Paul Sutton @zleap@qoto.org

I try to keep it light on here. I just want to chill and have fun with nice people.

But this morning my kids were telling me how their active shooter drills or “Run, Hide, Survive” went yesterday, and now there’s this ball of cold fury in my gut that just won’t let go.

What is wrong with this country?!! Why do my kids have to learn how to live in a society that embraces domestic terrorism just so companies can profit and paranoid fucking assholes can feel powerful?!

Fucking FUCK!! I hate this shit!

Do you contribute to Free/Libre Open Source #FLOSS projects, with work or money? If you do, which one?

If you don't, consider doing it. I could really use some support so I can work on my open #Python teaching materials and continue working on #py5.

I love the work that I do, the teaching and these contributions to "the commons", but things have been terrible economically for me this year and my anxiety is going through the roof :(

You can support me with a small one time or recurring donation at this PayPal link or https://gumroad.com/villares

Otherwise, I can teach introductory Python and talk creative coding in private classes or groups.

“Israel Has Declared Record Amount of West Bank Land as State-owned in 2024”

This isn't self-defense. This isn't a counter to Hamas. This is de facto violation of international law.

Would love for someone to explain how this is any different than Russia forcibly taking Ukrainian land?

Go on. I’m waiting.

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-04-11/ty-article/.premium/israel-has-declared-record-amount-of-west-bank-land-as-state-owned-in-2024/0000018e-c7a2-dd23-a3cf-e7a713c90000

It's been a while since I've had to work 10+ hours at my job, so unfortunately I won't be able to get PubKit shipped tonight.

I do have a very ambitious weekend planned, so stay tuned

Physicist Peter Higgs, Who Prompted a Decades-Long Search for a Tiny Particle, Dies at 94 https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/physicist-peter-higgs-who-prompted-a-decades-long-search-for-a-tiny-particle-dies-at-94-180984128/ #science

#ClimateDiary Rapidly reaching the surreal stage

Farmers who have their entire cropping land submerged underwater have found they are ineligible for a government flooding hardship fund – because their farms are too far from a major river. #Floods #ukpolitics #farming

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/apr/11/flooded-farms-england-ineligible-compensation-distance-from-rivers

This could be a game changer
https://phys.org/news/2024-04-microbial-plastic-factory-high-quality.html
#environment #science #plastic

Latest #FOSSAcademic: "Reading the Online Harms Act with my Fediverse Admin Hat On"

https://fossacademic.tech/2024/04/10/Online-Harms-Act.html

In which I discuss Canada's proposed #OnlineHarmsAct from the perspective of a #fediverse #admin. While I understand the reason for the Act, I also note it could likely put a burden on fedi admins. And the big question I have is: how will the Act define the fediverse?

[replies to this post will appear as comments on my blog unless you use followers-only or DM]

A science fiction obsession led me to psychological war. I spent the past three years researching and writing a book about the history of psychological warfare in the United States, and it's coming out in early June. Not all the gems I discovered could be crammed into the final manuscript, and I've been dying to share what I found in the archives ... check out my latest newsletter to see some amazing treasures from a history that's rarely told.
https://buttondown.email/thehypothesis/archive/how-a-science-fiction-obsession-led-me-to/

Why Nazinyahu is so determined to keep the genocide of Gaza going.

Netanyahu’s corruption trial resumes amid Israeli war on Gaza. What to know
Netanyahu, who did not attend Monday’s hearing, has described charges against him as a ‘witch-hunt’.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/5/netanyahus-corruption-trial-resumes-amid-israeli-war-on-gaza-what-to-know

Being diagnosed with ASD or ADHD doesn't mean someone should be excluded from medical transition due to having an ASD diagnosis. These things aren't mutually exclusive.

#asd #adhd #trans #cassreport

Hack The Box redefines cybersecurity performance, setting new standards in the cyber readiness of organizations - Companies can level up their cybersecurity defenses – eliminating the skills and knowledg... https://www.itsecurityguru.org/2024/04/10/hack-the-box-redefines-cybersecurity-performance-setting-new-standards-in-the-cyber-readiness-of-organizations/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=hack-the-box-redefines-cybersecurity-performance-setting-new-standards-in-the-cyber-readines...

- and yet they're still wildly understating the problem.

Google isn't going for a competitive advantage - their goal is to put us in an inescapable stranglehold. There's a reason @pluralistic & others refer to the way things currently work, especially (but not exclusively) in the digital realm, as #ChokepointCapitalism

"Not using Google will be a hassle" isn't an acceptable argument. We can deal with this & foot the bill it now - or pay a far steeper price later.

https://expressional.social/@ING/112245810832657238

Latest from Doctors without Borders (MSF):
─────
In Port-au-Prince, [Haiti,] the “violence is like gangrene, spreading and threatening us all.”

Dr Priscille Cupidon, medical activity manager of the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) urban violence project in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, explains how the chronic extreme violence gripping the city has impacted medical care and healthcare workers like her.
[...]
"The violence is preventing patients and staff from reaching medical facilities on a daily basis. Some hospitals, such as Haiti’s State University Hospital, cannot currently function. "
Dr Priscille Cupidon,
MSF medical activity manager Haiti
─────
Read it all on their website here:
https://www.msf.org/haiti-port-au-prince-violence-gangrene

"We are thrilled that Alyssa Rosenzweig will keynote #LibrePlanet 2024. Her work is fascinating and trailblazing. As long as companies like Apple deny its users the freedoms we all deserve, we rely on free software developers like Rosenzweig to defend it," says Zoë Kooyman, executive director of the FSF. https://u.fsf.org/43c

@philip_cardella @statisticsworld I do remember turning on the TV when I came home for lunch (which I ordinarily didn’t do) and seeing the video of the Challenger explosion. That was such a big deal at the time and it’s largely forgotten now.

Al Jazeera:
More on settler attack near Ramallah

A total of four Palestinians, including a 15-year-old, have been wounded by live bullets during the Israeli settler attack on the town of Burqa, near Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank.

The attack was waged by some 30 settlers who fired on residents and homes in the town, while also torching a local barn, Wafa said.

Retired #military leaders warn of the threat to #democracy if #Trump is found to be #immune

https://www.msnbc.com/deadline-white-house/deadline-legal-blog/trump-supreme-court-immunity-military-leaders-rcna146885

X rolled out a change that automatically converts all links that have the string “twitter” *anywhere* in them to “X.”

For example, if someone tweets the link `setwitter.com`, the X client application will change that link to `sex.com`.

This is not a joke.

https://mashable.com/article/twitter-dot-com-posts-change-to-x-dot-com-ios