civicshout.com
Make the Wealthy Pay Their Fair Share
While working families struggle to make ends meet, the wealth of America’s billionaires has skyrocketed. As Oxfam America reports, the richest Am...
 US citizens: call on Congress to make the wealthy pay their fair share of taxes - which is considerably more than they pay now. The main switchboard is +1-202-224-3121. If you message Congress, please spread the word!
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Glossary
the Guardian
Outrage after Trump accuses Democrats of ‘seditious behavior, punishable by death’
US president roundly decried for Truth Social post after lawmakers told military personnel to refuse illegal orders
 Democrats in Congress posted a video reminding soldiers of their legal duty to refuse illegal orders, and their oath to defend the US Constitution. The bully responded by calling for their death. He and his henchmen have placed themselves among the enemies of the Constitution whom members of Congress, and members of the armed services, have sworn to
the Guardian
Death threats and accusations: the professor targeted by the US far right
Mark Bray has become one of the highest-profile people caught up in Donald Trump’s efforts to target Antifa
 Professor Mark Bray is an American academic expert on fascism. Gvernmental harassment ordered by the bully, and death threats from the bully's followers, have driven him and his family into exile.
the Guardian
California farms applied millions of pounds of Pfas to key crops, study finds
‘Forever chemicals’ sprayed on almonds, grapes, tomatoes and other crops as activists warn of ‘obvious problem’
 California farms sprayed PFAS on fruits and nut crops, around 2.5 million pounds per year. The figures end in 2023, but the article does not say whether the practice continues.
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the Guardian
Heroines, not heroin: charity’s Facebook page returns after AI flagged it for drugs
Photography group Hundred Heroines was removed after Meta’s AI tools mistook name for class-A opioid reference
Words to Avoid (or Use with Care) Because They Are Loaded or Confusing - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation
 Artificial Stupidity turned off the Facebook page of the organization Hundred Heroines, whose mission is to encourage female photographers. Apparently Facebook did this without consulting any actual intelligences about the issue, and it took a month for complaints to convince the company to consult
https://www.commondreams.org/newswire/cloudflare-outage-is-a-reminder-of-our-over-dependence-on-small-number-of-tech-giants The ownership of internet servers has become dangerously concentrated in the hands of a few hosting companies. Anything that takes one of them down causes a wide disaster.
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Gizmodo
AI-Powered Teddy Bear Caught Talking About Sexual Fetishes and Instructing Kids How to Find Knives
OpenAI blocked access for the toymaker following the incidents.
Who Does That Server Really Serve? - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation
 A teddy bear toy that provided a voice inerface to ChatGPT gave advice about sex and about finding knives. Clearly it did not think about the meaning and implications of its output for its likely audience. This reminds us that ChatGPT is not intelligent. The reaction to this by "Open" "AI"
https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/11/17/congress/lawler-and-lalota-outmaneuver-jeffries-to-advance-union-backed-bill-00655217 US citizens: phone your congresscritter and call on per to vote for the Protect America's Workforce Act. This is urgent now, because the discharge petition has enough signatures and compels the House to vote on this bill soon. The main switchboard is +1-202-224-3121. If you message Congress, please spread the word!
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the Guardian
Dark forces are preventing us fighting the climate crisis – by taking knowledge hostage | George Monbiot
The fundamental problem is this: that most of the means of communication are owned or influenced by the very rich, says Guardian columnist George M...
the Guardian
Once a global leader on climate action, the EU has given in to the right’s green-bashing | Nathalie Tocci
From deforestation to emissions trading, vital policies are being watered down in the name of ‘competitiveness’, says Guardian Europe columnist...
the Guardian
Pushing airport expansion while rail travel languishes – so much for Labour’s green agenda | Polly Toynbee
The climate damage done by avoidable flying is huge, yet the government continues to see planes as the answer to its economic woes, says Guardian c...
 George Monbiot: *Dark forces are preventing us fighting the climate crisis – by taking knowledge hostage.* *Once a global leader on climate action, the EU has given in to the right’s
Free-Range Kids
Want Kids to Spend Less Time in the Virtual World? Give Them Back the Real One! - Free-Range Kids
Are kids on their phones all the time because that’s what they love the most? An explosive new Harris Poll finds that actually, what kids 8-12 RE...
 A poll of US children found that they would rather see other children in physical presence, without constant adult monitoring, and it's because that is not allowed that they talk via online dis-services instead.