“A man who police say conducted background checks for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies was recently arrested in a prostitution sting in Bloomington, Minn.” people.com/minnesota-man-backg…
Peter Mandelson—the former UK cabinet minister who was just sacked as Britain’s ambassador to the United States over newly revealed emails with Jeffrey Epstein—has found a novel way to avoid …
"AI is built on the collective knowledge of humankind."
No. Nononononono. It is not built on _knowledge_, it it built on _data_. And not everyone's experiences are available as data, many communities are excluded. Also: "Collective" implies some sort of collaboration and shared activity. But "AI" is just accumulation by a few powerful.
So No. It's not collective but extractive, not knowledge but data, not humankind but the hegemonic western view. Everything in that statement is wrong.
Seriously, this is going to be a short review, heck the super short version, go read, its funny. You want more? Ok, a new pony in town, Wayward Way told Twilight and Spike that Pinkie is an alien, and his logic is solid, we've all seen her do the impossible after all, from her Pinkie Sense to suddenly appearing without ever seeing her arrive. And when this is mentioned to Pinkie, she loves it, and doesn't deny it. Well, at least not yet, I'm only part way into chapter 2, but still, the author is on point with this, its hilarious, and can only get crazier.
Yeah, if you're familiar with Pinkie Pie, you know this can only get more ridiculous as things go on.
Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino has been sent back to the border after making himself the Nazi scum face of the Trump administration’s brutal efforts to purge this country of as many non-…
meaning behind the imagery in the Bad Bunny halftime show, yeah it's a long read, but so is the heavy fist of British style imperialism that never left the USA:
The show featured many symbols of Puerto Rican history and culture, as well as gestures to the broader Latino community, and a strong reframing of U.S. notions of what it means to be American. Here are some of the significant symbols and history lessons that were wrapped up in the show that you just might have missed.
Sugar Cane
The halftime show began with a wide shot of people working in sugar-cane fields before the camera panned down to Bad Bunny singing “Tití Me Preguntó” as he walked past people cutting cane with machetes. Sugar cane was the economic engine for many Caribbean countries in the 19th and early-20th centuries, including Puerto Rico. Sugar plantations have also long been symbols of the legacy of colonialism and slavery in the region. Enslaved Africans worked the sugar plantations until 1873, when Puerto Rico under Spanish colonial rule ended slavery. After the U.S. took over in 1898, U.S. sugar companies gobbled up Puerto Rican lands while reaping enormous profits off Puerto Rican labor and land. The laborers in the halftime show wore all-white clothes and straw “pava” hats, referencing the figure of the iconic Puerto Rican countryman, or jíbaro. Beginning the halftime show with sugar-cane fields and the agricultural laborers who harvested them both references a common image associated with rural Puerto Rican life, and nods to the history of colonialism that continues to impact life in the Caribbean.
Piragua Stand
As Bad Bunny walked through the sugar-cane fields during “Tití Me Preguntó,” he passed various scenes: friends at a coco frío stand, a group of older men playing dominoes, young women getting their nails done, and then a piragua (Puerto Rican shaved ice) stand where Benito is served the treat before he keeps walking. The piragua stand is an icon of Puerto Rican culture that signals community and nostalgia. Piragua stands can be found all over Puerto Rico and the diaspora. In piraguas, the shaved ice is usually topped with tropical flavored syrups that are displayed in glass bottles on the piragua cart. During Bad Bunny’s halftime performance, each glass bottle of piragua syrup on the cart featured a different flag, including Colombia, Spain, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. Besides the fact that the lyrics to “Tití Me Preguntó” reference women from each of those countries, the flags were yet another representation of Latino unity during the show.
Sapo Concho
On a screen above the halftime stage, viewers saw the animated character “Concho,” who is a key figure in Bad Bunny’s DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS short film and album. Concho is a sapo concho, a crested toad endemic to Puerto Rico that is now critically endangered due to invasive species and the rapid development that is destroying its habitat. Just days before DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS came out, Bad Bunny released a short film of the same name. That film featured Puerto Rican actor Jacobo Morales playing an elderly Bad Bunny who reminisces with his friend Concho as they looked through photos. At one point, Morales’ character heads to the center of town to purchase quesitos (a Puerto Rican puff-pastry roll filled with sweet cream cheese). He wanders down the street and encounters an American cashier trying to sell him cheese-less vegan quesitos. The short film, and the album as a whole, is a meditation on the dangers of gentrification that is rapidly transforming Puerto Rico. The endangered sapo concho is the perfect embodiment of the potential destruction of Puerto Rican life via U.S. colonialism and gentrification.
Casita
Bad Bunny performed several songs, including “Yo Perreo Sola,” “Safaera,” “Party,” and “Voy a Llevarte Pa’ PR” from the rooftop of the famed “Casita” (Spanish for “little house”). Bad Bunny fans were first introduced to the casita in the short film Debí Tirar Más Fotos. In the film, actor Jacobo Morales lives in a traditional cement house in the countryside of Puerto Rico. The house is very typical of the Puerto Rican midcentury homes that were built to better withstand hurricanes, in comparison with the much-older-style wooden homes. This home was pink, in the Puerto Rican tradition of painting homes a bright color, with shuttered windows and a carved wood door. These are the kinds of homes that are becoming less common with new development in Puerto Rico. Bad Bunny turned the casita into one of his stages during his 2025 “No Me Quiero Ir de Aquí” residency in San Juan. At the residency concerts, Bad Bunny performed on the porch and on the rooftop, bringing a different group of celebrity guests to the casita to party with him. On Super Bowl Sunday, the casita welcomed a host of important Latino celebrity guests such as Cardi B, Pedro Pascal, Young Miko, Karol G, and Jessica Alba.
El Morro
The portion of the halftime show that featured a wedding, plus Lady Gaga and Bad Bunny singing “Baile Inolvidable,” was a partial replica of Castillo San Felipe del Morro, more commonly known as El Morro. This 16th-century Spanish-built stone fort borders part of the coast of the historic areas of Puerto Rico’s capital city, San Juan. El Morro is now a national symbol of Puerto Rico so much so that it often appears on license plates, in addition to being a U.S. National Park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. One of the most iconic elements of El Morro are the small stone turrets, or garitas, that were used as shelter for soldiers who were on the lookout for enemy ships. A small garita was featured on the back right corner of the El Morro-inspired set.
Toñita
During Bad Bunny’s performance of Nuevayol, he took a shot given to him by Maria Antonia “Toñita” Cay, or Toñita, a pillar of the Puerto Rican community in New York City and a link between the island and its diaspora. In the lyrics for “Nuevayol,” Bad Bunny shouts her out, saying, “Un shot de cañita en casa de Toñita/PR se siente cerquita” (A shot of rum in Toñita’s house/Puerto Rico feels close). Toñita has run the Caribbean Social Club in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Williamsburg for more than 50 years. She has famously refused to sell her property, despite mass gentrification in the area. Given the issues Bad Bunny focuses on in DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, it makes sense that he shouts out Toñita as an example of how the Puerto Rican community looks out for one another.
Electric Poles
As Bad Bunny performed his political-party track “El Apagón,” viewers saw the same cane workers from the start of the show hanging from electric poles. “El Apagón” literally means “blackout.” The song talks about both Puerto Rican pride and the frustrations of dealing with the frequent blackouts that plague the country. The longest blackout in American history was the nearly yearlong blackout Puerto Rico suffered after Hurricane María. This was a result of Puerto Rico’s poorly maintained power grid, the severity of the storm, and massively inadequate and inhumane response by the U.S. government to the hurricane. The situation was so dire that many citizens taught themselves basic electrical skills and began risking their lives climbing electrical poles in order to begin reconnecting loose or damaged power lines and restoring power, sometimes to entire towns. This poignant moment in the show demonstrated the continuity between colonial exploitation of Puerto Ricans across centuries.
Flags of the Americas
At the end of the show, Bad Bunny shouted “God bless América!” and proceeded to list nearly every country in the Americas from Chile in the south to Canada in the north. Then, hordes of people carrying flags of every country and territory in the Americas surrounded him. This celebration of the Americas follows a long line of Latin musicians — including Panamanian Rubén Blades, Puerto Rican Residente, and Mexican group Los Tigres del Norte, among many others — who have written songs uniting the Americas against U.S. imperial interests. After listing all of the countries, Bad Bunny held out the football he carried off and on throughout the performance to the camera to show the words “Together we are America,” and said, “Seguimos aquí” (“We’re still here.”). The phrase “Seguimos aquí” comes from a poignant moment in his short film about gentrification in Puerto Rico, but in the context of the halftime show, the phrase took on a new meaning. This was a powerful rebuke to the exclusionary rhetoric coming from conservatives that Bad Bunny was not American enough to perform at the halftime show, and that Latinos in general are suspicious foreigners who aim to destroy “real American” ways of life. Instead, Bad Bunny proudly declared that America is much more than the United States, and that the United States would not be what it is without Latino and Caribbean immigrants.
Ricky Martin
For weeks people have wondered who Bad Bunny would bring out for the halftime show, with Cardi B as a clear frontrunner. Ricky Martin was another. Martin is familiar to U.S. mainstream audiences from his crossover in the late-Nineties Latin boom. At the time, Martin, already an established Latin pop star, began singing in English, and embodied a Latin-lover stereotype with songs like “Livin’ la Vida Loca” and “Shake Your Bon-Bon.” But at the Super Bowl, we saw a different Ricky: Not only did he sing in Spanish, but he also sang “Lo Que le Pasó a Hawaii,” arguably the most politicized song on DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS. The song itself is a call to arms that Puerto Ricans should hold onto their culture and their land in the face of rampant gentrification and displacement that stems from centuries of colonial rule. During Bad Bunny’s residency in Puerto Rico, a different guest sang this song every week. This was a full-circle moment: Rather than adapting to the tastes of mainstream U.S. for Latin-lover masculinity, Martin performed a Spanish-language defense of his homeland and a direct rebuke to the U.S.
Azul Clarito (Light Blue)
There were various touches of light blue during the halftime show, a color associated with Puerto Rican independence. One notable pop of light blue was Lady Gaga’s dress, which was adorned with the red flor de maga, the national flower of Puerto Rico. As the song “El Apagón” started, Bad Bunny emerged carrying a large Puerto Rican flag. Rather than the dark blue of the officially recognized Puerto Rican flag, Bad Bunny’s flag had a light-blue triangle, referencing the island’s original flag prior to U.S. takeover The U.S. later changed the shade of blue on the Puerto Rican flag to match that of the U.S. flag. As a territory of the United States, Puerto Rico has no sovereignty nor voting representation in the U.S. government. In this context, the azul clarito has become associated with movements advocating for Puerto Rican independence. On his song “La Mudanza,” Bad Bunny raps, “Aquí mataron gente por sacar la bandera/Por eso es que ahora yo la llevo dondequiera” (They killed people here for having the flag/That’s why now I take it with me everywhere). This references the Ley de la Mordaza, or Gag Law, which banned Puerto Ricans from having a Puerto Rican flag, let alone criticize colonialism, from 1948 to 1957. So, Bad Bunny clutching his flag with azul clarito on the halftime show set was a powerful anti-colonial statement.
Well, looks like things are going to work with Tello. Not sure I posted here about this, but about ten days ago I decided to try out Tello, a prepaid cellphone service, using my deceased husband's number, that way I can switch my work phone back to my old SIM and service if it didn't work as I can't afford to be without service because of my job. So, according to Verizon I use about 12G of data on a busy month, so I was going to get a Tello 15G plan, but it turned out the unlimited was only about 2$ more, so I went that route. According to Tello, last week, my first week with them, though only a 4 day workweek, I used 2G of data, right inline with expectations. Considering that the unlimited plan comes with 50G of high speed data, this means that Tello will work fine. I was worried that I might run into problems with it not being a prioritized VMO, but aside from a few errors on Tues that might've been software rather than a lack of data, I've seen no problems any where. So, the first step in cutting down my bills is a success, just a matter of deciding what phone number I want to stick with as I don't think I need two phone numbers. I will say the number I'm using on Tello is easier to remember than the one I currently have on Verizon, but switching to that would require changing my number in a lot of places, and I'm sure to forget and break something. Also saving won't be huge, not compared to what I pay through Verizon, having two lines, 5G home internet and one streaming service sounds like a lot at around 140$, but its really not that much because of discounts, internet for example will run at least 60$, 25$ for the phone and likely another 15$ or so for the streaming separately, and that's with one phone, if I had two, add 25$ to that. Still every bit is good, and I can likely drop the streaming, and maybe just use cellular internet? Have to figure out how much net I use here, not sure how to do that, but an unlimited data only plan might be a cheap solution.
Is it possible to share a link to posts I've made with a given tag? Over on Friendica we had categories, and I used that to provide a link to specific content on my blog to family so they didn't have to dig through all my posts and boosts. I was thinking of using tags like #••life and giving them a link to posts on my account using that tag, but I can't figure out how
Substack hosts swastika-laden Nazi accounts promoting white supremacism (theguardian.com/media/2026/feb…). If you're currently using Substack, you might want to switch to a more ethical alternative like Ghost.
Ghost is a Fediverse-compatible blog and newsletter platform, it runs on free open software and you can host it yourself or use a paid hosting service. More info:
If you don't want to get involved in technical language, you can use a managed hosting service like the ones I listed. They do all the installation and other techy stuff for you 🙂
The costs of managed hosting are quite low, generally about 5-10 euros a month including the actual hosting service plus them doing the techy stuff for you.
They charge monthly fees because they're hosting the site for you. Hosting sites costs money in maintenance, labour and electricity, so they do have to charge in order to make it a sustainable service.
The ghost documentation is some of the clearest technical documentation I’ve seen in my 25 years of managing IT “things.” That said - it’s technical documentation, and absolutely assumes that you have technical knowledge.
If it’s above someone’s current technical abilities to run and install something, that’s not a bad thing - but it does leave you with (roughly) two options:
Acquire technical knowledge. There are loads of people in the world that will happily help interested parties do this, assuming the interested parties are willing to learn and not just “do it for me.”
Pay a trusted service for their knowledge (hosting). There are loads of options there, from various cloud providers to paying an individual to host and manage on your owned hardware; each comes with varying degrees of cost vs. liability, but in all cases you’re paying for someone else’s time (both directly spent to manage your service and historically to learn how to do so).
I absolutely agree that, “just install ghost” has become the new, “just install Linux.”
I don't want it hosted on ghost. I want it hosted on my own server. I don't expect that to be free, I just need it to be something I can do without a compsci degree. And as long as it isn't, there's going to be a limit to uptake, and eventually someone will come along with a simple plug-and-play alternative
Okay then, let me rephrase. Ghost should not be any more complicated than wordpress, yet I can run the former but not the latter. That's a documentation issue. I've pretty much given up trying with Ghost at this point, after several attempts. It looks like a great idea, but it is impenetrable. If you don't build it for civilians, they won't come.
Ghost and WordPress have some overlap but they are intended for slightly different purposes.
Ghost and Substack are mainly aimed at journalists, writers and independent publications who sell access to their blogs and/or newsletters. It's like a sort of cross between a blog and a Patreon.
WordPress is a more general blogging and website platform, and not as geared towards selling subscriptions to publications.
You can do this on your own server if you use a managed hosting service.
That's how I run my own Mastodon and PeerTube, the hosting company does all the techy stuff for me and I pay them a monthly fee.
This is as simple as it gets, because the hosting company also fixes it if there's a bug and constantly updates it if there are new versions released, all without being asked.
@yogthos i always think of you when I read this since you have a substack. Are you considering leaving or do you have reasons not to switch? I dont assume its technical knowledge. 😉
CC @tayarndt as I follow her newsletter thing and she uses Substack for that, yeah no what the hell if platforms aren't getting rid of people who are actively promoting Nazi stuff and denying the Holocaust then screw those platforms. And to Taylor sorry I had to bring this to your attention but this is a big issue and I wasn't sure if you knew about this situation with Substack.
I'm not a creator on substack but I used to follow a few free accounts. I unsubscribed but I want to go further - ppl still link to substack in my TL and I was hoping to filter those mentions out. Filtering on substack.com doesn't seem to work - is there a technical reason that domain wouldn't be picked up or is it something else?
Ghost unfortunately has one huge issue: It is unable to use regular SMTP servers. They are actively blocking this feature because "google would block such sites"
The fact that I would not care if google blocks me does not interest anyone there, so I really can't recommend it if the dev team acts like that.
"Hamish McKenzie addressed its decision to host Nazi content ...Given that, we don’t think that censorship (including through demonetising publications) makes the problem go away – in fact, it makes it worse."
Naw Mate, actively supporting and boosting Nazis makes you a Nazi.
Yeah, I somehow doubt he was saying that in good faith.
Substack already bans accounts for obscenity/lewdness, but they allow holocaust-denying Nazi accounts to remain. So the claims of "free speech" were just an excuse to platform Nazis.
Time to make the breakfast sandwiches. Homemade as i'm not paying $6.99 for 4 sandwiches that are undoubtedly laced with sugar, salt and preservatives when i can make my own for just 83¢ each.
The oldest innovation in my system was thinking of the old pan i had kicking around my kitchen, its the same size as the bagels i use. The newest is the glass containers, no need to waste a paper towel every time i make one. Mind you, it'd be nice if'n 3qt containers existed, they'd take up less space in the freezer, but these 4qt work fine.
!
[media2]Yes, the sandwiches are stored upside down, they're reheated by replacing the lid with a plate, propping the container up slightly to vent, and microwaving for 45 to 50 seconds per side. With the bottom being thinner than the top, you want to finish upside down so it doesn't stick to the plate.
Anyone have any recommendations for a queer/trans friendly kendo or fencing club in Portland, OR? I'm interested in doing either (or, with infinite time, both) and now that I have more mobility, I can probably actually even get to one! Recommendations appreciated!
"Here’s a bit of bad news for all you ICE agents out there: we know who you are.
Sorry, guys. Wearing a mask to hide your membership in a government organization is like children covering their eyes so they can’t be found playing hide-and-seek."
"More than 2,000 years ago, the Greek philosopher Plato predicted ICE’s tactics. He knew, even then, that the character of a certain type of man or woman was corrupt and that anonymity would enable brutality. In short, he knew that ICE agents would want to wear masks not to protect themselves from danger, but rather to enable their immoral conduct."
"Former President Joe Biden stopped holding families [in the detention camp at Dilley, Texas] in 2021, arguing America shouldn’t be in the business of detaining children.
But quickly after returning to office, President Donald Trump resumed family detentions as part of his mass deportation campaign."
ProPublica went inside the immigrant detention center for families in Dilley, Texas. Children held there told us about the anguish of being ripped from their lives in the United States and the fear of what comes next.
Did you know that Bad Bunny has a nonprofit foundation called Good Bunny that empowers underserved children and youth in PR through music, arts, and sports?
Updated with new information, see end. Okay, here's a weird one. All of a sudden, it seems like our Windows PC's are unable to synchronize with NTP servers using either the built-in Windows time synchronization or NTPD for Windows. I've never been able to find an error message. But strangely, a Python script I wrote years ago to check my clock against time.nist.gov happily runs and will let me know how far off my clock is. Any thoughts? Please boost for reach. Thanks. Further testing reveals this might be something messed up in Windows possibly? Using the ntpdate command line NTP setting program, if I specify -u to use an unprivileged port I can manually sync, but without that option it doesn't work. On a Linux box on the same local area network, it works with or without the -u option. Windows Firewall is and has always been disabled unless something new has happened.
hey, people in toronto: there's an urgent campaign to contact olivia chow and the city budget committee and urge them to NOT give the police their promised budget increase of $93.8 million dollars. this increase is slated to come as TPS cops are accused of being involved in organized crime, gun violence, and murder plots.
this website has a summary of the facts and a form you can use to email the mayor and the budget committee: anothertoronto.ca/
919 likes, 24 comments - rania.writes on February 9, 2026: "TAKE ACTION & SEND AN EMAIL TODAY!
Fund our communities! No to $93.8 Million more for corrupt cops.
anothertoronto.
BMW’s latest “innovation” isn’t about performance or safety. It’s a logo-shaped screw designed to keep owners out of their own cars. We dug into the patent, the intent behind it, and why Adafruit is already working on a custom bit to undo BMW’s attempt to block repair. Learn more at the link below.
We have known the principle since 70' I laugh when I think of the mechanic rummaging through the glove compartment, the boot, the cup holders 🙂 I laugh when I think of the thieves who will quickly find the key and continue stealing 🙂 In short: BMW has always been a stupid shower-off, so why would that change ? 😀 @iFixit
The pathological sour side of economic systems allowed to operate with profit as the principle concern.
Exploitative Capitalism and even vulture Capitalism ... I had a £2,000+ quote for roof repair work that was way beyond what was needed. I found out cause and can fix for £10.
Their quote should have been deemable a criminal offence in my opinion.
this gives me hope we are on a good way to the point where enshittification goes deep enough so nobody wants to buy anything anymore because everyone knows that buying something equals being scammed in 99% of the cases.
I have ridden a BMW motorcycle for years, with the idea that I could do minor maintenance tasks myself (which I did, even with my modest skills). With this kind of corporate bullshit, I will not be buying a BMW anymore.
BMW has been a poor choice for many years unless you just plan on leasing it. With their extensive use of plastics, which degrade over time, these vehicles become endless money pits as they age.
That is a lot of effort for something that has a simple solution to the proble. Don't buy BMW. This is the same company that tried putting basic features behind a subscription paywall.
Every mechanic who works on BMWs will have the necessary bit in weeks. If this is really an attempt to keep people from repairing their vehicles, it is pretty dumb.
BMW is basically dying. I don't see new BMWs on my way to work. They started with a subscription-based seat heather, yet developing ad idiotic patented screw. Compared to more innovative car makers (chinese ones on top of all), they look like Blackberry or Nokia when the first iPhone was unveiled.
When faced with something like this I get the dremel out and cut a notch in it, then get it out with a flat screwdriver. Worked on my former MINI (a BMW), with torx screws on the tail light cover, didn't have bit for them at the time.
Capitalist free markets need wise regulation. It shouldn't be legal to innovate for the purpose of blocking interoperability or entrapping customers. Corporations HATE free markets because true competition is hard and profits are slimmer. External force is required.
Absent regulation to establish rules to protect society, free markets must race towards monopoly, corruption, and enshitification. Regulated markets can work - uncontrolled markets foaters Lord of the Flies conditions.
Nasty bits! But fun to think of ways to get around it.
Cheap bit: rub top of head with paste wax; apply heat to melt wax; clean sides of head; wrap sides of head with strong strapping tape to make cylinder; fill cylinder with low viscosity epoxy and when it hardens at bit embed 1/4” hex torx bit into epoxy, make sure it ends up in center and pointing straight up.
After 38 years working in biomedical equipment service I've seen all nature of pathetic tricks to prevent end user service. I even recall seeing IC chips with their ID markings abraded to become unreadable.
a great usecase showing when dumb managers should be kept out of the loop, I’m sure bmw spent billions on tooling upgrades across their world factory’s for this stupid idea and it won’t have any practical impact, or actually companies mentioned here will profit from selling tools to fix the dumb management decisions.
Huh weird that the german Autoindustrie is losing share on international markets Bunch of white old dudes evermore "improving" this 10- years obsolete technology.
*if* this happens the Europeans will be able to buy the tools (right to repair directive means tools will be available).
And then a Chinese shop front on Alibaba will sell bits and we are back to the same state as before.
Or it'll not happen because BMW don't want to spend the money on new duplicate tooling for their production line for an incredibly price sensitive market
My biggest complaints with AI tend to be with the human beings who are rushing language learning models into mass adoption without doing their basic due diligence. Like AI toy maker Bondu, the crea…
Cyclone Harry devastated infrastructure and caused billions of euros of damage across Southern Italy. Drawing scant media coverage and an inert official response, the disaster showed the depth of Italy’s divide, with events in the South all but ignor…
Don't be disenfranchised. Our 2026 voter guide breaks down 12 GOP suppression tricks and provides actionable counters for every voter. Protect your right today.
Keldrim
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •famousringo
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •- Goes to Italy.
- Avoids the food.
What kind of brain damage causes this?
~* Sarah
in reply to famousringo • • •@famousringo he could literally eat pizza every day.
@georgetakei