Alt text should be as long as it needs to be in order to effectively describe the content. In some cases, this will be a few phrases. In other cases, it will take a few more sentences. Aim to be as efficient as possible without leaving out key details.

Brilliant letter from Stuart Thompson to Jeremy Clarkson about his comments that benefit claimants should write weekly thank you letters to tax payers detailing how they spend their benefits each week.

As promised, here's the completed dining table ready for me to make a bench from the rest of the slab, and waiting or the Amish chairs because I don't have time/skill to make chairs. Wife seems pleased with it as an anniversary present (she also helped a lot). More details in alt text.

Every now and then someone takes a run at me along the lines of "I don't understand why you, a scifi writer, don't appreciate 'AI'," and I'm all, motherfucker, it's *because* I'm a science fiction writer I have the positions I have, how many times do we have to fucking yell "torment nexus," my dude

Catbus has important context for those who missed it. Jennings isn't being dragged because he plays NYT games, but because he went out of his way to be an asshole about it when someone pointed out the problem with them. P.S. to spyvirginahall: one can support trans people *and* be against genocide.

Catbus@catbus.phd · 5d ago

actually he got dragged by *leftists* & it wouldn't have been a thing except he jumped into a trans woman's mentions to say his trans friends gave him a pass to play it bc trans women aren't a monolith, so neener neener #themoreyouknow

Old skill practiced. New skill unlocked (yes, power carving is exactly as fun as it looks … except for the sore back from bending over).

Sunday Taquitos #30: Flock This! Art by @ivan-ehlers.bsky.social

🎶 #ResinTime, resin time, do do do do, resin time! 🎶 Don't worry, it's just filling a few cracks and stabilizing some punky wood. I wouldn't ruin these slabs with a river.

Congratulations to Jimothy, Washingtonian of the Day.

That cool article going around about how kitchen brand enshitification? Yeah, turns out it's probably a bunch of Palantir BS. (ok, the enshitification is real but the guy "writing" the story is part of the problem)

Xib (They/Them) IS UNIONIZED!!! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️@xib.bsky.social · 2w ago

From the author of WorseOnPurpose’s personal website. Sigh, milkshake ducked again

Why are we so upset about bill AB 2047? It allows for a company partnered with the biggest AI surveillance company, Palantair, access to your life. The things the bill claims to do are already illegal and those crimes are down significantly. I want a safer world just like you. This is not the way.

People, including doctors, often have a vague idea that people with #diabetes and especially #type1diabetes shouldn't drink alcohol. But if you ask why, usually they'll say because it has sugar. Actually, the biggest risk is LOW blood sugar. Read more: www.medscape.com/viewarticle/...

Alcohol and Marijuana Use in Type 1 Diabetes: What to Know

People with type 1 diabetes are just as likely to use substances as the rest of the population, so they need to be aware of the risks and how to mitigate them.

medscape.com

alcoholic trying to get sober after a relapse tells Google's "Health Coach" about it. it tells them to drink every hour and messages them to make sure they're drinking as soon as they wake up.

This is a *fantastic* video that explains exactly WTF is going on with Taylor Farms and how tracing works TLDR: - they are responsible - the false positive was only on one of several samples - it’s difficult to test parasites - there may still be other sources - Taylor Farms is being shady AF

Here’s the truth about Medicare-for-all: You will pay less overall for better coverage. You won’t have to deal with a middleman company with a financial incentivize to deny as much care as possible. Your doctor won’t have to fight with that company to get you the care you need. It’s better.

Update from the LA Times: www.latimes.com/california/s...

California's push to ban technology used for 'ghost guns' finds unlikely foe in Hollywood

Movie prop makers are among the groups pushing back against a proposed California bill that would require 3-D printers to block the making of gun parts, citing concerns about unintentional consequence...

latimes.com

Younger me did a lot of cool things. Not only did I get to meet Thor Heyerdahl, one of humanity's greatest explorers, but I spent a few weeks in 1999 working with him on an archeological dig. Pirámides de Güímar turned out to be of little historical significance but are still a wonderful site.

Lena 🩷💛🩵@petalsketch.bsky.social · 3w ago

1997ish?

Freight company: Tracking number is wrong, we don't work on Saturdays. It will be Monday and they will call 30 mins out. Saturday morning at 7:45 AM: Giant crate in my driveway. I'd have slept through a call or doorbell (neither happened) so I guess I'm glad it wasn't raining.

Please pay attention to how “I don’t want to think about it anymore” slip-slides so gracefully into “it’s not happening,” and ask yourself if there are any other recent unpleasant issues where this might have occurred.

Post-Left Watch@postleftwatch.bsky.social · 3w ago

Michael Tracey claims that journalists tell him privately all the time that they're becoming more and more skeptical of the Jeffrey Epstein accusations, but they can't say so in public because they're afraid of people calling them pedophiles.

My first perfect #smush. Though the nerd in me takes offense that "foo" wasn't allowed. Why hasn't @merriam-webster.com added this very culturally-important word to the dictionary‽ (aside from its interesting but unrelated-to-software Scottish usage)

The American Diabetes Association appears not to have learned their lesson the first time around (below). Now they've blocked publication of an editorial about this event that was slated for publication in the same journal, Diabetes Care, this week. But here it is. You know what to do.

Carl T. Bergstrom@carlbergstrom.com · 2mo ago

From 500 views in the first two months to over 100,000 views in the last few days. The ADA opinion piece that was too scary to be distributed at the ADA meeting has gone full Streisand. Y'all are doing the Lord's work.

Here's who online anonymity is for. expression.fire.org/p/in-defense...

FilterBoxBuilder.com updated to 2.0 Now with: Templates for hand-cut air purifier designs Shows estimated CADR, ACH, power consumption, and monthly cost. Supports five filter cubes. Box and PC fan options. Flat-panel-style Stacked Starkvind filters Part and seam labels Lots more...

I'm finally digging into the cross tabs underlying the @searchlightinst.bsky.social memo telling Dems not to talk about climate change. It surprised me, but may not surprise you, that the memo lies about what US swing voters actually said in the polling. Let's have a look, shall we? 🧵

Guess who just bounced happily past the one open window right as I was trying to go to sleep last night! Must have been startled by my sprinklers because that's the worst I've ever smelled one, and the house still smells a bit in the morning even with all bathroom fans venting overnight.

Now to hold accountable all of the hospitals that withheld care and even terminated entire departments in anticipation of this threat because there is unfortunately a good chance that many of them will just decide not to resume those particular services.

NPR@npr.org · 3w ago

NPR has learned that the Department of Health and Human Services will not be finalizing its most aggressive attempt to end gender-affirming care for youth nationally. n.pr/4w1lkb8

I'll specifically add my thoughts to this, so there's no confusion. Lindsey Graham was a terrible person who used his political power for evil. We should absolutely call that out. But don't be homophobic about it. We can criticize his hypocrisy without the punchline being, "Ha ha he was gay."

Everyone gets fooled sometimes, but if you credulously post an image or video that people reply to tell you is fake/AI-generated and you leave it up anyway (because “it’s still funny” or whatever) you’re making the misinformation problem worse and will be blocked immediately.

Primary every fucking Democrat who releases a statement that includes the phrase “while we disagreed on a lot of things…”

Just an FYI for people using pronoun labelers. I just switched to @pronounsinb.io due to concerns in this thread.

🪻Lavender Latte 🏳️‍⚧️@twanny.com · 4w ago

I was @ripperoni.com's girlfriend for 4 and 1/2 years. In June 2022, I attempted suicide. My mental health collapsed, and I desperately needed rehabilitation, but (In-person) Ripperoni became my sole caretaker. I was a blank slate to be molded, unmoving and spiraling for most of the day.