NPR

laurent wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 6:54 am

Slick wrote: Sun Nov 24, 2024 9:32 pm I left Twitter a long time ago but opened a Bluesky account a few days ago to see what it was like. I can confirm that left leaning liberal types can be every bit as cunty as the other lot, just with a fully functioning superiority complex.

Deleted that one as well

Try Mastodon

I find it relaxing.

JM2K6 wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:32 am
Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

robmatic wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:53 am

JM2K6 wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:32 am
Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

Teenagers and the autistic.

robmatic wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:53 am

JM2K6 wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:32 am
Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

Teenagers and the autistic.

Uncle fester wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 1:34 pm

robmatic wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:53 am

JM2K6 wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:32 am
Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

Teenagers and the autistic.

Mind how you throw terms like that about please.

Also bots, you can't talk about xhitter without talking about the bots.
Apologies in advance for any offense caused to bots.

Uncle fester wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 1:34 pm

robmatic wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:53 am

JM2K6 wrote: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:32 am
Besides, to paraphrase a twitter wag, it is a crime that we are exposed to the thoughts of teenagers on social media without knowing it.

Teenagers and the autistic.

Mind how you throw terms like that about please.

Also bots, you can't talk about xhitter without talking about the bots.
Apologies in advance for any offense caused to bots.

Oxford scientist resigns from Royal Society over Elon Musk’s continuing fellowship

Prof Dorothy Bishop said fellowship was ‘a contradiction of all the values’ of UK’s national academy of sciences

inactionman wrote: Thu Nov 28, 2024 1:53 pm Might as well post this here - Oz have barred kids (anyone under 16) from social media.

Not entirely sure how it will be regulated, but an interesting step.

inactionman wrote: Thu Nov 28, 2024 1:53 pm Might as well post this here - Oz have barred kids (anyone under 16) from social media.

Not entirely sure how it will be regulated, but an interesting step.

sockwithaticket wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2024 11:00 am While excessive social media consumption is certainly bad for children/teens (didn't some social media execs testify before congress that they won't let their own kids use it?), it's not much better for adults as we see by the rampant spreading of misinformation on platforms. Even in the form of incredibly obvious AI generated pictures. What we need is severe regulation of social media and big tech companies as a whole, not just to try and shield a small proportion of the population from them.

Can't see how they're going to enforce this ban, but good luck to them.

PornDog wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2024 11:29 am

sockwithaticket wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2024 11:00 am While excessive social media consumption is certainly bad for children/teens (didn't some social media execs testify before congress that they won't let their own kids use it?), it's not much better for adults as we see by the rampant spreading of misinformation on platforms. Even in the form of incredibly obvious AI generated pictures. What we need is severe regulation of social media and big tech companies as a whole, not just to try and shield a small proportion of the population from them.

Can't see how they're going to enforce this ban, but good luck to them.

To add to that, advertising on social media should be held to the same standards as advertising on TV and Radio - so fucking many scam advertisements, often with deepfaked celebrities, on Facebook and YouTube. And that's not even counting the 'legitimate' advertisers that are just making wild claims about their products and services.

Biffer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2024 4:25 pm Twelve kids and he spent Thanksgiving with Donald Trump.

Hellraiser wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2024 11:25 pm

Biffer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2024 4:25 pm Twelve kids and he spent Thanksgiving with Donald Trump.

That's because his kids hate him.

Uncle fester wrote: Sun Dec 15, 2024 11:36 am Graphic novel about Space Karen can't get an English language publisher.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/ ... -publisher

Sandstorm wrote: Sun Dec 15, 2024 7:50 pm

Uncle fester wrote: Sun Dec 15, 2024 11:36 am Graphic novel about Space Karen can't get an English language publisher.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/ ... -publisher

Twat thinks he’s Darth Vader crossed with Dr Evil.

Niegs wrote: Mon Dec 16, 2024 12:21 am Musk's mother saying we can afford more kids if we don't go to the movies. Love the comment that she's Lucile Bluth with Jessica Walters' charisma.

https://www.threads.net/@theartcandee/p ... qnx42Cwc3g

"You don't have to go to the movies, you don't have to go out to dinner."

It’s a photo that sent a tremor through British politics: Elon Musk flanked by British politician Nigel Farage and a wealthy backer, in front of a gilt-framed painting of a young Donald Trump.

Taken this week at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, the image suggested that Musk, a key player in the incoming US administration, could soon turn his disruptive attention to the UK.

Farage, Trump’s highest-profile British champion, confirmed talks are underway about Musk making a hefty donation to Farage's party Reform UK. The Times of London reported it could be as much as US$100 million (NZ$177m), which would be far and away the largest political donation in UK history. The reports have sparked calls for Britain’s rules on political donations to be tightened — quickly.

“We did discuss money,” Farage told broadcaster GB News after the meeting with Musk. “That’s a negotiation we will go back and have again. He is not against giving us money. He hasn’t fully decided whether he will.”

Britain has strict limits on how much political parties can spend on elections, but they can accept unlimited donations, as long as the donors are UK voters or companies registered in Britain. Musk’s social network X has a British arm, Twitter UK Ltd, with a registered address in London.

Critics say that is a loophole that allows foreign influence in UK politics. The voting watchdog, the Electoral Commission, is calling for changes including limiting the amount a company can donate, so that it can't put in more money than it earns in Britain.

“It’s crucial that UK voters have trust in the financing of our political system,” the commission's chief executive Vijay Rangarajan told The Guardian.

“The system needs strengthening, and we have been calling for changes to the law since 2013, to protect the electoral system from foreign interference.”

Britain’s centre-left Labour Party pledged during the summer election campaign to tighten the rules on political donations, though legislation is not scheduled in the coming year. Prime Minister Keir Starmer's spokesman Dave Pares said Wednesday that work is already underway to “reinforce existing safeguards” against “impermissible proxy donations.”

Both the Labour government and the right-of-centre opposition Conservatives are trying to figure out how to deal with Musk, who has taken a keen interest in the UK – and seemingly formed a strong dislike for Starmer.

Musk often posts on X about the UK, retweeting criticism of Starmer and the hashtag TwoTierKeir – shorthand for an unsubstantiated claim that Britain has “two-tier policing,” with far-right protesters treated more harshly than pro-Palestinian or Black Lives Matter demonstrators. Musk has compared British attempts to weed out online misinformation to the Soviet Union, and during summer anti-immigrant violence across the UK tweeted that “civil war is inevitable”.

Farage has echoed some of those themes in his own social media output and his party’s anti-“woke” agenda, which includes pledges to slash immigration, scrap green-energy targets and leave the European Convention on Human Rights.

Founded in 2021, Reform UK is the latest in a string of small hard-right parties led by Farage that have had limited electoral success, but an outsized influence on British politics.

Farage’s opposition to the European Union helped push the country toward voting in 2016 to leave the bloc, a seismic political and economic break with the UK’s nearest neighbours.

Reform UK won just five of the 650 seats in the House of Commons in July’s election, but came second in dozens more and secured 14% of the vote. Now it is pushing for fast growth, trying to professionalise its previously ramshackle organisation and holding gatherings around the UK to recruit new members.

Farage, a strong communicator who has embraced TikTok and other platforms, aims to emulate Trump’s success in using the power of personality and social media to reach the “bro vote” — young men who are traditionally less likely to turn out at election time.

Farage told GB News that Musk has “already given me considerable help – understanding the process from start to finish, reaching disaffected communities who frankly feel there’s no point voting for anybody.”

The electoral power of social media was on show recently in Romania, where far-right candidate Călin Georgescu came from nowhere to win the first round of the presidential election in November, aided in part by a flood of TikTok videos promoting his campaign. Amid allegations that Russia had organized the social media campaign to back Georgescu, Romania’s Constitutional Court cancelled the presidential election runoff two days before it was due to take place.

With Britain’s Conservative Party trying to recover from its worst election result since 1832, Farage dreams of making Reform the main opposition – or even the government — after the next election, due by 2029.

That’s a long shot, but Rob Ford, professor of political science at the University of Manchester, said a big donation from Musk could have “disruptive potential in all sorts of ways”.

He said Musk’s money would give Reform “the opportunity to try and build up a serious campaign organisation, which is something that they have generally lacked.”

“It’s certainly adding a new joker to the pack of cards in British politics,” Ford said.

“We’ve had no shortage of surprising developments here in the past few years. And maybe this is the next one.”

laurent wrote: Sat Dec 21, 2024 8:28 am found today

Slick wrote: Mon Dec 23, 2024 7:17 am I see he got a slap down from Trump yesterday during his speech to one of his bunch of nutters “I’m the President” or similar.

CNN confirmed on-air just now that top Trump aides are furiously calling journalists to insist that Elon Musk has been following the orders of Trump rather than the other way around. As predicted, Trump is horrified and enraged at the idea that Musk is now seen as the President of the United States.

tabascoboy wrote: Mon Dec 23, 2024 10:56 am

Slick wrote: Mon Dec 23, 2024 7:17 am I see he got a slap down from Trump yesterday during his speech to one of his bunch of nutters “I’m the President” or similar.

Saw this the other day

CNN confirmed on-air just now that top Trump aides are furiously calling journalists to insist that Elon Musk has been following the orders of Trump rather than the other way around. As predicted, Trump is horrified and enraged at the idea that Musk is now seen as the President of the United States.

https://bsky.app/profile/sethabramson.b ... r4u336ik2x

tabascoboy wrote: Mon Dec 23, 2024 10:56 am

Slick wrote: Mon Dec 23, 2024 7:17 am I see he got a slap down from Trump yesterday during his speech to one of his bunch of nutters “I’m the President” or similar.

Saw this the other day

CNN confirmed on-air just now that top Trump aides are furiously calling journalists to insist that Elon Musk has been following the orders of Trump rather than the other way around. As predicted, Trump is horrified and enraged at the idea that Musk is now seen as the President of the United States.

https://bsky.app/profile/sethabramson.b ... r4u336ik2x

Kiwias wrote: Mon Dec 23, 2024 1:16 pm Trump is such a child, making it easy for the Dems to wind him up with President Elon comments.

Lobby wrote: Mon Dec 23, 2024 12:06 pm