She started by sitting on my head, and my chest, but she will allow this (and a pic) because she is benevolent

#Cats #CatsOfMastodon #Torties

Have a great weekend! Here's your Friday ice update - #Arctic sea ice extent is currently the *lowest* on record for this time of year (JAXA data)...

• about 500,000 km² below the 2010s mean
• about 1,110,000 km² below the 2000s mean
• about 1,670,000 km² below the 1990s mean
• about 2,000,000 km² below the 1980s mean

Check out more graphics here: https://zacklabe.com/arctic-sea-ice-extentconcentration/

I think I'll make a resolution for 2026 to be extremely sceptical about videos, now anyone can create them with AI.

If it's:
* 10 seconds or less
* Well framed and steady, despite supposedly being filmed on a phone by a random person
* Politically charged
Be suspicious of it.

And be extra suspicious if it's politically charged in a way that aligns with my own politics. Don't yeet my critical faculties out of the window because it's telling me something I already agree with.

Why would you use AI to lookup up something as basic and safety critical as tides? How have people lost the capability of just using a search engine? I don’t understand why so many people want to be spoon fed by a chat bot spouting bollocks.

Just insane, stupid, and risky as hell.

Use reputable sources for critical information. Weather and tide information are a solved problem. (Weather is not always perfect!)

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crklrnv5yn4o

On Dec 26, 1991, the USSR collapsed, ending decades of repression and allowing nations to reclaim freedom.

Yet russia’s imperial ambitions persist, threatening liberty. We must resist its authoritarianism and aggression to secure a future free from oppression.

Source: MFA #Ukraine

White House is just selling Presidential pardons, not even trying to hide it.

https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-presidential-pardon-process-dda97c15

#news #politics #uspol #uspolitics #GOPCult #trump #ethics #corruption #maga

I am really tired of listening to Marco Rubio praising Trump for getting Europe to spend 5 percent of GDP on defence.

No country is spending more on defence to please Trump. We are spending more, because we are alone in the war with Putin. We are spending more, so we can lead the world, now that Trump has put the US in the back seat.

We could have finished Putin together, and the world would have been safer and wealthier. But instead Trump wanted a war with Venezuela. That is how dumb this is.