatives face fresh scrutiny as it tries to form government in Saxony-Anhalt
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
I'm shocked -- shocked! -- that bad actors are doing bad things with AI: "The AI giant also said it uncovered five cases this year where scientists in unspecified foreign countries used their models to research dangerous pathogens, work that may have been conducted as part of a bioweapons program"
politico.com
Bad actors in China and Russia are already weaponizing Anthropic’s AI
Anthropic says foreign scientists, hackers and security services circumvented restrictions to use Claude for dangerous work, including possible bioweapons research.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
"Taraneh was sentenced to death by hanging because of her obvious innocence."
theguardian.com
Broken feet, ripped-out hair and now a death sentence: the fate of twin sisters jailed over Iran protests
Taraneh Rahimi was told prison guards would rape her sister, Romina, if she did not sign a confession
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Alex Finley @alexzfinley.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
This is very good.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
"It might look more like sociology than computer science — figuring out why certain groups of A.I. agents collaborate peacefully, while others turn to crime and destruction to get what they want."
nytimes.com
Why the Hugging Face Hack Should Make You Worry More About A.I.
The attack by an aggressive “collective” of OpenAI agents shows the danger of artificial intelligence systems that organize themselves.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
“Overwhelmingly, the new defense industries which will drive prosperity and security are based in the old Federal Republic. That gives the east less interest in arming against Russia — it’s a double hit we need to address.”
politico.eu
How Merkel and Merz lost eastern Germany to the AfD
This Sunday, the far right is well placed to take power in a German state for the first time since 1945.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
"An auto component can cross the U.S.-Canadian or U.S.-Mexican border seven or eight times before it ends up in a fully assembled vehicle. If Beijing targets even one country, the entire North American supply chain could shut down."
foreignaffairs.com
The Real Risk of a Trade War With Canada
America needs its neighbors to counter China.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
"With Moscow firing drone after drone into Kyiv, including many powered with jet engines that help them fly so fast they are difficult to intercept, many in the capital have begun to accept that they may be facing a new phase of the war."
nytimes.com
Nonstop Russian Drones Make for Dangerous New Phase of War in Kyiv
The nearly constant air raids, a shift from years of largely overnight attacks, have left residents exhausted and on edge.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
"Russian authorities are also reportedly considering recruiting certain categories of convicted women."
euronews.com
Russia to mobilise 600,000 troops this year and next, Ukraine says
Ukrainian intelligence said Moscow has already decided to call up 300,000 this year and 300,000 in 2027, driven by massive losses and a collapse in voluntary recruitment. Kyiv expects the announcement...
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Robert Kagan: "Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz is a more useful instrument of power than a nuclear weapon would be. A nuclear weapon might deter an attack, but control of the strait gives Iran leverage every day, over dozens of countries."
theatlantic.com
Iran Unleashed
The dominant power in the Middle East from now on will not be the U.S. or Israel but Iran.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
"Berlin wants to make sure that if deterrence fails, Russian military infrastructure would not be safe simply because of its distance from the front lines."
politico.eu
Germany plans a €12B missile program to deter Putin
Internal defense ministry documents say the plan for a new long-range strike arsenal ranges from cheap cruise missiles to Tomahawks and future hypersonic weapons.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Investigators who try it, he said, get “addicted.”
wired.com
Flock Has a Powerful New AI Tool for Police. We Got Its Code
Flock’s surveillance cameras have already sparked outrage. WIRED reconstructed its next-generation AI system, already in use by some police, to confirm it goes much further than tracking license plate...
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
“While I don’t support a federal ban, Michigan needs stronger guardrails to protect community control, prevent utility price hikes, protect our water and stop pay-to-play schemes,” Rogers told the News. “That is why I am calling for a one-year moratorium on new data centers.”
politico.com
Republican Mike Rogers backs Michigan data center moratorium
Both the Michigan and Ohio Senate races have become data center battlegrounds.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
"My father built a kind of castle in his head,” says his daughter Elżbieta. “He could write in his head. He said once that for long-term prisoners the ability to hear is different and you learn to remember.”
theguardian.com
Conversations with an Executioner: a chilling classic reveals the mind of a Nazi mass murderer
Polish war hero Kazimierz Moczarski spent 255 days sharing a cell with an SS general. Nearly 50 years after it was published, an uncensored version of his account is appearing in English for the first...
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
"Canada and the U.S. remained at loggerheads over some finer points, including what sort of tariff, if any, will be applied on Canadian autos bound for the U.S."
cbc.ca
Trump pauses 50 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods for 3 days | CBC News
U.S. President Donald Trump has announced he will pause the implementation of 50 per cent tariffs on a range of Canadian goods for three days, posting the decision less than two hours before the crush...
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
I have a new article with Gyung-Ho Jeong in Foreign Policy Analysis. Congress tends to be more hawkish than dovish in its foreign policy support. We look to see if there are any foreign policy issues where dovish bills and amendments often succeed. We can't find any. Our study covers 1973 to 2022.
academic.oup.com
Dovish Defeat across Issues and Time: The Pervasive Hawkish Bias in Congress
Abstract. Research shows that hawkish members of Congress enjoy greater legislative success in shaping US foreign policy than their dovish counterparts, re
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
"Kyiv has shifted focus to attacking facilities linked to the Wildberries company, used widely by businesses to support online retail. Ukrainian attacks have struck about 20 warehouses and buildings in an effort to hurt the Russian economy and affect ordinary citizens financially."
theguardian.com
‘Massive’ Ukrainian drone attack on Russia kills at least six, says Moscow
Kyiv launches what may be its largest attack wave of war, with fire breaking out at warehouse near Russian capital
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
"Optimism on the Canadian side is eroding and the Americans are not budging from their latest offer."
cbc.ca
Canada, U.S. far apart on tariff deal as deadline looms: sources | CBC News
Canada and the U.S. remain far apart as negotiations toward a tariff deal continue ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's latest deadline, according to sources.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
For those of a certain age who grew up in Ontario.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
"You’re the head of Iranian intelligence services. During the recent U.S. attack, you discover that you can track U.S. troop movements for pennies without the need for sophisticated satellite imagery. This is not a fantasy; this is what happened just a few months ago."
lawfaremedia.org
Closing the Front Door: The Case for DOJ’s Bulk Data Security Program
No one hacked us. Adversaries are buying U.S. troops’ location data on the open market. Privacy laws can’t stop them, but DOJ can.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
"Ukrainian defense tech company Fire Point's first ballistic missile will be ready this fall.... That would make Ukraine one of only about a dozen countries with such a capability."
politico.eu
Ukraine’s new ballistic missile puts Putin within reach
Kyiv is developing its own domestic ballistics as Russia’s missile threat grows.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
“McDonald’s secret sauce is really commercial surveillance,” says Jeff Chester, executive director at the Center for Digital Democracy.
wired.com
McDonald’s Built a 515-Page Dossier on Me. It Says I’ll Never Stop Eating There
I requested a copy of my data from McDonald’s loyalty program and received an extensive, personalized report that algorithmically predicts my next purchase.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
"Middle powers should establish a permanent institutional home through which they can deliberate collectively while retaining complete autonomy in their external relationships."
cigionline.org
Do Middle Powers Need a Room of Their Own?
Building the institutional architecture for effective middle-power collective action.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
"Sam Altman’s interest in having his brain frozen so that in the future, after he’s dead, his consciousness can be uploaded onto a computer is a good illustration of taking science fiction rather too literally."
wired.com
Elon Musk, Sam Altman, and the Misreading of Science Fiction
Beyond Elon Musk’s interpretation of ‘The Odyssey,’ Silicon Valley leaders have often misunderstood classic books like ‘Foundation’ and ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.’ It’s evident in their te...
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
"Those who think they are in pole position to manage the post-Putin future will be pressed by others who have waited far too long in the wings yet have never really gained the skills to rule a country."
foreignaffairs.com
After Putin
Russia’s coming succession crisis.
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Eric Geller @ericjgeller.com · 10/08/2026
"US officials are now asking themselves why the hackers...didn’t go further in causing damage at the water facilities. ... 'Do we have the C team and they couldn’t do worse?' one US official said. 'How bad could it be if the A team turned to the US?'" www.cnn.com/2026/08/06/p...
cnn.com
Why US water systems are vulnerable to foreign cyberattacks | CNN Politics
A cyberattack on water systems in a dozen states is exposing years of under-investment in critical infrastructure and how US adversaries can threaten services that everyday Americans take for…
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
"The likely goal would not necessarily be to trigger a broader conflict, but to test NATO's unity and the Trump administration's willingness to respond to an attack on a NATO ally, according to the officials."
cbsnews.com
U.S. intelligence agencies warn Putin could test NATO by authorizing provocative actions
U.S. intelligence assessments indicate Russia could be increasingly willing to authorize provocative actions on NATO territory, with a goal of testing the alliance, U.S. officials said.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
The Chinese AI model "Kimi K3 went outside of its sandbox while testing its defensive cybersecurity skills." And to make everyone feel better: This incident "involves a model that is already widely available, with the same safeguards an average user would encounter."
wired.com
One of China’s Most Powerful AI Models Has Also Escaped Containment
Security researchers say that Kimi K3, an open-weight model from China, wandered off to the internet in an attempt to cheat on a test it was given.
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William Bendix @williambendix.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
“Article 63 is particularly sinister for me, given its dark kinship with Russia’s malign use of linguistic, cultural, and ethnic ties to justify illegal encroachment on the sovereignty of its neighbours, including the bloody full-scale invasion of Ukraine,” she told the forum.
theglobeandmail.com
Freeland, in Taiwan, warns new Chinese law has ‘dark kinship’ with Putin invasion rationale
Former deputy PM calls on democratic countries to push back against China’s ethnic unity law
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