In my last Substack post, I was talking about how maybe we’re not as emotionally intelligent as we think. And I can’t help but think that the attack on empathy might be related to this. And then this study lands in my inbox. theconversation.com/empathy-is-u...

A study says that AI poetry is indistinguishable from human poetry. I look at what this means in my Substack. open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

Truth 👇

Can AI write a modernist masterpiece? I don’t think that’s the right question. Read my latest post and the first in a series looking at our relationship with AI. open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

I didn't know that this was an actual thing, but now that I do, it explains a lot. Something all animal lovers should be aware of: theconversation.com/cats-can-get...

Well said! It's why you need to go EVERYWHERE to even begin to understand the country. (Which also makes the ubiquity of 'nostre pizze' on so many menus even more tragic, so much more sad. A capitulation to the inevitable march of global capitalism...)

. THIS is one of the biggest problems of our time . . . ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️ .

“We reject the far right’s racist lies about ‘protecting’ women and girls. They are not defenders of women – they exploit violence against women to fuel hate and division,” AMEN www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Some reflections on writing while I work on some other projects. open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

A quick review of the new Mission: Impossible movie got a little more involved when I realised that there was a reason that the AI wasn't really 'AI' and what that says about AI more generally. Also, did anyone else notice the Pulp Fiction connection? open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

More interesting research presented in @theconversation.com on misogyny and manifestos. theconversation.com/i-analyzed-m...

A government ban on Hungary’s Pride parade backfired Saturday as over 100,000 people marched through Budapest, far more than usual PM Viktor Orban warned people to stay away, threatening “clear legal consequences.” But the warnings only turned a modest event into a mass rally against his government

My newest post looking at the question of why we are afraid of robots from a different angle. open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

Much as I would not dare to predict the consequences of this war, I do think we can summarize it thusly so far: A smart and evil man manipulated a stupid and evil man into a war against a fanatical and evil regime.

This is precisely what happened. The same effort, over and over again, with Democrats and Republicans. But America was finally weak enough to simply ignore and its president idiotic enough to go along with it.

"Trump has spent the last five months vowing that the Ukraine-Russia war would never have happened if he was president, vowing that the Israel-Gaza war would never have happened if he was president. And yet the reality is that not only has he not avoided war, but he’s plunged us into a new one."

Lest anyone thought these battles were over (and maybe too many did, before the pandemic): a good summary of the new challenges, and the research exposing them. theconversation.com/misogyny-has...

Inducting a new horror into the pantheon of 21st-century monsters, and introducing new, much improved graphics through a new partnership with @lunaresspooker.bsky.social - check him out! open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

Some more thoughts on the question, Why are we afraid of robots? over on my Substack. open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

Starmer's anti-immigrant speech today wasn't just a moral and political embarrassment. It was also an intellectual embarrassment. inews.co.uk/opinion/star...

Just came out of Ryan Coogler's Sinners. What a film! Vampires? Yes please! Delta Blues music? Oh yes, most certainly!! Nuanced politics of race and religion that isn't obviously preachy? What more could anyone ask for? Love it. Thank you.

Brilliantly put from @iandunt.bsky.social as always. @teamlabouruk.bsky.social are you listening? If you tell people that Reform are right, that boats and immigrants are the problem, why would they vote for you and not Reform? Don't let Reform win the argument.

About time. This took too long to settle. It never should have gone on like this, feeding all sorts of the wrong social media trolls. Let's please move on. BBC News - No criminal charges over death of ice hockey player www.bbc.com/news/article...

You know what to do Canada.

So the 'Brexit Freedom' that is being betrayed is... the freedom to NOT be allowed to live and work in Europe? (Which, btw, people can still choose not to do...) Or do they mean the British people's freedom from having foreigners in their country? A stupid, xenophobic headline.

Before I start a new series, I look at why I write, and what I'm trying to do. open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

'Inconceivable!' Thank you, @simonmayo.bsky.social . I was screaming at my phone until you finally said it.

Speaking as a Canadian, I can confirm there is ZERO point in agreeing anything with Trump. He'll throw it aside as soon as it's inconvenient. Whether there'll be any point striking any deals with subsequent admins is an open question. If the US is just going to elect a Trump-like every 4 years...

You could have had this, America. But no, her skin is too dark. And... pffft. 'Women'. 🙄 So instead... Sort yourselves out.

My follow-up post to the first one I wrote on the 2019 Žižek/Peterson debate. Trying to come to terms with the notion of 'cultural Marxism' and how the debate can tell us things about Trump and the current state of our politics. open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

This is what it all comes down to. It was never about a better economy or what inflation was under Biden. A black woman couldn't be President.

In every dark cloud, as they say,... Breaks my heart to hear this. www.theguardian.com/us-news/live...

Congrats to Uni of Sheffield for winning varsity over Hallam. Congrats of course to @michaelszollosy.bsky.social on his jersey retirement, a great servant to university hockey in the Steel City

I love this! FWIW, I got them all right; one is a legendary Jedi, the other a Marxist warrior, tho I have affection for them both. I think @markhamillofficial.bsky.social is the better Hegelian, too. Not that it matters. But saying so will definitely rile up some fans of Žižek, so that's worth it.

It doesn't fill me with any kind of joy to say this, but more Americans need to start talking like this. And doing more. Just saying 'Sorry' to Canadians for your shit government at this point isn't enough. Trust us. We know 'Sorry'.

Kemi Badenoch's claim that we can't achieve net zero by 2050 'without a serious drop in our living standards' makes the quiet assumption that the climate crisis won't on its own cause a serious drop in our living standards. Can some better informed people out there shed some light with more info?

This one took a little longer than usual and I had to chase it down some unpleasant places, but I think it's worth it. What the fuck is Jordan Peterson afraid of? open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

This is actually from the actual President of the actual United States of American (which is very actually directly south of my homeland...). Christ.

This sort of behaviour is exactly why we need to keep a close eye on all players in the AI sector, especially right now those in the US. An excellent article from @aisupremacy.bsky.social open.substack.com/pub/aisuprem...

This is going to be good. Treat yourselves and sign up.

Here's the son of a former KGB spy, who Boris Johnson overruled secret service advice in order to hand a seat in the House of Lords, calling a piece blaming Russia's invasion of Ukraine on NATO a "great and very well informed read". "Good to see Russia's point of view is no longer taboo", he says.

I, for one, will personally do everything I can to help make up for the shortfall that this will cause European winemakers who export to the US. 🫡 It's win-win. They need to sell their wine, and christ if I don't need to drink... www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Trump seems to have trouble remembering who starts conflicts, then blames the victims. HE started the trade war, not the US. Also, RUSSIA invaded Ukraine. Oh, and Trump sexually assaulted a lot of women, which I'm sure he thinks is their fault, too. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

I just came across this terrific essay by Jay Griffiths. It really draws the direct lines between Italian fascism and Trump's US, looking at the institutional transformations and, more importantly, the cultural and psychological underpinnings. aeon.co/essays/the-m...

"The UK's response (to tariffs) must be to deepen ties with the EU which independent research shows will not only shield the UK and Europe from Trump's tariffs, but deliver significant economic growth across Britain." Naomi Smith - Best for Britain CEO🇪🇺 www.bestforbritain.org/uk_must_resp...

AI's limitations are exposed when you have human expertise there to evaluate it.

Funny how the lies dry up when they're no longer needed. Include massive election fraud. Apparently neither that, nor immigrants eating dogs, nor forced sex-change operations, are issues that trouble the US government now.

I went to Finland with the family and came away with some thoughts on Chomsky's views on AI. open.substack.com/pub/michaels...

Excellent post from @jamesbreckwoldt.bsky.social on Con to LD switchers - we all need heuristics to make sense of complex results, but when simplifying sketches curdle into misleading stereotypes then they do more harm than good. A great corrective: jamesbreckwoldt.substack.com/p/2019-conse...