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Nathan Goodman

@nathanpgoodman.bsky.social

Economist who studies institutions, political economy, polycentricity, defense & peace economics, and border militarization. https://gunsguardsandgovernance.substack.com/ https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=1Ue5NBMAAAAJ&hl=en

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Nathan Goodman@nathanpgoodman.bsky.social · last wk.

Exactly. This whole thing seems to be superfluous discovery due to incentives created by intellectual property law. Had Anthropic continued to train their models on pirated content, they could do so without depleting the knowledge commons. But for legal reasons, they destroy books instead. 🧵

As Anthropic trained successive LLMs, it became convinced that using books was themost cost-effective means to achieve a world-class LLM. During this time, however,Anthropic became “not so gung ho about” training on pirated books “for legal reasons” (Opp.Exh. 19). It kept them anyway (e.g., Opp. Exh. 17 at 93–94; CC Opp. Exh. 35 at -0273474).To find a new way to get books, in February 2024, Anthropic hired the former head ofpartnerships for Google’s book-scanning project, Tom Turvey. He was tasked with obtaining "all the books in the world" while still avoiding as much "legal/practice/business slog" as possible (Opp. Exhs. 21, 27). So, in spring 2024, Turvey sent an email or two to majorpublishers to inquire into licensing books for training AI. Had Turvey kept up thoseconversations, he might have reached agreements to license copies for AI training frompublishers — just as another major technology company soon did with one major publisher(e.g., Opp. Expert Malackowski ¶¶ 50, 64). But Turvey let those conversations wither. Instead, Turvey and his team emailed major book distributors and retailers about bulk-purchasing their print copies for the AI firm’s “research library” (Opp. Exh. 22 at 145; Opp.Exh. 31 at -035589). Anthropic spent many millions of dollars to purchase millions of printbooks, often in used condition. Then, its service providers stripped the books from their bindings, cut their pages to size, and scanned the books into digital form — discarding the paper originals. Each print book resulted in a PDF copy containing images of the scannedpages with machine-readable text (including front and back cover scans for softcover books).Anthropic created its own catalog of bibliographic metadata for the books it was acquiring. It acquired copies of millions of books, including of all works at issue for all Authors.To summarize the analysis that now follows, the use of the books at issue to train Claude and its precursors was exceedingly transformative and was a fair use under Section 107 of the Copyright Act. And, the digitization of the books purchased in print form by Anthropic was also a fair use but not for the same reason as applies to the training copies. Instead, it was a fair use because all Anthropic did was replace the print copies it had purchased for its central library with more convenient space-saving and searchable digital copies for its central library — without adding new copies, creating new works, or redistributing existing copies. However, Anthropic had no entitlement to use pirated copies for its central library. Creating a permanent, general-purpose library was not itself a fair use excusing Anthropic’s piracy.
maia arson crimew 🏴@crimew.gay · last wk.

the solution to anthropic ripping up millions of books isnt more copyright by the way, theyre doing this Because of copyright

Julianne McShane@juliannemcshane.bsky.social · 2w ago

“The seriousness of the allegations—domestic violence—you’d think would likely be disqualifying for someone who’s going to be armed by the government.”

Noah Lanard@nlanard.bsky.social · 2w ago

We spoke with former friends and family of the ICE officer who reportedly killed Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine. Court records show how ICE gave a lifeline to a man who'd been accused of abuse by two ex-wives before becoming "voluntarily underemployed." www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Samantha Michaels@samanthamichaels.bsky.social · 2w ago

You know the ICE officer who killed someone in Maine and was then accused by two ex-wives of abuse? Turns out he was likely eligible to skip a significant portion of training after ICE hired him, due to a policy change under this administration. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

What ICE should have known when it hired David Brouillette

The officer who killed a young father in Maine had been accused of abuse by two ex-wives. He was also eligible to skip weeks of training in Georgia.

motherjones.com

Radley Balko@radleybalko.bsky.social · 4w ago

New: Back in 2018, I published a summary of studies and surveys about the prevalence of racism in the criminal justice system for the Wash. Post. The idea was for it to be a regularly updated resource. The Post hasn't updated it since I left. So I've updated and reproduced it at The Watch.

A guide to racism in the criminal justice system

A repository of studies, surveys, and reports on the disparate ways white, Black, and Latino people are treated by police, prosecutors, courts, and prisons

radleybalko.substack.com

Cory Massimino@corymassimino.bsky.social · 4w ago

Just months after finishing radiation, my mom has cancer again, for the ninth time. Ahead lies thousands in bills and months of recovery. We appreciate any and all support, from wishes to cards to donations. Thank you all so much. She's going to beat this again. GoFundMe below🔽

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Rufus Hickok@rufus-hickok.bsky.social · 4w ago

I think what some might call "woke libertarians" I'd probably just characterize as "consistent." Alas, I don't think there were enough of them to swing the election one way or another.

Jason Kuznicki@jkuznicki.bsky.social · 4w ago

So many "woke" issues are things that a doctrinaire libertarian ought to get right, like open borders, police reform--even abolition--and full bodily autonomy for trans people. Libertarian culture usually obscures all that, but these aren't difficult calls if you believe in self-ownership.

Greg Sargent@gregsargent.bsky.social · 4w ago

NEWS --> Three men who were in the van with the victim of the ICE shooting in Texas are potential witnesses, but they're now under pressure to self-deport, a rep for the families tells me. They remain in detention even as ICE's story falters. Details in this piece: newrepublic.com/article/2129...

Texas ICE Killing Darkens: Rep Says Witnesses Pressured to Self-Deport

There were three others in the van with the man shot by ICE in Houston this week. A represenative for the families tells TNR that the government is pressuring these potential witnesses to self-deport.

newrepublic.com

Center for a Stateless Society@c4ssdotorg.bsky.social · last mo.

"In Lavoie’s framework, democracy is not something expressed through a state with a monopoly on the use of force... Instead, democracy occurs through open discourse, debate, contestation, and interaction among citizens." - @nathanpgoodman.bsky.social c4ss.org/content/49379

Anarchism as Radical Liberalism: Radicalizing Markets, Radicalizing Democracy

Classical liberalism emerged as a radical ideology, challenging the status quo of monarchy, mercantilism, religious tyranny, and the ancien regime. The liberals promoted two ideals, markets and democr...

c4ss.org

Andy Craig@andycraig.bsky.social · last mo.

There are a handful of libertarian economists who've made exactly this point and about the same number of libertarians who understand it.

Elizabeth N. Saunders@profsaunders.bsky.social · last mo.

Obviously the human toll is what matters. But here's a question I keep thinking about. The bulk of the SCOTUS docket is business stuff. If they are now openly reinterpreting the law on days that end in Y, how can anyone have confidence in the rule of law in America, including corporate interests?

alex@nonmodernist.com · last mo.

i didn't know about Holder v. HLP before i started researching but it is bleak. the govt argued that teaching people designated foreign terrorists to build houses freed them up to build bombs, and so the people who taught house-building had given material support to a foreign terrorist org.

alex@nonmodernist.com · last mo.

of all the things i learned while researching hotel-florida.ghost.io/from-backfir..., this detail is the one I can’t stop thinking about

From Backfire to Prairieland: Drawing a Line Through 20 Years of Repression

Disclosure: I'm friends with three of the defendants convicted in the federal Prairieland trial and have given money to their defense. I've written about those relationships directly in "The Seeds of ...

hotel-florida.ghost.io

alex@nonmodernist.com · last mo.

i didn't know about Holder v. HLP before i started researching but it is bleak. the govt argued that teaching people designated foreign terrorists to build houses freed them up to build bombs, and so the people who taught house-building had given material support to a foreign terrorist org.

alex@nonmodernist.com · last mo.

trying to make sense of the prairieland sentencings of my friends, i assembled a partial timeline of legal repression of leftists and how things have changed in the past 20 years hotel-florida.ghost.io/from-backfir...

From Backfire to Prairieland: Drawing a Line Through 20 Years of Repression

Disclosure: I'm friends with three of the defendants convicted in the federal Prairieland trial and have given money to their defense. I've written about those relationships directly in "The Seeds of ...

hotel-florida.ghost.io

DFW Support Committee@dfwsupportcommitt.bsky.social · last mo.

Just a reminder that sentencing for Ines Soto, Joy "Rowan" Gibson, and Rebecca Morgan is tomorrow in Fort Worth at 7:30 am! Please show up in-person to support these Prairieland defendants!

DFW Support Committee@dfwsupportcommitt.bsky.social · last mo.

Court Support! Show up for Rowan and Rebecca this Wednesday, July 1st at 7:30 am. Rebecca and Rowan, who took non-cooperating pleas deals will be sentenced with Ines in Judge O’Connor’s courtroom, 2nd floor, Eldon B Mahon Courthouse, 501 West 10th st, Fort Worth, Tx. No phones

Nathan Goodman@nathanpgoodman.bsky.social · last mo.

In March, Savanna Batten's attorney filed a motion for a retrial, alleging that juror intimidation and misconduct had compromised deliberations in the Prairieland trial. Has there been any investigation into these juror intimidation allegations since then?

On March 13, 2026, during jury deliberations, members of the public waiting outside the courtroom heard a loud and sustained disturbance emanating from the area of the jury room shortly after deliberations resumed following the lunch break. The disturbance consisted of multiple individuals shouting simultaneously for approximately one to two minutes in an otherwise quiet courthouse setting. Several individuals independently observed and commented on the disruption. Based on information obtained after the verdict, there is reason to believe that jurors engaged in a heated confrontation inside the jury room and that certain jurors may have been subjected to intimidation or coercion during deliberations. The evidence presented establishes more than mere speculation. The audible and sustained disruption coming from the jury room during active deliberations—corroborated by multiple witnesses—strongly suggests a breakdown in orderly deliberations. The subsequent information indicating a “huge fight” among jurors and possible intimidation raises a substantial question as to whether one or more jurors were coerced into abandoning their honest convictions. Such circumstances strike at the core of the Sixth Amendment. A verdict must represent the considered judgment of each juror, free from coercion, intimidation, or undue pressure. Where jurors are shouting, arguing, and potentially intimidating one another, the reliability of the deliberative process is fundamentally compromised. Also notable was the motion for a new trial filed by Batten’s attorney, Christopher Tolbert, on the grounds that juror misconduct and irregularities during jury deliberations compromised the integrity of the verdict and deprived Batten (and other defendants) of a fair trial. Tolbert noted that there was “a loud and sustained disturbance emanating from the area of the jury room,” which was observed by several people on the day the verdict was reached. Based on information obtained after the verdict, Tolbert stated in his motion, “there is reason to believe that jurors engaged in a heated confrontation inside the jury room and that certain jurors may have been subjected to intimidation or coercion during deliberations.” Juror misconduct is a legally proper reason for granting a new trial.“Because there is credible evidence that the jury’s deliberative process was disrupted by misconduct and possible coercion, and because such conduct creates a reasonable probability that the verdict was affected,” Tolbert continued, “the Court should grant a new trial in the interest of justice.” At a minimum, Tolbert said, “the Court should conduct an evidentiary hearing and permit examination of jurors to determine the extent and impact of the misconduct.” When credible allegations arise that the jury’s deliberative process may have been affected by improper influence or misconduct, the appellate court has made clear the trial court has an affirmative duty to investigate and ensure the integrity of the verdict, requiring the involvement of all parties in a properly conducted hearing.