Russ Silva
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russellsilva.bsky.social
Russ Silva
@russellsilva.bsky.social
Bret was one of the "renegades" of "Meet the Renegades of the Intellectual Dark Web" by Bari Weiss. New York Times, 2018.
If you want to get rid of some incriminating documents you don't want anyone to see, the best course of action is to hide them on the top floors of the most famous twin towers in the world and hit them with two hijacked passenger planes.
February 19, 2026 at 2:02 AM
Wrote a new campaign jingle for Platner.

🎶 Vote Blue No Matter Who 🎶
🎶 Even if He Has a Nazi Tattoo 🎶
🎶 Platner 2026! 🎶
February 18, 2026 at 11:26 PM
Reposted by Russ Silva
“I don’t want to be in this place I want to go to my school.”

- 7 year old imprisoned by ICE for 70 days in a concentration camp in Texas.

Today, after @propublica.org published this story, the camp was raided to confiscate letters from the children.

www.propublica.org/article/ice-...
February 17, 2026 at 7:31 PM
Reposted by Russ Silva
I just did the dumbest thing of my entire career to prove a much more serious point.

I tricked ChatGPT and Google, and made them tell other users I’m a competitive hot-dog-eating world champion

People are using this trick on a massive scale to make AI tell you lies. I’ll explain how I did it
February 18, 2026 at 4:37 PM
Reposted by Russ Silva
📍 𝐃𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐘, 𝐓𝐗:

A 2-month-old baby reportedly suffering from bronchitis was deported to Mexico with his family after weeks in a Texas immigration detention center, according to a member of Congress, even after the infant had been hospitalized for respiratory symptoms. #AbuseOfPowerWatch
2-Month-Old Reportedly Suffering from Bronchitis Deported to Mexico After Weeks at Texas Detention Center
A 2-month-old baby reportedly suffering from bronchitis was deported to Mexico after three weeks at a Texas detention center, Congressman Joaquin Castro said.
people.com
February 18, 2026 at 3:03 PM
So many examples put forth as exemplars of LLM utility are just so strikingly unimpressive. "I asked it how long an unheated house would have before the pipes would freeze, and it gave me an answer I don't trust." Unimpressive!
And of course, the tell is always when they're asked 'well, what do you think are the use cases we're missing' and the answer is inevitably identical to whatever the worst chuds are promoting it for
February 18, 2026 at 9:02 AM
It's a mistake to make inferences about LLM capabilities using heuristics derived from observations of human capabilities. Knowledge in the form of "if a human can do A, they can also do B" can't be used to evaluate LLMs.
February 18, 2026 at 8:43 AM
Reposted by Russ Silva
We are laser-focused on tracking them down, holding ICE accountable for this monstrous action, demanding specific details on their whereabouts and wellbeing, and ensuring their safety.
February 18, 2026 at 12:49 AM
Reposted by Russ Silva
To unnecessarily deport a sick baby and his entire family is heinous. My staff and I are in contact with Juan’s family.
February 18, 2026 at 12:49 AM
Reposted by Russ Silva
After a discussion with their attorney, I have confirmed that Juan, his 16-month-old sister, his mom, and his dad have been deported.
February 18, 2026 at 12:49 AM
Yup. President Coolidge's son Calvin Jr. died from a blister he got playing tennis at age 16.
February 17, 2026 at 11:00 PM
Basically just a murder conspiracy if the government is going to shoot a guy and then refuse to cooperate with a state investigation into the killing
February 17, 2026 at 10:40 PM
Heartbreaking and totally unacceptable.

open.substack.com/pub/migranti...
ICE's Youngest Prisoner
Two-month-old Juan Nicolás has spent half his life inside America’s largest family detention center. When he got sick, the doctor was gone.
open.substack.com
February 17, 2026 at 8:02 PM
Reposted by Russ Silva
How is @jeffreygoldberg.bsky.social and @adriennelaf.bsky.social's version of the Atlantic functionally any better than Fox News or The Federalist?

It's actually much, much worse, because those more-explicit propaganda organs aren't pretending. to be serious, so they're not luring normies.
Believe it or not, I’ve discovered an even worse version of the “liberals are responsible of racism” argument.
February 17, 2026 at 1:44 PM
Grotesque.
Wrote for @theglobeandmail.com:
I spent months hearing from African survivors of Myanmar scam camps, where trafficking victims are forced to run scams targeting westerners. Chinese criminals & at least one pro-junta militia cooperate to dish out horrific abuse against migrants to ensure compliance.
Africans are being confined and beaten in scam camps in Myanmar
Migrants toil for long hours on social-media platforms, targeting people with crypto and romance scams
www.theglobeandmail.com
February 17, 2026 at 6:52 AM
An important principle to remember.
agree with this (hah) but also think a particular mistake the left made for a long time online, and still makes to an extent, is failing to understand that the person whose mind you may actually change is the one reading the argument you're having, not the one you're arguing with
The secret to engaging in social media debate is knowing you will never win anyone over. The best you can hope for is to have people who already agree with tell you you're awesome. You might great a dopamine thrill from the righteousness of your anger! Fine benefits, all. But you will never win.
February 17, 2026 at 1:23 AM
Reposted by Russ Silva
BREAKING NEWS: We just submitted a court filing challenging excessive use of force by federal agents at Portland ICE facility. #orpol
February 16, 2026 at 10:35 PM
Reposted by Russ Silva
I don't think I've ever seen gears shift this fast before.
February 15, 2026 at 9:50 PM
Vile
We cannot separate the history of the nation from the history of slavery.

George Washington was an enslaver. As President he brought enslaved people to Philadelphia, and rotated them out to evade a Pennsylvania law that promised emancipation after six months in the state. /1
February 16, 2026 at 6:25 PM
Reposted by Russ Silva
A New York Times op-ed last week boasted libertarians "told you so" about Trump.

But it was only a few, since politically exiled, who saw Trump's rise and said: “You know what? I think he and a lot of his followers mean it with the racism, violence and fascism.”

(new @ms.now column)
Opinion | Libertarians warned about executive power. Only a few actually warned about Trump.
Anthony L. Fisher: A recent New York Times op-ed showed the blind spot many libertarians still have for President Donald Trump.
www.ms.now
February 16, 2026 at 2:43 PM
Reposted by Russ Silva
transphobes don't actually have opinions on science, they just think they're so enlightened that their beliefs must be inherently scientific
"Biology is deeply important to me!"

- Transphobe who hasn't bothered to learn basic biological facts of the topic they're opining on
March 31, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Reposted by Russ Silva
Like, when you argue against most public figures, you are implicitly arguing with their organization and/or fanbase. When you argue with Brianna Wu you're arguing with literally just a single annoying and unintelligent person.
June 6, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Reposted by Russ Silva
To my knowledge, Brianna Wu neither has a real job in politics nor does she have any significant fanbase. She has name recognition but is otherwise a nobody. Is there any point to talking about her?
June 6, 2025 at 5:51 PM