Ben Dillon
@benjdillon.bsky.social
“We may not have chosen the time, but the time has chosen us.” — John Lewis
Politics, sports, entertainment, books, travel, food — not necessarily in that order.
Politics, sports, entertainment, books, travel, food — not necessarily in that order.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
It’s funny to hear this report list all the ways Chinese data collection could be a threat when the US does the same things and poses a much greater threat given Trump’s 51st state comments. There’s only a brief acknowledgement at the end that the US isn’t trustworthy either.
Will your Chinese-made EV spy on you?
YouTube video by CBC News: The National
www.youtube.com
February 16, 2026 at 1:47 AM
It’s funny to hear this report list all the ways Chinese data collection could be a threat when the US does the same things and poses a much greater threat given Trump’s 51st state comments. There’s only a brief acknowledgement at the end that the US isn’t trustworthy either.
Donald Trump inherited the best post-pandemic economy in the world and he destroyed it in a year.
One thing I think abt a lot: Just imagine how well the economy would be doing if Trump hadn’t spent all of last year trashing the great economy he inherited? Tariffs, huge govt layoffs, slashing research/medical/science spending, torturing US cities with immigration raids. Economy would be humming!
Peter Navarro: "It's the perfect Trump economy in 2026 ... we're seeing stock market over $50,000"
February 16, 2026 at 2:05 AM
Donald Trump inherited the best post-pandemic economy in the world and he destroyed it in a year.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
Will it be national news? Will it cause performative outrage? Will he be censured?
Nope. Forgotten by tomorrow.
Nope. Forgotten by tomorrow.
February 16, 2026 at 1:19 AM
Will it be national news? Will it cause performative outrage? Will he be censured?
Nope. Forgotten by tomorrow.
Nope. Forgotten by tomorrow.
If you admitted during an interview that you were really good at your job but occasionally had hallucinations and there was nothing that could be done to stop them — you would remain unemployed.
OpenAI ”acknowledged in its own research that LLMs will always produce hallucinations due to fundamental mathematical constraints that cannot be solved through better engineering, marking a significant admission from one of the AI industry’s leading companies.”
You can’t trust chatbots.
You can’t trust chatbots.
OpenAI admits AI hallucinations are mathematically inevitable, not just engineering flaws
In a landmark study, OpenAI researchers reveal that large language models will always produce plausible but false outputs, even with perfect data, due to fundamental statistical and computational limi...
www.computerworld.com
February 15, 2026 at 11:40 PM
If you admitted during an interview that you were really good at your job but occasionally had hallucinations and there was nothing that could be done to stop them — you would remain unemployed.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
Hey everyone. Potentially the biggest story in the country, right here. substack.com/home/post/p-...
February 15, 2026 at 8:39 PM
Hey everyone. Potentially the biggest story in the country, right here. substack.com/home/post/p-...
Reposted by Ben Dillon
People abroad don't seem to comprehend that being a US citizen doesn't protect you from ICE.
This is an ethnic cleansing campaign, which I don't think people can wrap their heads around.
This is an ethnic cleansing campaign, which I don't think people can wrap their heads around.
PBS News Hour: U.S. citizens detained by immigration agents describe how they were treated.
Watch the segment here www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMgC...
I'm clipping transcripts of the citizens speaking in this thread 1/3
Watch the segment here www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMgC...
I'm clipping transcripts of the citizens speaking in this thread 1/3
February 15, 2026 at 9:46 PM
People abroad don't seem to comprehend that being a US citizen doesn't protect you from ICE.
This is an ethnic cleansing campaign, which I don't think people can wrap their heads around.
This is an ethnic cleansing campaign, which I don't think people can wrap their heads around.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
Musk's role in shutting down USAID was a crime against humanity that will cause millions of preventable deaths from disease and starvation. Supervillain doesn't even begin to describe his malevolence.
Musk is a malevolent force in American life, driven by white nationalism and incredibly influential given his obscene wealth. He's a supervillain.
But people get that. He's deeply unpopular, with an approval rating in the mid-30s with Trump. We just need political leaders willing to take him on.
But people get that. He's deeply unpopular, with an approval rating in the mid-30s with Trump. We just need political leaders willing to take him on.
We must speak plainly about the agenda Elon Musk & other MAGA leaders are pushing. It’s white nationalism.
There’s no room for Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, Native, Jewish or all other Americans in Musk’s monocultural vision.
Multiculturalism is superior. We can’t allow Musk & others to end it.
There’s no room for Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, Native, Jewish or all other Americans in Musk’s monocultural vision.
Multiculturalism is superior. We can’t allow Musk & others to end it.
February 15, 2026 at 9:29 PM
Musk's role in shutting down USAID was a crime against humanity that will cause millions of preventable deaths from disease and starvation. Supervillain doesn't even begin to describe his malevolence.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
What’s so weird about men in power is how when they face scandal and should step down the world acts like no one else can do their jobs. Bottstein, Wasserman, these aren’t irreplaceable men! Stop with this delusion.
February 15, 2026 at 7:33 PM
What’s so weird about men in power is how when they face scandal and should step down the world acts like no one else can do their jobs. Bottstein, Wasserman, these aren’t irreplaceable men! Stop with this delusion.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
This was the exact opposite under Biden, where the US economy was dramatically outperforming the rest of the world
The Dow was at 43,488 when Trump took office. It just hit 50,000.
So if you had invested $43,488 in the US, you would now have $50,000. But if you had invested the same amount in the rest of the world, you would now be worth $60,000.
Lemme do a expla-youtube-nation
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYL5...
So if you had invested $43,488 in the US, you would now have $50,000. But if you had invested the same amount in the rest of the world, you would now be worth $60,000.
Lemme do a expla-youtube-nation
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYL5...
"Dow 50,000" Sound Nice. Until Justin Wolfers Shows You That U.S. Markets Are Coming 21st Out of 23.
What does “Dow 50,000” actually tell you—anything about the economy, or just that a number got bigger?
Dow 50,000 is a milestone, not a measurement. The level of the Dow is basically arbitrary: it’s…
www.youtube.com
February 15, 2026 at 7:21 PM
This was the exact opposite under Biden, where the US economy was dramatically outperforming the rest of the world
Massive is tougher on Donald Trump’s administration than Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries.
Massie: "Donald Trump told us that even though he had dinner with these people in NYC and West Palm Beach, that he would be transparent. But he's not. He's still in with the Epstein class. This is the Epstein administration."
February 15, 2026 at 7:37 PM
Massive is tougher on Donald Trump’s administration than Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
We don't talk about it this way, but the US government's choice to pursue austerity in the 2010s was a truly monstrous crime -- yet another crime for which none of the guilty elites paid any penalty at all, not even reputational.
The Struggle for the Fed | Trevor Jackson
The Fed is under attack. Can it be both protected and held accountable?
www.nybooks.com
February 15, 2026 at 6:50 PM
We don't talk about it this way, but the US government's choice to pursue austerity in the 2010s was a truly monstrous crime -- yet another crime for which none of the guilty elites paid any penalty at all, not even reputational.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
It's unchartered, but we can see the terrain: the territory ahead includes masked secret police taking people to concentration camps but not new vaccines. That's our reward for a system in which fewer than 20 people, all of them deranged and malicious, control over $3 trillion.
The pace at which US wealth concentration is rising is simply staggering
The concentration of AI wealth into the hands of a few tech barons + plutocratic capture ==> unchartered territory
The concentration of AI wealth into the hands of a few tech barons + plutocratic capture ==> unchartered territory
February 15, 2026 at 3:19 PM
It's unchartered, but we can see the terrain: the territory ahead includes masked secret police taking people to concentration camps but not new vaccines. That's our reward for a system in which fewer than 20 people, all of them deranged and malicious, control over $3 trillion.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
We measure the economy in Cava bribe bags now.
Peter Navarro: "It's the perfect Trump economy in 2026 ... we're seeing stock market over $50,000"
February 15, 2026 at 5:33 PM
We measure the economy in Cava bribe bags now.
Annie get your guns.
For the record I did not buy these but I did get this absolutely demented tank top for $6
February 15, 2026 at 5:31 PM
Annie get your guns.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
A chart from this week’s newsletter: Guess who’s footing the bill for the tariffs!
www.howtoreadthisch.art/may-your-lov...
www.howtoreadthisch.art/may-your-lov...
February 15, 2026 at 3:41 PM
A chart from this week’s newsletter: Guess who’s footing the bill for the tariffs!
www.howtoreadthisch.art/may-your-lov...
www.howtoreadthisch.art/may-your-lov...
These are the rankings of a crazy person to placate the mad king.
Peter Navarro: "The media's gotta take some responsibility here, and the Democrats. To the extent they keep bashing us irrespective of the data, that's gonna drag down confidence. Be real. Trump economy -- perfect. Best year since '98. We'll top that."
February 15, 2026 at 3:31 PM
These are the rankings of a crazy person to placate the mad king.
Seems like Democrats would be wise to highlight this gross corruption *before* they are back in power so as to create momentum for the SCOTUS *reform and expansion* that must happen.
This is a huge glaring issue right now. Courts generally ARE doing fairly well, even including significant number of Trump appointees. The corruption is concentrated in scotus.
Our court system is largely working, with the exception of the most important court
February 15, 2026 at 2:22 PM
Seems like Democrats would be wise to highlight this gross corruption *before* they are back in power so as to create momentum for the SCOTUS *reform and expansion* that must happen.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
This is a huge glaring issue right now. Courts generally ARE doing fairly well, even including significant number of Trump appointees. The corruption is concentrated in scotus.
Our court system is largely working, with the exception of the most important court
Courts have ruled 4,400 times that ICE jailed people illegally. It hasn’t stopped.
www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
February 15, 2026 at 2:18 PM
This is a huge glaring issue right now. Courts generally ARE doing fairly well, even including significant number of Trump appointees. The corruption is concentrated in scotus.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
Southcom strikes which illegally kill people on boats in the Carribean that three months ago elicited shocked headlines in US news media are now being reported in low priority spaces buried deep in news outlet websites.
Normalisation of what are in effect US military death squads.
Normalisation of what are in effect US military death squads.
February 15, 2026 at 10:28 AM
Southcom strikes which illegally kill people on boats in the Carribean that three months ago elicited shocked headlines in US news media are now being reported in low priority spaces buried deep in news outlet websites.
Normalisation of what are in effect US military death squads.
Normalisation of what are in effect US military death squads.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
Everyone in the world comes to get married at the NYC Marriage Bureau. Last week, the Mayor stopped by to officiate a few of those ceremonies.
Thank you to all the couples who shared their joy with us. Happy Valentine's Day, New York.
Watch the full video at Youtube.com/nycmayorsoffice
Thank you to all the couples who shared their joy with us. Happy Valentine's Day, New York.
Watch the full video at Youtube.com/nycmayorsoffice
February 14, 2026 at 4:09 PM
Everyone in the world comes to get married at the NYC Marriage Bureau. Last week, the Mayor stopped by to officiate a few of those ceremonies.
Thank you to all the couples who shared their joy with us. Happy Valentine's Day, New York.
Watch the full video at Youtube.com/nycmayorsoffice
Thank you to all the couples who shared their joy with us. Happy Valentine's Day, New York.
Watch the full video at Youtube.com/nycmayorsoffice
Reposted by Ben Dillon
Pleading with people to understand the scope of this.
It won’t just be for immigrants.
They will use these camps to detain anyone they deem as an “other”.
The disabled. The homeless. Trans people. Political dissidents.
Your tax dollars will be spent incarcerating people without due process.
It won’t just be for immigrants.
They will use these camps to detain anyone they deem as an “other”.
The disabled. The homeless. Trans people. Political dissidents.
Your tax dollars will be spent incarcerating people without due process.
Breaking news: ICE expects to spend $38.3 billion on its plan to acquire warehouses across the U.S. and retrofit them into immigrant detention centers that can hold tens of thousands of people, according to agency documents.
ICE plans to spend $38.3 billion turning warehouses into detention centers
ICE plans to spend $38.3 billion converting warehouses into detention centers, according to planning documents, more than the annual budgets of 22 states.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 14, 2026 at 5:55 AM
Pleading with people to understand the scope of this.
It won’t just be for immigrants.
They will use these camps to detain anyone they deem as an “other”.
The disabled. The homeless. Trans people. Political dissidents.
Your tax dollars will be spent incarcerating people without due process.
It won’t just be for immigrants.
They will use these camps to detain anyone they deem as an “other”.
The disabled. The homeless. Trans people. Political dissidents.
Your tax dollars will be spent incarcerating people without due process.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
They think of “urban” as synonymous with Black and that explains a good deal of the invalidation of urban spaces as “real America”
February 15, 2026 at 12:21 AM
They think of “urban” as synonymous with Black and that explains a good deal of the invalidation of urban spaces as “real America”
Reposted by Ben Dillon
Stratton: “there’s nothing that I’m going to say today that I can think of that I agree with Donald Trump on.”
that's what I want to hear.
kelly and Krishnamoorthi both found bullshit things to agree with trump on that they shouldn't agree with trump on.
that's what I want to hear.
kelly and Krishnamoorthi both found bullshit things to agree with trump on that they shouldn't agree with trump on.
stratton is also the only candidate saying she won't support Chuck Schumer for majority leader. which I find pretty appealing. www.stlpr.org/government-p...
Lt. Gov. Stratton goes on attack in debate against U.S. Reps. Kelly, Krishnamoorthi
The Chicago Sun-Times, WBEZ and the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics and International House hosted the first live-broadcast debate of the biggest race on the March 17 ballot.
www.stlpr.org
February 14, 2026 at 8:07 PM
Stratton: “there’s nothing that I’m going to say today that I can think of that I agree with Donald Trump on.”
that's what I want to hear.
kelly and Krishnamoorthi both found bullshit things to agree with trump on that they shouldn't agree with trump on.
that's what I want to hear.
kelly and Krishnamoorthi both found bullshit things to agree with trump on that they shouldn't agree with trump on.
Reposted by Ben Dillon
The commander in chief telling troops who they have to vote for is itself a presidency ending impeachable scandal.
February 14, 2026 at 4:12 PM
The commander in chief telling troops who they have to vote for is itself a presidency ending impeachable scandal.