elia ayoub
@ayoub.bsky.social
Writer, Journalist, Historian, Podcaster. Authoritarianism, hauntology, alternative futures. Eng/Fr/Esp/It/ع
In Brighton, from Lebanon.
@thefirethesetimes.com / @thestartrekpod.bsky.social / https://hauntologies.net / @972mag.com / https://shado-mag.com
In Brighton, from Lebanon.
@thefirethesetimes.com / @thestartrekpod.bsky.social / https://hauntologies.net / @972mag.com / https://shado-mag.com
Pinned
An elder is someone who is older than olive trees
Or: what breaks me
www.hauntologies.net
"An elder is someone who is older than olive trees" is about asking why does the Israeli state harm olive trees, and reflecting on how I came to loathe state borders as someone who grew up in Lebanon to a Palestinian grandfather -- plus my love of trains.
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
Reposted by elia ayoub
I reached out to more than three dozen X advertisers, xAI investors, politicians, and government agencies about the growing library of sexualized deepfakes generated with Grok—now including Renee Good. I only heard back from four, with three declining to comment.
spitfirenews.com/p/grok-deepf...
spitfirenews.com/p/grok-deepf...
Why isn't there a bigger Grok boycott?
Advertisers, politicians, and investors are still all-in on X, despite a sexual abuse crisis.
spitfirenews.com
January 8, 2026 at 9:04 PM
I reached out to more than three dozen X advertisers, xAI investors, politicians, and government agencies about the growing library of sexualized deepfakes generated with Grok—now including Renee Good. I only heard back from four, with three declining to comment.
spitfirenews.com/p/grok-deepf...
spitfirenews.com/p/grok-deepf...
Solidarity with the people of Iran against their authoritarian regime
I read this piece published by Crimethinc about the protest in Iran and that it was so good that I wanted to read it out loud to help boost its reach and make it more accessible. Its honestly a really powerful and important piece.
www.patreon.com/posts/147732...
www.patreon.com/posts/147732...
FTPP 14: Iran: An Uprising Besieged From Within and Without - An Essay from Crimethinc | From The Periphery Media Collective
Get more from From The Periphery Media Collective on Patreon
www.patreon.com
January 8, 2026 at 7:16 PM
Solidarity with the people of Iran against their authoritarian regime
I’m sorry but you cannot comment on anything OpenAI-related with anything but well-justified suspicion of anything they do. Altman is a scammer and ChatGPT ‘Health’ will hurt people.
New AI health tools offer the promise of empowering patients and promoting better health outcomes, but health data is some of the most sensitive information people can share and it must be protected.
OpenAI launches ChatGPT Health to connect user medical records, wellness apps
ChatGPT Health is not intended for diagnosis and treatment, OpenAI said.
www.cnbc.com
January 8, 2026 at 5:50 PM
I’m sorry but you cannot comment on anything OpenAI-related with anything but well-justified suspicion of anything they do. Altman is a scammer and ChatGPT ‘Health’ will hurt people.
Reposted by elia ayoub
Reuters:
Internet blackout in Iran
Internet blackout in Iran
January 8, 2026 at 5:31 PM
Reuters:
Internet blackout in Iran
Internet blackout in Iran
Reposted by elia ayoub
New: we've obtained material explaining how an ICE surveillance system, called Webloc, works. Draw shape on a map, see all phones available there, follow them home. All without warrant
“This is a very dangerous tool in the hands of an out-of-control agency.” www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
“This is a very dangerous tool in the hands of an out-of-control agency.” www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
Inside ICE’s Tool to Monitor Phones in Entire Neighborhoods
404 Media has obtained material that explains how Tangles and Webloc, two surveillance systems ICE recently purchased, work. Webloc can track phones without a warrant and follow their owners home or t...
www.404media.co
January 8, 2026 at 2:03 PM
New: we've obtained material explaining how an ICE surveillance system, called Webloc, works. Draw shape on a map, see all phones available there, follow them home. All without warrant
“This is a very dangerous tool in the hands of an out-of-control agency.” www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
“This is a very dangerous tool in the hands of an out-of-control agency.” www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
Reposted by elia ayoub
Every day, thousands of women and children are victimized by people on X using the Grok chatbot to generate scantily clad and naked photos of them.
It’s time for governments to take action. Elon Musk’s X should have been banned long ago. They don’t have an excuse to delay any longer.
It’s time for governments to take action. Elon Musk’s X should have been banned long ago. They don’t have an excuse to delay any longer.
Elon Musk’s X must be banned
Regulators need to stop cowering before the richest man in the world
disconnect.blog
January 8, 2026 at 5:26 PM
Every day, thousands of women and children are victimized by people on X using the Grok chatbot to generate scantily clad and naked photos of them.
It’s time for governments to take action. Elon Musk’s X should have been banned long ago. They don’t have an excuse to delay any longer.
It’s time for governments to take action. Elon Musk’s X should have been banned long ago. They don’t have an excuse to delay any longer.
It’s not just that MPs underestimate how popular green policies are. It’s also that green policies are actively and aggressively downplayed, smeared etc by this country’s media which prefer to push for the highly polluting AI scam
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘A silent majority’: MPs underestimate support for green policies, study reveals
Exclusive: From solar subsidies to meat taxes, minority rightwing voices appear to drown out the consensus
www.theguardian.com
January 8, 2026 at 3:43 PM
It’s not just that MPs underestimate how popular green policies are. It’s also that green policies are actively and aggressively downplayed, smeared etc by this country’s media which prefer to push for the highly polluting AI scam
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Musk's Grok is producing an unfathomable amount of content showing child abuse, rape and more and it is being targeted at teenagers
One more thing, Musk's Grok app that literally has a "Spicy" feature to turn any image into sex pics and videos, and generate sexualized images and videos of "children" all by itself, is "specifically marketed" to "Teen" audiences on Google Play, even though the feature "within" the app says 18+
January 8, 2026 at 2:55 PM
Musk's Grok is producing an unfathomable amount of content showing child abuse, rape and more and it is being targeted at teenagers
Reposted by elia ayoub
A thread of ICE and CBP sex offenders and credibly accused sex pasts. Content-warning descriptions of abuse
Yuma Sector CBP agent Ramon Marquez, 31, was arrested in May 2025 and has been charged with 15 felonies including 14 counts of sexual conduct with a 16-year-old between Dec 2024 and Apr 2025.
Yuma Sector CBP agent Ramon Marquez, 31, was arrested in May 2025 and has been charged with 15 felonies including 14 counts of sexual conduct with a 16-year-old between Dec 2024 and Apr 2025.
January 8, 2026 at 1:36 AM
A thread of ICE and CBP sex offenders and credibly accused sex pasts. Content-warning descriptions of abuse
Yuma Sector CBP agent Ramon Marquez, 31, was arrested in May 2025 and has been charged with 15 felonies including 14 counts of sexual conduct with a 16-year-old between Dec 2024 and Apr 2025.
Yuma Sector CBP agent Ramon Marquez, 31, was arrested in May 2025 and has been charged with 15 felonies including 14 counts of sexual conduct with a 16-year-old between Dec 2024 and Apr 2025.
Reposted by elia ayoub
lots of people misremember the Y2K bug as a media hype story but in reality nothing happened cuz people actually stepped up and fixed shit. if it happened now we’d be fucked. maga would tell people Y2K is fake news / people would refuse to update their computers because they “did their own research”
January 7, 2026 at 3:41 PM
lots of people misremember the Y2K bug as a media hype story but in reality nothing happened cuz people actually stepped up and fixed shit. if it happened now we’d be fucked. maga would tell people Y2K is fake news / people would refuse to update their computers because they “did their own research”
Reposted by elia ayoub
Renee Nicole Good, 37, was murdered four fifths of a mile from where George Perry Floyd, Jr., 46, was murdered in May of 2020.
I want the media to understand just how close what happened today is to where George Floyd was murdered. 0.8 miles.
January 7, 2026 at 10:26 PM
Renee Nicole Good, 37, was murdered four fifths of a mile from where George Perry Floyd, Jr., 46, was murdered in May of 2020.
Reposted by elia ayoub
"An elder is someone who is older than olive trees" is about asking why does the Israeli state harm olive trees, and reflecting on how I came to loathe state borders as someone who grew up in Lebanon to a Palestinian grandfather -- plus my love of trains.
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
An elder is someone who is older than olive trees
Or: what breaks me
www.hauntologies.net
January 6, 2026 at 8:18 PM
"An elder is someone who is older than olive trees" is about asking why does the Israeli state harm olive trees, and reflecting on how I came to loathe state borders as someone who grew up in Lebanon to a Palestinian grandfather -- plus my love of trains.
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
Reposted by elia ayoub
I don't even know what to say about this, what part to quote. Please just read it.
"An elder is someone who is older than olive trees" is about asking why does the Israeli state harm olive trees, and reflecting on how I came to loathe state borders as someone who grew up in Lebanon to a Palestinian grandfather -- plus my love of trains.
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
An elder is someone who is older than olive trees
Or: what breaks me
www.hauntologies.net
January 7, 2026 at 7:40 PM
I don't even know what to say about this, what part to quote. Please just read it.
This is part of the reason why I am convinced that Labour will do nothing against Trump’s threats against Greenland. I know it’s hard for many to accept, but the evidence is clear: the Labour leadership simply does not give a f-ck. If anything, they admire the Trump admin.
I knew Tory ministers could be cruel, unfeeling bastards. But the insouciance, even mockery, by Labour ministers towards people convicted of no crime, who are at imminent risk of death as a result of an unconscionable period on remand is on another level altogether. They are revelling in it.
January 7, 2026 at 7:28 PM
This is part of the reason why I am convinced that Labour will do nothing against Trump’s threats against Greenland. I know it’s hard for many to accept, but the evidence is clear: the Labour leadership simply does not give a f-ck. If anything, they admire the Trump admin.
The only humans on Earth who do not already know this are tech bros, lazy journalists, and politicians
DELL EXEC: Consumers are “not buying based on AI. In fact I think AI probably confuses them more than it helps them understand a specific outcome."
@pcgamer.com #CES
www.pcgamer.com/hardware/del...
@pcgamer.com #CES
www.pcgamer.com/hardware/del...
Dell seems to be the first to realise we don't actually care about AI PCs
"What we've learned over the course of this year, from a consumer perspective, is they're not buying based on AI."
www.pcgamer.com
January 7, 2026 at 7:20 PM
The only humans on Earth who do not already know this are tech bros, lazy journalists, and politicians
Reposted by elia ayoub
If the Palestine Action hunger strikers die - which they could do at any moment, as they are now very close to the end - it will be the government that killed them. Today’s column explains why. Please share, and write urgently to your MP.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Let’s be clear: if the Palestine Action hunger strikers die, the government will bear moral responsibility | George Monbiot
The three remaining hunger strikers have been convicted of nothing. Yet with astonishing cruelty, ministers refuse to listen to their reasonable demands, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
www.theguardian.com
January 7, 2026 at 8:07 AM
If the Palestine Action hunger strikers die - which they could do at any moment, as they are now very close to the end - it will be the government that killed them. Today’s column explains why. Please share, and write urgently to your MP.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
More here too sahanjournal.com/immigration/...
ICE murdered an American citizen in Minneapolis for absolutely no reason. The video is clear.
ICE murdered an American citizen in Minneapolis for absolutely no reason. The video is clear.
January 7, 2026 at 7:15 PM
More here too sahanjournal.com/immigration/...
ICE murdered an American citizen in Minneapolis for absolutely no reason. The video is clear.
ICE murdered an American citizen in Minneapolis for absolutely no reason. The video is clear.
It’s pretty obvious at this point that Sharaa uses the cover of international diplomacy (with Israel, US and Turkey especially) to attack minorities. Besides being obviously criminal, he is actually sacrificing Syrian sovereignty as neither Israel or Turkey will ever be satisfied.
January 7, 2026 at 7:12 PM
It’s pretty obvious at this point that Sharaa uses the cover of international diplomacy (with Israel, US and Turkey especially) to attack minorities. Besides being obviously criminal, he is actually sacrificing Syrian sovereignty as neither Israel or Turkey will ever be satisfied.
My friend Laura Vidal, who is from Venezuela, is translating interesting takes from Venezuela. Please follow to inform yourself.
Laura will also be on @thefirethesetimes.com again soon
Laura will also be on @thefirethesetimes.com again soon
[🇻🇪 Luis Carlos Díaz, journalist and human rights defender. This comes from a 25 min vid, so it won't be detailed]
"Power in Venezuela was never held by Nicolás Maduro alone. It functioned as a coalition that distributed control over businesses, courts, prosecutors, and repressive institutions."
"Power in Venezuela was never held by Nicolás Maduro alone. It functioned as a coalition that distributed control over businesses, courts, prosecutors, and repressive institutions."
January 7, 2026 at 10:08 AM
My friend Laura Vidal, who is from Venezuela, is translating interesting takes from Venezuela. Please follow to inform yourself.
Laura will also be on @thefirethesetimes.com again soon
Laura will also be on @thefirethesetimes.com again soon
What’s something you’d like to see covered on @thefirethesetimes.com (audio) or Hauntologies.net (writing) ?
January 7, 2026 at 9:59 AM
What’s something you’d like to see covered on @thefirethesetimes.com (audio) or Hauntologies.net (writing) ?
Reposted by elia ayoub
"They have declared olive trees independent from their inconvenient roots. So many olive trees, inconvenient olive trees with inconvenient roots in an inconvenient land that was cared for by our inconvenient, non-existent grandparents.
Why do they hurt olive trees?"
Painfully beautiful 🖋️
Why do they hurt olive trees?"
Painfully beautiful 🖋️
"An elder is someone who is older than olive trees" is about asking why does the Israeli state harm olive trees, and reflecting on how I came to loathe state borders as someone who grew up in Lebanon to a Palestinian grandfather -- plus my love of trains.
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
An elder is someone who is older than olive trees
Or: what breaks me
www.hauntologies.net
January 7, 2026 at 7:23 AM
"They have declared olive trees independent from their inconvenient roots. So many olive trees, inconvenient olive trees with inconvenient roots in an inconvenient land that was cared for by our inconvenient, non-existent grandparents.
Why do they hurt olive trees?"
Painfully beautiful 🖋️
Why do they hurt olive trees?"
Painfully beautiful 🖋️
Elon Musk is bringing all the pedophiles together
Every piece of reporting I've seen on this is drastically understating the scale. These are from Grok's replies within a single minute. Time-to-reply is degrading because it has such a backlog of NCII/CSAM requests to fulfill. Conservatively I estimate it is producing more than 5000 of these per day
January 6, 2026 at 11:56 PM
Elon Musk is bringing all the pedophiles together
Reposted by elia ayoub
“I am also the grandson of non-existence.” 💔
"An elder is someone who is older than olive trees" is about asking why does the Israeli state harm olive trees, and reflecting on how I came to loathe state borders as someone who grew up in Lebanon to a Palestinian grandfather -- plus my love of trains.
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
www.hauntologies.net/p/an-elder-i...
An elder is someone who is older than olive trees
Or: what breaks me
www.hauntologies.net
January 6, 2026 at 8:39 PM
“I am also the grandson of non-existence.” 💔
I've published two things today, a @thefirethesetimes.com episode with Nicole Rose from Solidarity Apothecary on Burnout, Grief, and Solidarity and a Hauntologies essay entitled "An elder is someone who is older than olive trees"
🧵
🧵
January 6, 2026 at 8:18 PM
I've published two things today, a @thefirethesetimes.com episode with Nicole Rose from Solidarity Apothecary on Burnout, Grief, and Solidarity and a Hauntologies essay entitled "An elder is someone who is older than olive trees"
🧵
🧵
it is very easy to oppose the insane American occupation of Venezuela without downplaying how horrible Maduro is
look I am doing it right now
look I am doing it right now
January 6, 2026 at 2:57 PM
it is very easy to oppose the insane American occupation of Venezuela without downplaying how horrible Maduro is
look I am doing it right now
look I am doing it right now