Charles R. Miller
@charlesmiller.bsky.social
The economy is downstream from the natural world.
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
Via Anna Barrett: The Alabama Senate Tuesday approved a bill that would prohibit the state from having stricter environmental regulations than the federal government. Democrats said the bill would leave the state vulnerable as the Trump administration weakens protections. https://ow.ly/ZYob50Y8xSZ
February 4, 2026 at 1:05 PM
Via Anna Barrett: The Alabama Senate Tuesday approved a bill that would prohibit the state from having stricter environmental regulations than the federal government. Democrats said the bill would leave the state vulnerable as the Trump administration weakens protections. https://ow.ly/ZYob50Y8xSZ
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
happy #sturgeonsaturday yall 🧪👩🏻🔬 🌎
Did ya know that during winter sturgeon do a thing i call cuddle puddle? they find a deep hole to overwinter in & hang out cuddle puddling until spring! we are working to identify & protect these areas now
support the sturgies, get a sticker: tinyurl.com/2fjnxy7w
Did ya know that during winter sturgeon do a thing i call cuddle puddle? they find a deep hole to overwinter in & hang out cuddle puddling until spring! we are working to identify & protect these areas now
support the sturgies, get a sticker: tinyurl.com/2fjnxy7w
January 31, 2026 at 6:45 PM
happy #sturgeonsaturday yall 🧪👩🏻🔬 🌎
Did ya know that during winter sturgeon do a thing i call cuddle puddle? they find a deep hole to overwinter in & hang out cuddle puddling until spring! we are working to identify & protect these areas now
support the sturgies, get a sticker: tinyurl.com/2fjnxy7w
Did ya know that during winter sturgeon do a thing i call cuddle puddle? they find a deep hole to overwinter in & hang out cuddle puddling until spring! we are working to identify & protect these areas now
support the sturgies, get a sticker: tinyurl.com/2fjnxy7w
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
My column from Monday. Alabama politicians give voters little but paranoia and niche right-wing issues, which may be why just 37% of voters turned up for the last midterm in 2022. Those politicians who truly want to make a government for Alabama have to restore Alabamians’ faith in the process.
A better Alabama government requires a bigger Alabama electorate | Alabama Reflector
What Alabama voters want is not necessarily what Alabamians want. Because in state elections, most Alabamians don't vote.
alabamareflector.com
January 31, 2026 at 3:25 PM
My column from Monday. Alabama politicians give voters little but paranoia and niche right-wing issues, which may be why just 37% of voters turned up for the last midterm in 2022. Those politicians who truly want to make a government for Alabama have to restore Alabamians’ faith in the process.
Some of our friends fighting the hyperscale data center in Bessemer were in the NYT: www.nytimes.com/2026/01/25/u...
Trump Pushes A.I. Data Centers, but the G.O.P. Is Cool to One in Alabama
www.nytimes.com
January 31, 2026 at 1:45 PM
Some of our friends fighting the hyperscale data center in Bessemer were in the NYT: www.nytimes.com/2026/01/25/u...
"Nach Auschwitz ein Gedicht zu schreiben, ist barbarisch"
January 27, 2026 at 2:49 PM
"Nach Auschwitz ein Gedicht zu schreiben, ist barbarisch"
BWorks is one of the best things about St. Louis!
Great news for homegrown nonprofit @stlbworks.bsky.social -- and for neighbors in Shaw, who are getting a great neighbor after a local congregation/food pantry depart. A win-win-win www.stlmag.com/news/stl-bwo...
STL BWorks is ready to close on its new home: A church on South Grand
A bicycling nonprofit is pedaling back to where it began, with plans to purchase a building of its own for the first time in its 41-year history. STL BWorks, which offers free youth classes in bicycle...
www.stlmag.com
January 26, 2026 at 11:39 PM
BWorks is one of the best things about St. Louis!
Honestly, it is an insult if you send me LLM output. Also an insult if you send your AI zoom listener to a zoom meeting in your stead. Microsoft and Google are forcing this stuff on me too much as it is, I don't need human beings joining in on it.
I fear for the legal academy if we let our colleagues suggest that we allow math to substitute for our own reasoned judgment.
January 26, 2026 at 10:30 PM
Honestly, it is an insult if you send me LLM output. Also an insult if you send your AI zoom listener to a zoom meeting in your stead. Microsoft and Google are forcing this stuff on me too much as it is, I don't need human beings joining in on it.
Depending on the procedurally generated output of probability machines seems like the very definition of arbitrary and capricious.
NEW: The Trump administration is planning to use AI to write federal regulations despite the risk of hallucinations.
“We don't even need a very good rule,” the Transportation Department’s top lawyer said of the plan, per meeting notes reviewed by ProPublica. “We want good enough.”🧵
“We don't even need a very good rule,” the Transportation Department’s top lawyer said of the plan, per meeting notes reviewed by ProPublica. “We want good enough.”🧵
January 26, 2026 at 6:00 PM
Depending on the procedurally generated output of probability machines seems like the very definition of arbitrary and capricious.
I remember one of the most mind-blowing things I read about during law school was the Insular Cases. SCOTUS just took on whole cloth a bunch of racist arguments from HLR articles and invented a new form of territory.
The thing is that the liberal rules-based international order made this kind of thing illegal. Certainly, it's true that this order was also established on terms favoring the now-rich countries, bargained in the shadow of events like this.
January 18, 2026 at 10:06 PM
I remember one of the most mind-blowing things I read about during law school was the Insular Cases. SCOTUS just took on whole cloth a bunch of racist arguments from HLR articles and invented a new form of territory.
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
🧵 Trump administration AI policy is widely described as deregulatory. This description is misleading. What's happening is not the absence of governance but its rearrangement--intensive state intervention operating through mechanisms we don't typically call regulation. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
The mirage of AI deregulation
One of the most interventionist approaches to technology governance in the United States in a generation has cloaked itself in the language of deregulation. In early December 2025, President Donald Tr...
www.science.org
January 15, 2026 at 7:23 PM
🧵 Trump administration AI policy is widely described as deregulatory. This description is misleading. What's happening is not the absence of governance but its rearrangement--intensive state intervention operating through mechanisms we don't typically call regulation. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
New analysis out today from Rhodium Group showing data centres were one of the major drivers of the first rise in total economy-wide emissions in the US in years
Uncontrolled growth of demand has helped boost coal growth, in conjunction with the LNG export boom ->
rhg.com/research/us-...
Uncontrolled growth of demand has helped boost coal growth, in conjunction with the LNG export boom ->
rhg.com/research/us-...
January 13, 2026 at 3:32 PM
New analysis out today from Rhodium Group showing data centres were one of the major drivers of the first rise in total economy-wide emissions in the US in years
Uncontrolled growth of demand has helped boost coal growth, in conjunction with the LNG export boom ->
rhg.com/research/us-...
Uncontrolled growth of demand has helped boost coal growth, in conjunction with the LNG export boom ->
rhg.com/research/us-...
Y'all can read the official statement in the article, but just know that my first reaction isn't fit to print. Unbelievable levels of arrogance for a city council to give residents the run-around for a year, then come right back and subject them to it again. 🤬
The developer of a $14.5 billion hyperscale data center in Alabama is requesting the rezoning of an additional 900 acres, more than doubling the expected footprint of the massive project. Full story from @insideclimatenews.org: insideclimatenews.org/news/1401202...
Bessemer Data Center Developer to Request Rezoning for Additional 900 Acres - Inside Climate News
The city’s attorney informed council members of the request on Tuesday, warning that there may be media scrutiny.
insideclimatenews.org
January 15, 2026 at 12:07 AM
Y'all can read the official statement in the article, but just know that my first reaction isn't fit to print. Unbelievable levels of arrogance for a city council to give residents the run-around for a year, then come right back and subject them to it again. 🤬
Feels like I should be offended that someone who works at a tailoring company added me on linkedin immediately after I appeared on a public broadcast in a suit jacket.
January 13, 2026 at 8:56 PM
Feels like I should be offended that someone who works at a tailoring company added me on linkedin immediately after I appeared on a public broadcast in a suit jacket.
This is an almost comically on-the-nose example of why "cost-benefit analysis" ain't all it's cracked up to be, and is, in many cases, just politics dressed up as objectivity.
The Environmental Protection Agency is going to stop considering the economic benefits of reducing asthma, heart disease and premature deaths as it repeals limits on air pollutants like mercury, soot and smog, according to reports:
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/c... 1/
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/c... 1/
E.P.A. to Stop Considering Lives Saved When Setting Rules on Air Pollution
www.nytimes.com
January 13, 2026 at 1:30 AM
This is an almost comically on-the-nose example of why "cost-benefit analysis" ain't all it's cracked up to be, and is, in many cases, just politics dressed up as objectivity.
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
Northern flicker
Watercolour, gel pen, sharpie
Watercolour, gel pen, sharpie
December 26, 2025 at 12:11 AM
Northern flicker
Watercolour, gel pen, sharpie
Watercolour, gel pen, sharpie
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
Cleo King said he prays about every vote he takes as a city councilor in Bessemer, Alabama. Here's what he said about his vote against a massive data center. New from
@insideclimatenews.org. Full story: insideclimatenews.org/news/1811202...
@insideclimatenews.org. Full story: insideclimatenews.org/news/1811202...
November 19, 2025 at 12:53 AM
Cleo King said he prays about every vote he takes as a city councilor in Bessemer, Alabama. Here's what he said about his vote against a massive data center. New from
@insideclimatenews.org. Full story: insideclimatenews.org/news/1811202...
@insideclimatenews.org. Full story: insideclimatenews.org/news/1811202...
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
Via Lee Hedgepeth, Dennis Pillion & Inside Climate News: With the Bessemer City Council scheduled to vote Tuesday on a “hyperscale” data center, challenges from an environmental group and the Alabama Department of Transportation present potential obstacles for the project. https://ow.ly/YQAk50XrPy6
November 16, 2025 at 1:05 PM
Via Lee Hedgepeth, Dennis Pillion & Inside Climate News: With the Bessemer City Council scheduled to vote Tuesday on a “hyperscale” data center, challenges from an environmental group and the Alabama Department of Transportation present potential obstacles for the project. https://ow.ly/YQAk50XrPy6
via @biologicaldiversity.org, "Petition Seeks Endangered Species Protection for Imperiled Alabama Fish" biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press...
November 16, 2025 at 2:37 PM
via @biologicaldiversity.org, "Petition Seeks Endangered Species Protection for Imperiled Alabama Fish" biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press...
Saw some cool canids today in Chattanooga -- endangered Red Wolves
October 11, 2025 at 3:17 AM
Saw some cool canids today in Chattanooga -- endangered Red Wolves
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
Russ does not *have* to do any of this. Because he is in fact not *authorized* to do any of this.
Johnson: "Russ does this reluctantly. He takes no pleasure in this. Russ has to sit down and decide which policies, personnel, & programs are essential & which are not. That's not a fun task and he's not enjoying that responsibility...if they keep the govt closed, it's gonna get more & more painful"
October 2, 2025 at 5:44 PM
Russ does not *have* to do any of this. Because he is in fact not *authorized* to do any of this.
The most important thing I learned in law school was to scrub your own metadata, and look for others' metadata on documents.
September 26, 2025 at 6:55 PM
The most important thing I learned in law school was to scrub your own metadata, and look for others' metadata on documents.
Feel like this should come with a warning label, specifically for @jamesgoodwin.bsky.social
www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a...
www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a...
Can Liberalism Be Saved?
The legal scholar Cass Sunstein argues for a more expansive definition of an ideology under threat.
www.newyorker.com
September 23, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Feel like this should come with a warning label, specifically for @jamesgoodwin.bsky.social
www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a...
www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a...
Saw something a while back that was a good line, and felt compelled to add to it slightly
You can cave and feel regret, or fight and feel good about yourself, even if you lose. Plus, every second spent making folks do it the hard way is time they're not screwing someone else over.
You can cave and feel regret, or fight and feel good about yourself, even if you lose. Plus, every second spent making folks do it the hard way is time they're not screwing someone else over.
September 18, 2025 at 12:21 AM
Saw something a while back that was a good line, and felt compelled to add to it slightly
You can cave and feel regret, or fight and feel good about yourself, even if you lose. Plus, every second spent making folks do it the hard way is time they're not screwing someone else over.
You can cave and feel regret, or fight and feel good about yourself, even if you lose. Plus, every second spent making folks do it the hard way is time they're not screwing someone else over.
Reposted by Charles R. Miller
Did you know the House is poised to pass a bill putting our drinking water and wildlife at risk of even more pesticides and toxic discharges?
🚨 Tell your representative to vote NO on the PERMIT Act! 🚨
🚨 Tell your representative to vote NO on the PERMIT Act! 🚨
September 16, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Did you know the House is poised to pass a bill putting our drinking water and wildlife at risk of even more pesticides and toxic discharges?
🚨 Tell your representative to vote NO on the PERMIT Act! 🚨
🚨 Tell your representative to vote NO on the PERMIT Act! 🚨
I've worked 2nd shift, had some friends who worked night-shift. Blew my mind that WHO considers long-term night-shift work a contributing risk factor for cancer.
Requiring that of workers who produce one of the most basic inputs for human civilization seems like an incredibly dire warning.
Requiring that of workers who produce one of the most basic inputs for human civilization seems like an incredibly dire warning.
The Night Shift.
With extreme heat making it perilous to work during the day, farmers and fisherfolk worldwide are adopting overnight hours. That comes with new dangers.
grist.org/food-and-agr...
#Heat #India #Agriculture #Food #Climate #Environment #Farms #Farming #Night
With extreme heat making it perilous to work during the day, farmers and fisherfolk worldwide are adopting overnight hours. That comes with new dangers.
grist.org/food-and-agr...
#Heat #India #Agriculture #Food #Climate #Environment #Farms #Farming #Night
Extreme heat is forcing farmers to work overnight, an adaptation that comes with a cost
Farmers and fisherfolk across the world are shifting into nighttime work to escape perilous heat.
grist.org
September 11, 2025 at 11:10 AM
I've worked 2nd shift, had some friends who worked night-shift. Blew my mind that WHO considers long-term night-shift work a contributing risk factor for cancer.
Requiring that of workers who produce one of the most basic inputs for human civilization seems like an incredibly dire warning.
Requiring that of workers who produce one of the most basic inputs for human civilization seems like an incredibly dire warning.