AI is a cyborg technology. The technology is us + the AI. We regulate us + cars. We regulate us + planes. We regulate us + radio transmitters. We can pass laws that make AI work for all of us.
Beth Andres-Beck
@beth4ma.bsky.social
Former candidate for Massachusetts’ 6th Congressional District Software Engineer. Queer. Unitarian-Universalist. AI should work for all of us🌹 pronouns: any/all https://bethfordemocracy.com
"We are holding a lot of your people who you failed to love and take care of" I am one of those. I will always be grateful for the hospitality Massachusetts offered a teenager from rural Oregon. "Affordability" isn't just a buzzword. Those looking for a home should be able to afford one here.
David Roberts@volts.wtf · 4d agoHoly shit.
This is un-American. The Department of Homeland Security has not made us safer: it has made us targets.
Dhruv Mehrotra@dmehro.bsky.social · last wk.NEW: DHS agents tracked people observing ICE arrests, photographed them, ran their plates, pulled personal information, and added them to a Palantir database, according to newly unsealed court filings. w/ @regret.bsky.social
There is a runaway winner problem when money controls politics. Massachusetts Ballot Measure 3 makes money more powerful in elections. It has $5 MILLION+ supporting making money more important. There is $150,000 against. When dollars get to vote, they vote to give themselves more power.
There is a good bit of work to do after a campaign is done. Closing out accounts, filing the paperwork. Recycling lawn signs into mushroom-themed larp shields.
Egypt has disappeared six journalists for reporting on the government. America should not be supporting dictators like Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. cpj.org/2026/09/cpj-...
CPJ, partners demand release of six Egyptian investigative journalists - Committee to Protect Journalists
The Committee to Protect Journalists joined partner organizations on Wednesday in condemning the arrest in recent days of six journalists working for independent Egyptian investigative journalism plat...
cpj.org
When our experiences conflict with the statistics, it is time to ask “why?” People aren’t wrong about what they are experiencing. This sucks and the fascists destroying our government are making it worse.
Beth Andres-Beck@beth4ma.bsky.social · last wk.In 2008 the economic pain was concentrated. Older college grads mostly had jobs even when 25% of young people were unemployed. It hit Cali and NY, but Nebraska was fine. People are acting like this is worse. Unless they are Millennial from Michigan, it probably is. Gas prices affect everyone.
In 2008 the economic pain was concentrated. Older college grads mostly had jobs even when 25% of young people were unemployed. It hit Cali and NY, but Nebraska was fine. People are acting like this is worse. Unless they are Millennial from Michigan, it probably is. Gas prices affect everyone.
The new AI propaganda: claiming that the water use is over-stated because it is possible to build data centers that use more electricity instead. That is exactly why we should require them to be built that way! In the meantime, ~56% of data centers use water-intensive evaporative cooling.
“Your support should matter more than support from out-of-state healthcare executives” It is easy to make the case for matching in-district campaign donations. Plus, it doesn’t require a Constitutional Amendment.
To everyone celebrating, happy Sukkot! And to all celebrating in Massachusetts, I hope that your sukkah weathers the coming storm.
The Massachusetts approach is the path forward: no laws of any kind should be permitted to target abortion care. We can’t treat the anti-abortion movement’s proposals as legitimate or in good faith. They are neither.
Tuberville attacking furries isn’t surprising. Furries are everything he hates: pro-union, anti-corporate-power, competent, joyful, etc. But attacking furries for flying planes is just confusing. Frankly, it seems like a natural career choice for a Protogen.
The healthcare system relied on people being too lazy or busy or just discouraged to actually collect their promised benefits. AI had turned that billing system into a spam arms race. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/24/b...
Battle of Hospital A.I. vs. Insurer A.I. Is Pushing Medical Costs Higher
The use of artificial intelligence by hospitals and health insurers is escalating their longstanding feud over paying for medical care.
nytimes.com
I am curious what the dumbest program is that we could qualify as an “artificial super-intelligence” under the AI monopoly bill. Facebook-of-2010-and-2016 actually did overthrow governents, so it’s already a pretty low lower bound.
We need AI laws that protect people, the environment, and our future. Protecting the big AI companies from competition does none of those things.
Netanyahu attacking an American mayor should be an enormous international incident. Our government is refusing to defend Americans.
Massachusetts has a very long ballot this November. The last one, question 9, is especially weird. For that is for that one, and only that one, we have to vote “yes” to keep things the way they are.
Progressive Mass@progressivemass.bsky.social · 2w agoMA has 9 statewide ballot questions this year. Be an informed voter! #mapoli www.progressivemass.com/2026ballot/
When I talk to voters I don’t talk about “abolishing the Senate”. I talk about shortening the election cycle to six weeks so they aren’t bombarded with political ads year-round. It is amazing how popular our goals can be. Especially in swing states.
You know who *did* support open borders (besides the founding fathers)? President Grover Cleveland “we joyously contemplate instead our own deity keeping watch and ward before the open gates of America […] We will not forget that liberty has here made her home” - unveiling of the Statue of Liberty
The rest of the country doesn’t deserve Massachusetts queer conflict. This is top-shelf stuff.
Democratic Socialism holds companies accountable.
Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani@mayor.nyc.gov · 2w agoDoorDash has ripped off more than 260,000 NYC delivery workers. We’re making them pay $131.5 million — the largest worker settlement in City history. This is New York, where hard work pays and greed will cost you.
When AI companies sell their tech as anti-consumer products, they are building the opposition to AI. The opposition isn’t because people haven’t tried the technologies yet. It is because too many voters have had the technologies used against them.
If Congress wants to shut down LLMs, it would say training is never fair use. If Congress wants to tank the giant companies training LLMs, it would say training is always fair use. Big tech is relying on Schrödinger’s copyright.
Taking trans children away from parents who beat the shit out of them is good, actually. It is wild the violence Republicans openly support.
Wishing all who observe a meaningful Yom Kippur and an easy fast.
The AI industry is trying to blame people for being fooled by content their tools generate. While also refusing to watermark that content in any way. This is like when car companies inventing the crime of “jaywalking” to blame pedestrians for being killed by cars.