One actually incredible way to start writing as a human being in the age of AI is to use phrases like "telephonic chat." From www.harpersbazaar.in/amp/celebrity/story/belgian-designer-isla-maria-van-damme-is-busy-living-in-the-moment-1067718-2024-08-09

Apropos of nothing, Jimmy Iovine would talk to Tom Petty for two to four hours a night on the phone, seven nights a week "for at least four to five hundred days in a row." (c. 1980).

Perhaps an unpopular opinion but I think it would be good for society if prisons had lots and lots of librarians idk.

"She brings beauty and meaning to the everyday, demonstrating that everyone deserves access to well designed public space,” commented the jury. 🫂 🤗 😭

The Gold Medal is the highest honour that the Institute can bestow in recognition of a significant and lasting contribution to Canadian architecture.

"The government has painted itself into a corner with industry-approved talking points about becoming an energy superpower, despite overreliance on exports to the US, an energy sector largely controlled by American interests and consistent projections pointing towards declining fossil fuel demand."

"This environment in which we're suspicious of each other is illiberal. Liberal theorists assumed that our rights were going to be enjoyed in community." "How to Become an Algorithmic Problem" w. José Marichal on @techpolicypress.bsky.social, such a great episode!! 🎧 www.techpolicy.press/podcast/

Did you know that the City is conducting a survey about the future of street furniture in Toronto? The current contract expires in the summer of 2027 and a new vendor & furniture will be picked. Take the survey to have your voice heard. #TOpoli ca.mar.medallia.com?e=90006671&d...

Good morning from under a giant pile of snow! I wrote about agentic AI and a bot that wrote a hit piece about a engineer after he rejected its code. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/23/o...

My most toxic trait is muttering MFA codes out loud in shared spaces.

It’s true that saying something meaningful about any number of real-world issues — there are so many to choose from — might come at a cost But you can’t participate in a profession that prioritizes your voice, and then be appalled when people expect you to use it buttondown.com/NinaWatchesE...

Aside from this being a totally unhinged thing to do, it betrays such an obvious disdain for workers: that they have zero right or power to debate or resist *any* working conditions, and that they must simply go around begging to sell their labour on the market to literally any bidder.

This is, like, actually really cheering me up. LFG!!!!!!! 📣

I cannot stress enough that homelessness is caused by policy levers primarily at the provincial level. And AMO's new report shows it: homelessness in Ontario rose 8% last year, with 85,000 people becoming homeless. 20,000 were youth and children. Horrifying. globalnews.ca/news/1161124...

Reminded again of this bit from Raymond Williams's Modern Tragedy: 'violence and disorder are institutions as well as acts. When a revolutionary change is lived through, we can usually see this quite clearly. The old institutions, now dead, take on their real quality as systematic violence and

Really neat project by @wattenberg.bsky.social & @viegas.bsky.social on how/why AI makes inferences and predictions... their bot reveals assumptions in real time & how it builds its "image" of a user. So useful for the ongoing challenge of AI interpretability. cyber.harvard.edu/story/2025-1...

The Narwhal is suing the RCMP to protect press freedom for all Canadians, and our case will be heard in a Vancouver courtroom beginning next week. We’re counting on your support as the case unfolds, so here’s what you need to know. 🧵

Kaplowwwie!!! We can have nice things* *commute times

I come to you with vulnerability but also *some* (moderate) expertise and a genuine interest in today's information ecosystem. Why isn't there anything about the new Robby Hoffman special (Wake Up) produced by John Mulaney on YouTube search results? Clips? A trailer? A preview? Help me understand. 🙏

For your pleasure I wrote up the news that apparently the University of Austin is not a great place to work: www.chron.com/culture/arti...

Here's a bit about what we're working on at #UofT in the higher ed & tech space with @drdonnakidwell.com leading the way... and it was my pleasure to write about it! ⬇️ Aligning, collaborating, and dreaming big for a secure, scalable and ethically governed technology environment for all. 🔮🤖🌿

"the issue isn’t that we need more 'boy-friendly' reforms. It’s that boys are socialized to compete only with boys and to read girls’ success as illegitimate or emasculating. The result is dissonance, resentment, and disengagement for boys—and hostile climates for girls." time.com/7335723/auto...

Follow for the latest in edtech and IT in higher ed!

Since Christmas is around the corner, a reminder that Wikipedia has a store. And the profits go to a project billionaires hate, so you're buying an object and getting free spite.

So, you want to breach some Charter rights? Apparently quite a few Canadian politicians do. Post from @jaredwesley.ca comes with this handy-dandy flowchart. drjaredwesley.substack.com/p/why-use-th...

Populations on whom Canadian governments have used or threatened to use the notwithstanding clause, allowing them to override Charter rights: - trans and nonbinary kids - religious minorities - homeless people - teachers edmontonjournal.com/news/politic...

What perfect album came out the year you turned 16?

"World's first potential trillionaire has killed 600,000 people, including 400,000 children" is the only headline that anyone should ever read about Elon Musk

Here's the biggest PSE story you haven't heard yet: the Canada Student Grant for low-income students is being cut from $4200/year to $3000/year as of next August. It's implicit in the budget tables but the government is too chickenshit to actually say so directly.

I’m so tired of Doug Ford being the Mayor of Toronto. 🤦🏽‍♂️ Apparently he forgets that he’s supposed to run the Province of Ontario. Can’t even elect him out, because the other parties, voters can’t get their shit together. 😔 #ONpoli #TOpoli

Almost twice as many Canadians see immigrants as being unfairly scapegoated and most believe that we should continue to welcome newcomers while fixing housing and healthcare shortfalls. Source: broadbentinstitute.ca/research/shifting-borders/

give it up one time to our patron saint before game 5 begins

I guess a bunch of extremely talented and respected actors saw the cinematic masterpiece THE PROPOSITION (2005) and said, "Sure, John Hillcoat! I'd love to be in TRIPLE 9" (2016). Lol!!!! I've never seen such a disjointed, nonsensical hot mess in my LIFE. This has been movie reviews with Jovana.

I can't believe they want BOTH parents to have full-time jobs, be serious.

"And I feel strongly that we have a social contract by living together, that we do need to look out for each other. And fortunately, looking out for yourself equally looks out for others." I agree with Halperin. Vaccines are part of our social contract. I had to top up my measles one too.

Whenever I hear "New South Wales" I think, like... you can't have both, you know? Are you new or are you south?

There are basically only two positions in the debate about AI: 1. A little guy in a red suit with horns on one shoulder, and 2. A little guy in a white suit and wings on the other shoulder.

Here’s the most important measure of Ontario’s self proclaimed « working for workers » Conservative government. They pretend that laws requiring employers to draft policies about this or that is progress. But real measure is enforcement of labour standards. www.thestar.com/news/gta/wor...

"The possibility of overreach is a price worth paying exactly because shame serves as a robustly liberal alternative to political violence. It is, quite literally, the least one can do to ensure rules of social conduct that upheld minimal levels of dignity for all involved."

When y’all cancel your Disney+ subs, please consider giving some of that money to your local NPR or PBS station, or other independent media like @boltsmag.org or @propublica.org

"your phone will shut down" don't threaten me with a good time!!

Recommend following and supporting @pressprogress.ca, @rachelgilmore.bsky.social, and @scpartners.bsky.social. Send me suggestions!

This is classic CDN media misrepresentation. What went down at Christie Pits wasn't two sides of the same issue. This was a hate rally demanding mass deportations against people who live in Toronto. It was a fascist hate gathering. They were countered by people standing up for their neighbours.

We are hosting our second and final information session for the 2026 Fellowship on Tuesday, September 16, at 7 pm EDT. Apply to be part of next year's cohort now! Information session registration link: us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi... Announcement: www.techpolicy.press/call-for-app...

JOB ALERT: We are recruiting for the newly created role of Information Security Program Manager. Apply by Sept 30. citizenlab.ca/2025/09/job-...

Today, the board of directors of The Canadian Tax Observatory welcomed @hscoffield.bsky.social as the organization's founding CEO. Learn more about her ambitions for the new research and policy centre at: www.canadiantaxobservatory.ca #TaxPolicy #CdnPoli #CanadaSky #EconSky #TaxFairness

SCOTUS: considering race as one factor in a college applicant's file is blatantly unconstitutional ALSO SCOTUS: considering race as one factor in targeting whom to detain and deport is cool cool cool

Honest question about this article (and I am pro-journalist and I love journalists): How do you report "they cut 12% of staff over 2 years" and "this agency is completely dysfunctional" without also asking "hey do you guys think the dysfunction is due to these staff cuts"?

"While there has been momentum in the UK and EU on regulating online harms, the Trump administration is a major counterforce. If Canada moves forward with online harms regulation, we will face a U.S. backlash." ...in case you're wondering who runs this place. www.thestar.com/politics/ai-...

This Labor Day (and all other days): Thank the workers who serve you. Appreciate the workers who care for you. Respect the workers who pick up your trash. Salute the workers who get you your mail. Honor the workers who teach your children. Pay all workers a living wage.