Ben Bellows

No, “AI” is not a Stochastic Parrot 🦜 I’ve recently come across a new flavor of AI denialism making the rounds.

"AI" is not a stochastic parrot.🦜
I wrote this piece a couple weeks ago, but it was hard for me to finish up given AI's role in society and war over the past few weeks. I should share it at some point though. Not perfect, but here it is.
medium.com/@margarmitch...

USAID: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO) YouTube video by LastWeekTonight

Oh that reminds me, Faine, John Oliver dedicated this week’s show to USAID, if you haven’t been informed by a million other people.

youtu.be/tU8S13xYJNM?...

Funding for this essential birth control and repro health program expires on April 1. But HHS hasn't even sent out the GUIDANCE that groups need in order to apply for the next round. That was supposed to happen by the end of 2025 👀

This administration is committing Watergate level crimes multiple times per week—and those are the ones we know about. It’s crazy to think about what else will come out after.

It’s absolutely essential these criminals are held responsible for their crimes. We must end elite impunity.

You really need to watch this whole clip. It's amazing.

AI chatbots helped ‘teens’ plan shootings, bombings, and political violence, study shows Only Claude reliably shut down would-be attackers.

A study used ‘simulated’ subjects to test 10 major chatbots. Only one — Claude — reliably shut down violent plans.

Mali’s maestro of African salsa: how Boncana Maïga shaped dance music One of ten young Malian musicians chosen to study in Cuba, he would pioneer his own brand of African salsa.

"Boncana Maïga was never especially interested in the traditional instruments, his real passion was composing and arranging for dance bands. This skill was to have a major impact on the popular music of Mali." theconversation.com/malis-maestr...

This 😭

‘Spy Sheikh’ Bought Secret Stake in Trump Company — The Wall Street Journal $500 million investment for 49% of World Liberty came months before U.A.E. won access to tightly guarded American AI chips

Always remember: only the best people are into crypto.

Fun fact: less than six months ago, Trump pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the head of Binance, for money laundering as a part of the dirty deal for NVIDIA chips sent to the UAE that netted the Trump family $500 million.

The law of unintended consequences rules.

We are do screwed

“It was rise and grind just to survive”

“Unconditional surrender”

Merchant vessel Seaway Hawk transporting decommissioned U.S. Navy Avenger-class Mine Countermeasures Ships USS Devastator, USS Dextrous, USS Gladiator and USS Sentry in the Delaware Bay to unload in Philadelphia tomorrow - March 9, 2026 SRC: FB- Delaware River Shipping / Andy Wyrick 📷

We live in a world beyond parody. The United States has had four minesweeper vessels in the Persian Gulf for 35 years. Just yesterday these ships arrived in Philadelphia to be decommissioned, a day before Iran announces that they are mining the Strait of Hormuz.

Mining Hormuz is an odd form of unconditional surrender. But what do I know? 🤷‍♂️

oh so this goes real hard

Installed an induction stove to replace an older gas range. Very satisfied.

well, trump did promise to bring back mining jobs

A shocking number of people responding to this video clearly did not watch the video. David is extremely opposed to the Trump administration's terrorization of immigrant communities. He is describing serious problems with the current laws which make accountability difficult.

No Kings As the president escalates his authoritarian power grab, the NO KINGS non-violent movement continues to rise stronger. We are united once again to remind the world: America has No Kings and the power ...

Make your plans now for No Kings Day on March 28. Stand up against bigotry, grift and state violence. Find a protest near you at this link. Bring your family and friends.

Ig Nobels ceremony moves to Europe over security concerns Marc Abraham: “During the past year, it has become unsafe for our guests to visit the country."

A sad reflection of the state of visiting the USA -

Ig Nobels ceremony moves to Europe over security concerns

Marc Abraham:
“We cannot in good conscience ask the new winners, or the international journalists who cover the event, to travel to the US this year.”

“Listen up my demos, the Dauphine of Ellison’s Oracle has spoken”

DHS Ousts CBP Privacy Officers Who Questioned ‘Illegal’ Orders Department of Homeland Security leaders removed top privacy officers who objected to mislabeling government records to block their public release, WIRED has learned.

NEW: After CBP's FOIA office released a "Privacy Threat Analysis" of the face recognition app Mobile Fortify, 2 staffers were reassigned and leaders order PTAs to be mislabeled to prevent their release. @dell.bsky.social w/ the scoop: www.wired.com/story/cbp-pr...

Much respect to @davidjbier.bsky.social.

That was a classic ad.

The risk for babies who get measles under the age of 6 months to develop this within 10 years is 1 in 600.

Essential reading:

Where's a betting, err predictions, market when you need one?

Removing race from kidney function algorithm helped more Black patients access transplants Removing race from the eGFR had a big impact, resulting in 5.3 more kidney transplants per 1000 Black candidates.

“Several years ago, nephrologists attempted a first-of-its-kind effort: remove race from a key clinical algorithm, and attempt to undo the harms… A new study found the change had big results, impacting 27% of Black patients and resulting in 5.3 more transplants per 1000 Black candidates.”