Gem Barrett

@[email protected]
177 Followers
71 Following
458 Posts
That Gem Barrett. Wandering caulkhead. Infosec technologist. Writer. Wildlife photographer. They/them.
SOAP: security policy generatorhttps://usesoap.app
Codehttps://github.com/gembarrett
Abouthttps://gembarrett.com
Old bird site accounthttps://twitter.com/gembarrett
Gem BarrettJun 9, 2023
What’s happening in Canada right now is what happens when you prioritise police funding over the other emergency services. While coppers get shiny new cars and facial recognition technology, we have to ask firefighters from around the world to come help us fight our wildfires.
Gem BarrettJun 9, 2023
Martijn BAARDAJun 9, 2023
200+ South African firefighters landed in Canada to assist in the fight against the raging wildfire. Upon arrival, they greeted Canada with a special song and dance... Via @briansolis
Show threadGem BarrettJun 9, 2023

I feel like I should add: You Know Me is a story about the dangers of tech solutionism and the harmful implications of surveillance capitalism in the mental health industry.

Just in case you thought it was a happy story 😉

Gem BarrettJun 9, 2023
Michael BellJun 7, 2023

Often see graphics about how many times the UK could fit into this or that US state, but thought I'd do the comparison the other way around. The population of the coloured-in area is roughly equal to the population of the UK

(Took me ages to find the most visually impressive, but still equal, grouping of states)

Gem BarrettJun 8, 2023

In 2020 I picked up creative writing again for the first time since childhood, and wrote a short story imagining what the pandemic would look like if there was free, online mental health support for everyone.

I'm over the moon to announce that next week my story - You Know Me - will be published in a book about the inequalities brought about by technology.

If you'd like to watch the (free) online launch event and hear me talk about the story, you can register here: https://techlaw.uottawa.ca/events/book-launch-cant-compute

Book Launch: Can’t Compute

Friday, June 16, 2023 | 17:00-18:00 AT // 16:00-17:00 ET

CDTS / CLTS uOttawa
Gem BarrettJun 8, 2023
Ugh my lungs this morning feel like the morning after a night out in my 20s: chock full of nastiness. This wildfire smoke is bloody intense.
Gem BarrettJun 6, 2023
This was the sky at 8am. Wearing a mask inside and outside the house because of the smoke from the Quebec wildfires is pretty grim.
Gem BarrettJun 6, 2023
VR headsets are all boring af. Call me when there’s a monocle or contact lens version.
Gem BarrettJun 5, 2023
TouaregtweetJun 4, 2023

'It looks like they’ve finally done it. For years, the far right has repeatedly tried and failed to set up a social network of their own – one where they can spread conspiracy theories and sow hate without any of the pesky content moderation that happens on the big tech platforms. [...]
You know why that is? Because there’s no longer any need: Elon Musk has successfully turned Twitter into a site where extremists have free rein."

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/03/twitter-conservative-media-elon-musk-ron-desantis #elonmusk #birdsite #twitter #FarRight

Twitter’s rightwing takeover is complete. Why are liberals still on it?

Elon Musk’s acquisition of the company has transformed it into the center of the conservative media ecosystem

The Guardian
Gem BarrettMay 25, 2023
Merlin.2160p.BDRip.x265.10bitMay 24, 2023

Update for my non-German followers: Our government now blocks climate protesters' websites and criminalizes donating to them. Going great over here.

Edit: Slight correction, as pointed out by a few people, this was done by the police and the government, not the government alone.