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sally-forth.bsky.social
saltwater sally
@sally-forth.bsky.social
450 followers 1.1K following 550 posts
Left Coaster, painfully awake. "Here we are, like mites on a plum" - Carl Sagan.
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sally-forth.bsky.social
saltwater sally @sally-forth.bsky.social · Nov 12
“Social change will not come to us like an avalanche .... Social change will come through seeds growing in well prepared soil--and it is we, like the earthworms, who prepare the soil. We also seed thoughts & knowledge & concern.” - Ursula Franklin
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laurieadkin.bsky.social
The Liberals and Conservatives keep reducing the numbers of immigrants and refugees they will admit to Canada while at the same time cutting foreign aid and promoting oil and gas exports that are fuelling the global climate crisis. 1/
November 11, 2025 at 2:03 AM
sally-forth.bsky.social
Smartest person in the room 👇
kwardvancouver.bsky.social karen ward @kwardvancouver.bsky.social · 11h
No, the Vancouver left parties will be preoccupied with internal debate about external issues and fail to offer voters a compelling narrative about the future we need and then thirty people will run for mayor.

campaigning on fear is to offer nothing at all, which is why reactionaries do it
November 11, 2025 at 2:18 AM
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jameswsthomson.com
Vancouver had 117 people die during the 2021 heat dome climate disaster.
November 11, 2025 at 1:49 AM
sally-forth.bsky.social
"As Canada and the world permit genocide and accelerate toward conflict, it is worth remembering that we can best pay our respect to the dead by challenging the inevitability of war."
November 11, 2025 at 1:58 AM
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davidakaye.bsky.social
there is no separation at all between trump admin governance & donald trump's personal/family greed & ambitions. this is in part why all discussion of admin "policy" that neglects this baseline fact is so hollow & naive, & mystifying that ppl still write about policy without this framing.
November 10, 2025 at 10:59 PM
sally-forth.bsky.social
wmo.int/news/media-c...
November 10, 2025 at 7:21 PM
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andyscollick.bsky.social
See
Carbon dioxide levels increase by record amount to new highs in 2024
wmo.int
November 10, 2025 at 6:06 PM
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kwardvancouver.bsky.social
42% of residents and 37% of businesses surveyed supported a 5% property tax increase in order to maintain the current level of services in the city of Vancouver

but wait there’s more

a lot more

1/?

council.vancouver.ca/20251112/doc...
Preferred Property Tax Scenarios (based on June 2025 direction) • Residents and businesses were asked about their preferences for property tax increases relative to service levels (reflecting 2026 Budget scenarios staff were directed to explore in June 2025). • Most respondents are supportive of some increase in property tax. Of the options presented, the most preferred was a “property tax increase of 5% that maintains the current level of City services” (42% residents, 37% businesses). • On October 8, 2025, Council provided direction for staff to move forward and prepare the 2026 Budget with a 0% property tax increase, while prioritizing core City services and maintaining community grants, library and community centre services. This direction is different than the budget scenarios suggested in 2026 Budget survey ey question preamble: “The City continues to face significant financial pressures related to overall rising costs, regional levies from Metro Vancouver and E-Comm 9-1-1, among many factors. As mentioned, property tax increases are one financial tool that the City can use to help address rising costs, balance the budget and maintain service levels. For the City to continue providing the same level of services, analysis by staff showed a 5% increase in property taxes would be needed due to cost pressures. In an effort to address affordability for residents and businesses, City Council asked staff to create three budget scenarios based on 0%, 1.5%, and 2.5% property tax increases. Property taxes are the City’s main source of revenue and help fund the services people rely on. For that reason, decisions about property tax rates and service levels are considered together during the budget process.”
November 10, 2025 at 5:25 PM
sally-forth.bsky.social
Grow a spine, not a pipeline @mark-carney.bsky.social
It's time to wind down fossil fuels and ramp up decarbonization.
November 10, 2025 at 6:04 PM
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thejuicemedia.com
So here's the favour I want to ask: if this post crosses your feed, please take this chance to support the Gitxsan and Gitanyow by watching our latest HGA and passing it on.

Help us put Ksi Lisims and PRGT on the map 🙏
Honest Government Ad | Watch out, Canada
YouTube video by thejuicemedia
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:28 AM
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angus.bsky.social
"I do actually think she's kind of pretty in a way, but I can just tell she's absolutely miserable to live with."
A 1947 black-and-white photographic portrait of the explorer Peter Freuchen and his wife, Dagmar. Peter is standing with his legs wide and his hands on his hips, an enormous man in an enormous gray fur coat. He is glaring at the camera, bearded, his hair sticking up. Dagmar is sitting with her legs crossed next to him, a small woman in a chic black outfit with pearls and a hat with a veil. She has a bored smirk on her face.
November 9, 2025 at 7:01 PM
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theresaganz.bsky.social
www.theresaganz.com

The thesis of my book Grand Illusion is that excesses of gold in architecture are a direct indication of despotism. As the White House festoons itself with golden doodads and proposes a gilded new ballroom, I think the thesis holds. Link in bio. 💛⚜️💛
Theresa Ganz
www.theresaganz.com
August 8, 2025 at 5:03 PM
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doctoralex.bsky.social
"Using Grok is like believing what your farting uncle says at Christmas" - Stewart Lee

Elon Musk’s AI chatbot is so drunkenly, transparently biased, it would be funny – but it's a mortal threat to democracy.

"Basically, Musk’s AI service has been programmed to be as much of an arsehole as he is."
Stewart Lee: Using Grok is like believing what your farting uncle says at Christmas
Elon Musk’s AI service is so drunkenly, transparently biased that it would be funny – if it weren’t a mortal threat to democracy
www.thenerve.news
November 9, 2025 at 5:56 AM
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lidsville.bsky.social
What on earth is this? Really? Guys, we just spent all year picking apart the whole concept of “abundance” (neoliberal deregulation & trickledown framed as some new source of prizes for us all). Now it’s touted by a group wanting to supply tools & messaging for many enviro groups?

Just say no.
November 9, 2025 at 2:34 AM
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ralfgrahn.bsky.social
Yuval Noah Harari: The land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea is big and rich enough to allow all its current inhabitants to live there in security, prosperity and dignity.
on.ft.com/3JA2q8t
Yuval Noah Harari: Only generosity can secure peace between Israelis and Palestinians
Both sides must abandon false moral certainties and oversimplified historical narratives if the cycle of violence is to be broken
on.ft.com
November 9, 2025 at 5:58 AM
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ketanjoshi.co
Something I've really noticed among institutional "responses" to generative technologies is that "DO NOT USE THIS TOOL, IT'S COMPLETELY INAPPROPRIATE" is fudamentally erased from any possibility of ever being an option

Often paired with fatalist stuff like "this isn't going away"
View Steve Little’s graphic link Steve LittleSteve Little • 2ndPremium • 2nd AI Program Director, National Genealogical Society; Founder/Owner: AI Genealogy Insights; United Methodist ClergyAI Program Director, National Genealogical Society; Founder/Owner: AI Genealogy Insights; United Methodist Clergy 1d • 1 day ago • Visible to anyone on or off LinkedIn Follow This spring, genealogists discovered a problem: new AI "photo restoration" tools and techniques using GPT-4o and Nano Banana don't actually "restore" historical images—they generate plausible new images that can permanently corrupt our historical record. The image below shows the issue. One is a historical photograph. The other is an AI-generated face based on that photograph—convincing, but completely fabricated. The man on the left is my grandfather; the man on the right is not. By August, when Google's Nano Banana made this technology instantly accessible to millions, unlabeled AI "restorations" began appearing throughout online family trees. Many were being treated as authentic historical photographs. Expert genealogists responded. The Coalition for Responsible AI in Genealogy—led by genealogists who deeply understand evidential standards and the Genealogical Proof Standard—developed practical guidelines to address this challenge. Today they released their statement: "Protecting Trust in Historical Images." Three core recommendations: 1. Always label modified images 2. Always cite the original source 3. Use as illustration, not evidence These aren't restrictive rules—they're practices that let us explore what these technologies offer while protecting the integrity of our shared historical record. As a technical advisor to the Coalition, I'm grateful to the expert genealogists who led this work and to our broader community for taking these challenges seriously. Read the full story of how the genealogy community identified and addressed this challenge: https://lnkd.in/eTgZtTW4 I’ve been privileged to serve as a technical advisor to the Coalition, but the real work here was done by genealogists who deeply understand evidential standards and the Genealogical Proof Standard. This statement reflects their expertise. The Coalition’s three core recommendations are simple and practical: Always Label modified images. Always Cite the original source. Use as Illustration, Not Evidence. For detailed guidance on implementing these recommendations, see the educational articles linked at the bottom of the statement. When we use AI tools—and many of us will—we're accountable for accuracy, transparency, and ethical practice. Our Responsibility These tools aren’t going away. As genealogists, our responsibility is clear: we must be the “humans in the loop.” When we use AI tools—and many of us will—we’re accountable for accuracy, transparency, and ethical practice. The Coalition’s guidelines help us meet that responsibility. They protect the integrity of our shared historical record while allowing us to explore what these technologies might offer.
November 8, 2025 at 10:15 PM
sally-forth.bsky.social
WaPo having a weak hissy fit. www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Opinion | Zohran Mamdani drops the mask
The mayor-elect divides New Yorkers into two groups: the oppressed and their oppressors.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 9, 2025 at 5:42 AM
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kwardvancouver.bsky.social
we kinda did tho
November 8, 2025 at 12:38 AM
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sethcotlar.bsky.social
Is this a reference to what Kristi Noem said to the family dog after shooting it in a gravel pit?
< Department of Homeland Security ★・FolloW 1d • Wake up. Get to work. Save America. ... ARE YOU GOING TO COWBOY UP OR JUST LAY THERE AND BLEED ? JOIN. ICE. GOV CBP. GOV/ CAREERS USCIS. GOV/JOIN
November 7, 2025 at 11:37 PM
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petergleick.bsky.social
New pressure to start a #water war with Mexico over water that simply isn't available, in part due to climate-change reductions in flows (not mentioned in the article).

www.texastribune.org/2025/11/07/t...
November 7, 2025 at 11:17 PM
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rickirobin.bsky.social
But on the plus side, this list leaves a lot of things still available to ruin
paulisci.bsky.social Paul Fairie @paulisci.bsky.social · 4d
A List of Things Said to Have Been Ruined by Women

🧵
November 8, 2025 at 12:32 AM
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paulisci.bsky.social
A List of Things Said to Have Been Ruined by Women

🧵
November 6, 2025 at 8:43 PM
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ssteingraber1.bsky.social
Let me debrief with you re: my tour of the fracked-up hell on earth known the Texas Permian Basin with Mexican legislators and the hearing a few weeks later in the Mexican Congress after which a fracking ban bill was introduced.

Doc short by @oilfieldwitness.bsky.social

youtu.be/fVmxaSfYpsk
Mexico wants to ban fracking - Oilfield Witness Recap
YouTube video by Oilfield Witness
youtu.be
November 7, 2025 at 11:48 PM
sally-forth.bsky.social
Reporters need to ask themselves "What is a man’s life worth if he isn’t an enemy of the White House?" www.villagevoice.com/in-1973-we-a...
www.villagevoice.com
November 7, 2025 at 5:14 AM
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gilduran.com
Please take a minute to scroll through this—and share it.
It's the story of our time.

The Authoritarian Stack: How Tech Billionaires Are Building a Post-Democratic American—And Why Europe Is Next.

www.authoritarian-stack.info
The Authoritarian Stack
How Tech Billionaires Are Building a Post-Democratic America — And Why Europe Is Next
www.authoritarian-stack.info
November 5, 2025 at 11:36 PM