House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to investigate Wikipedia over allegations of organized bias
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/36435178
House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to investigate Wikipedia over allegations of organized bias
Comer and Mace Investigate Efforts to Manipulate Information on Wikipedia - United States House Committee on Oversight and Accountability
United States House Committee on Oversight and AccountabilityOversight Committee Republicans Verified account
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4chan and Kiwi Farms Sue the UK Over its Age Verification Law
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/36419565
Lawsuit.
4chan and Kiwi Farms Sue the UK Over its Age Verification Law
4chan and Kiwi Farms Sue the UK Over its Age Verification Law
The notorious troll sites filed a lawsuit in U.S. federal court as part of a fight over the UK's Online Safety Act.Court Watch
Video game addiction in teens likely stems from preexisting mental health issues
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/36422589
Video game addiction in teens likely stems from preexisting mental health issues
Video game addiction in teens likely stems from preexisting mental health issues
A new study out of UCSB's Media Neuroscience Lab indicates that gaming disorder (AKA video game addiction) likely develops from a player's preexisting mental health conditions.The Current
Video game addiction in teens likely stems from preexisting mental health issues
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/36422589
Video game addiction in teens likely stems from preexisting mental health issues
Video game addiction in teens likely stems from preexisting mental health issues
A new study out of UCSB's Media Neuroscience Lab indicates that gaming disorder (AKA video game addiction) likely develops from a player's preexisting mental health conditions.The Current
Video game addiction in teens likely stems from preexisting mental health issues
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/36422589
Video game addiction in teens likely stems from preexisting mental health issues
Video game addiction in teens likely stems from preexisting mental health issues
A new study out of UCSB's Media Neuroscience Lab indicates that gaming disorder (AKA video game addiction) likely develops from a player's preexisting mental health conditions.The Current
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Americans applying for Canadian refugee status in increasing numbers: data
More Americans applied for refugee status in Canada in the first half of 2025 than in all of 2024, and more than in any full year since 2019, according to data published on Thursday by Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board.
Their share of total refugee claims - 245 of about 55,000 - is small and Canada’s acceptance of U.S. refugee claims has historically been low. Asylum-seekers from other countries crossing the land border from the U.S. are sent back under a bilateral agreement with the reasoning that they should apply for asylum in the first “safe” country they arrived in.
Last year 204 people filed refugee claims in Canada with the United States as their country of alleged persecution. Claims from the U.S. also rose during the first Trump administration.
Americans applying for Canadian refugee status in increasing numbers: data
More Americans applied for refugee status in Canada in the first half of 2025 than in all of 2024, and more than in any full year since 2019, according to data published on Thursday by Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board.Reuters Staff (CTVNews)
You legitimised the Americans' reasons for needing a refuge in Canada.
All while your country is actively shipping "immigrants" to Guantanamo bay and other concentration camps, or Uganda.
The irony is certainly lost on you, due to your blind belief that America deserves what it doesn't give others. It's pretty clearly visible.
Campaign to lift Palestine Action ban seeking ways to stop mass arrests of protesters
Campaign to lift Palestine Action ban seeking ways to stop mass arrests of protesters
The campaign group calling for the UK government to lift its ban on direct action group Palestine Action said it is pursuing methods of protest that would make mass arrests of peaceful demonstrators near impossible.Katherine Hearst (Middle East Eye)
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7 dead, 9 missing after under-construction Sichuan-Qinghai Railway bridge collapsed - Tibetan Review
(TibetanReview.net, Aug22’25) – Seven people were killed and nine others left missing after a construction rope broke at a bridge under construction on the Qinghai section of the Sichuan-Qinghai Railway around 3 am today, reported China’s official chinadaily.com.cn Aug 22, citing the party mouthpiece People’s Daily.
It is not clear whether the dead or missing included Tibetans. Chinese construction and mining firms usually bring mainland ethnic Chinese workers on their lucrative projects in Tibet, denying local Tibetans much-needed employment opportunity.
7 dead, 9 missing after under-construction Sichuan-Qinghai Railway bridge collapsed - Tibetan Review
(TibetanReview.net, Aug22’25) – Seven people were killed and nine others left missing after a construction rope broke at a bridge under construction on the Qinghai section of the Sichuan-Qinghai Railway around 3 am today, reported China’s official ch…tibetanreview (Tibetan Review)
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Britain to pay nearly $4 million in compensation after troops sparked huge forest fire while training in Kenya | CNN
The British government has agreed to pay almost $4 million to thousands of victims of a blaze started by its soldiers while in training in Kenya, according to documents seen by CNN.
The settlement follows a long legal battle by local community members in the East African country. The campaigners have said the effects of the 2021 fire in an expansive wildlife conservancy in central Kenya have caused them lifelong health issues, damaged their property and polluted their environment.
Some of them also told CNN that they lost family members due to ailments arising from the inferno that burned through more than 10,000 acres in the privately owned Lolldaiga conservancy.
The fire is believed to have started accidentally during a British military training exercise. The British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK) posted a video at the time showing its officers battling the blaze, in which it claimed the community and wildlife had been kept safe.
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/08/21/africa/british-troops-kenya-fire-settlement-latam-intl
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Canada to announce new foreign interference watchdog to fight transnational repression
Just months after ICIJ’s China Targets investigation, the country has confirmed that countering foreign influence is an “utmost priority” for the government.
Canada will appoint its first foreign interference commissioner next month as part of a package of reforms aimed at strengthening the country’s ability to fight back against transnational repression, a government minister has confirmed.
Speaking with ICIJ media partner CBC News, Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree confirmed that the government has already begun vetting potential candidates for the watchdog role, and plans to present options to lawmakers for review by mid-September.
The move comes months after ICIJ and its media partners published the China Targets investigation, which showed how Beijing has used sinister tactics to silence critics of the Chinese government beyond its borders. In Canada, CBC News uncovered cases of intimidation and harassment against a Hong Kong pro-democracy advocate in exile and a pro-Taiwan activist that included the circulation of deepfake, sexually explicit images online and threats against the activist’s family members still living in China.
Canada’s Privacy Commissioner Orders Google to Respect ‘Right to Be Forgotten’—Google Says No
cross-posted from: programming.dev/post/36436559
Canada’s Privacy Commissioner Orders Google to Respect ‘Right to Be Forgotten’—Google Says No
- Backgrounder: Timeline of events related to the investigation of Google and de-listing of online information;
- Report of Findings: Investigation and recommendations concerning Google search engine service’s compliance with its obligations under PIPEDA.
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U.S. government takes 10% stake in Intel, as Trump expands control over private sector
U.S. government takes 10% stake in Intel, as Trump expands control over private sector
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that the U.S. government has taken a 10% stake in chipmaker Intel.Kif Leswing (CNBC)
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While I don't trust this administration in the slightest this isn't unprecidented:
- In 2009 he U.S. government took an initial 9.85% ownership stake in Chrysler as part of the company's bankruptcy restructuring. The government later sold its stake to the Italian automaker Fiat in 2011, exiting its investment completely.
- As part of the auto industry bailout in 2008 and 2009, the government received a 60.8% equity stake in GM. The government sold its final shares in 2013.
- American International Group (AIG): In its bailout, the U.S. government provided roughly $182 billion in aid and at one point held an almost 80% stake in the insurer. The government sold its last shares in 2012, ultimately making a profit.
Bluesky blocks Mississippi users over age verification law
Bluesky blocks Mississippi users over new age verification law
Bluesky has blocked access in Mississippi, citing privacy and free speech concerns over a new law requiring all social media users to undergo age verification with fines of up to $10,000 per violation.Matthew Keys (TheDesk.net)
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Also, a detail but:
pcmag.com/news/supreme-court-l…
It's considered likely to be unconstitutional.
The ruling now allows Mississippi to enforce its social media law while case continues in the lower court. In the ruling, Kavanaugh also cited several district court rulings opposing similar age-verification laws, concluding that "the Mississippi law is likely unconstitutional."
US state department stops issuing visas for Gaza’s children to get medical care after far-right campaign
The US state department announced on Saturday that it would stop issuing visas to children from Gaza in desperate need of medical care after an online pressure campaign from Laura Loomer, a far-right influencer close to Donald Trump who has described herself as “a proud Islamophobe”."All visitor visas for individuals from Gaza are being stopped while we conduct a full and thorough review of the process and procedures used to issue a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days,” the state department said in a message posted on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, from which Loomer was banned before it was purchased by Elon Musk.
In a pair of posts on the social network on Friday, Loomer had shared video of badly injured Palestinian children and their family members arriving in Houston and San Francisco this month, along with false claims that their shouts of joy were “jihadi chants” and that they were “doing the HAMAS terror whistle”.
Loomer also falsely claimed that she had “exclusively obtained” the two video clips she shared. One was copied from a medical aid charity’s public Instagram account and the other was from the Houston Chronicle’s YouTube channel.
US state department stops issuing visas for Gaza’s children to get medical care after far-right campaign
Program providing key aid halted after complaints from Laura Loomer, the far-right influencer close to TrumpRobert Mackey (The Guardian)
Russians complete repairs of Mariupol Drama Theatre they destroyed – photos
The Russians have completed the exterior repairs of the Mariupol Drama Theatre, which they themselves destroyed with a missile. They claim the facade is now 100% restored and interior finishing works are ongoing. Russian forces struck the theatre on 16 March 2022, while civilians were sheltering inside.
Source: Mariupol City Council
Details: The occupation authorities plan to stage the first performance in the restored building by the end of the year.
Mariupol City Council said that "behind all this imitation of ‘restoration’ lie the atrocities of the Russian occupiers, who dropped bombs on the theatre on 16 March 2022. At that time, hundreds of Mariupol residents, many of them children, were sheltering inside. Many of them did not survive."
From the beginning of the full-scale invasion on 24 February until its destruction, the Mariupol theatre had served as a refuge for civilians, a centre for distributing food and water, a place to obtain information about evacuation routes and a gathering point for evacuation. From 24 February to 4 March, about a hundred people – mostly current and former theatre employees, their families, and people fleeing violence in early 2022 – used it as a shelter.
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Royal Mail and DHL halt some US deliveries over tariffs
Postal services around the world are pausing some deliveries to the US over confusion around new import taxes that must be paid on parcels from the end of the month.
US President Donald Trump signed an executive order last month ending the global import tax exemption on low-value parcels, which takes effect from 29 August.
While gifts worth less than $100 will remain duty-free, the changes mean all other packages will face the same tariff rate as other goods from their country of origin.
Postal services, including Royal Mail and Germany's DHL, said they would suspend deliveries until they had proper systems in place to deal with the new rules.
Royal Mail said it was withdrawing its current US export services for businesses from Tuesday, but added it hoped to have a new system up and running within two days to allow it to comply with the new rules before they kick in.
"We have been working hard with US authorities and international partners to adapt our services to meet the new US de minimis requirements so UK consumers and businesses can continue to use our services when they come into effect," the company said.
Royal Mail said cards and letters could continued to be posted as usual.
The US had a so-called de minimis exemption on packages worth up to $800, which allowed consumers to buy cheap clothing and household goods from sites such as Shein and Temu without paying import duties.
But the duty-free rule on Chinese goods ended on 2 May, and is now being extended to the rest of the word.
Royal Mail and DHL halt some US deliveries over tariffs
Services including Royal Mail and DHL say they are suspending deliveries until they have proper systems in place.Rachel Clun (BBC News)
Kurdish political figure arrested in Iraq, sparking clashes that leave 5 dead
IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — At least five people were killed and 18 others wounded in the city of Sulaymaniyah in northern Iraq’s semiautonomous Kurdish region in clashes after the arrest of a prominent Kurdish political figure, officials said Friday.
Security forces launched a major overnight operation to arrest Lahur Sheikh Jangi Talabani, the nephew of the late Iraqi president Jalal Talabani, under Iraq’s counterterrorism law, said Burhan Sheikh Rauf, an official with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, the party that holds sway in Sulaymaniyah and to which Lahur Talabani previously belonged.
He said Talabani “had plans to carry out operations against the government and create chaos” and that the operation was part of an effort to enforce laws prohibiting political parties from maintaining armed wings.
The arrest sparked outrage among Talabani’s supporters, who clashed with security forces.
Talabani, once hailed as a key partner of the US-led coalition against the Islamic State extremist group, cofounded the PUK’s Zanyari intelligence agency and was recognized for his leadership in counterterrorism.
In 2020, he became copresident of the party alongside his cousin Bafel Talabani, but was ousted a year later in a bitter internal power struggle. He then formed his own party, the People’s Front, and has maintained influence in Sulaymaniyah.
Rauf initially said that Talabani failed to appear before a judge after being summoned, but later said the operation was carried out “suddenly without informing him about the arrest order.” He confirmed that three members of the local security forces were killed in the raid. The People’s Front said two of its members were also killed.
Rauf said Talabani would be handed over to the court on Sunday, as public institutions in Iraq are closed Friday and Saturday.
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Argentina investigates alleged kickback scheme entangling President Milei's inner circle
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Argentine police on Friday raided over a dozen luxury homes and offices including the headquarters of a national agency charged with providing disability benefits, an official said, escalating a corruption investigation that threatens to ensnarl the closest advisors of libertarian President Javier Milei, including his powerful sister Karina.
Ordered by federal judge Sebastián Casanello, the operation targeted 15 locations in and around the capital of Buenos Aires as fallout spread from audio recordings leaked to local media purporting to show Diego Spagnuolo, President Milei’s personal lawyer and the head of the country’s disability agency, describing a kickback scheme tied to government health contracts that funneled money to top officials.
An Argentine official with knowledge of the investigation, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the case publicly, gave details of Friday’s raids to The Associated Press.
It’s not the first time Milei’s inner circle has been accused of taking bribes. The first big scandal of his presidency erupted earlier this year after he promoted an unknown cryptocurrency token called $LIBRA that shot up in value after his endorsement then cratered, prompting dozens of criminal complaints alleging fraud from Buenos Aires to New York City.
Qatar said to have paid Israeli officials, including Netanyahu aides, total of $10 million
Report says Doha gave firm owned by PM associate Einhorn $45,000 per month for 2 years, of which $18,000 went to Netanyahu spokesman Urich; separately, adviser Feldstein got $11,000
Qatar paid senior Israeli officials, including several top advisers to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a total of some $10 million in recent years to boost the image of the Gulf nation, the Kan public broadcaster reported Sunday evening.
Citing estimates by law enforcement officials involved in the Qatargate probe, the report says that Perception Media — owned by Yisrael Einhorn, a former campaign adviser to Netanyahu — was paid $45,000 per month over two years, from 2022 until the project was scrapped in late 2024.
Some $18,000 per month out of the payment to Perception went to Netanyahu aide Jonatan Urich, the report says.
Separately from the payments to Perception, $11,000 per month went to another Netanyahu aide, Eli Feldstein.
The rest was paid to then-senior defense officials, former Mossad officials and employees of a tech firm, according to Kan.
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[PSA] Admins: Watch for the antiyanks troll and consider adjusting your rate limits
"Antiyanks" is back at it again and has switched tactics to spamming a massive number of comments in a short period of time. In addition to being annoying (and sad and pathetic), it's having a deleterious effect on performance and drowns out any discussions happening in those posts. That spam also federates as well as the eventual removals, so it's not limited to just the posts being targeted.
Looking at the site config for the home instance of the latest ~~two~~ three alts, the rate limits were all 99999999. 🤦♂️
Rate limits are a bit confusing, but they mean: X number of requests per Y seconds per IP address.
The comment API endpoint has its own, dedicated bucket. I don't recall the defaults, but they're probably higher than you need unless you're catering to VPN users who would share an IP.
Assuming your server config is correctly passing the client IP via the XFF header, 20 calls to the /create_comment endpoint per minute (60 seconds) per client IP should be sufficient for most cases, though feel free to adjust to your specific requirements.
Edit: A couple of instances accidentally set the "Messages" bucket too low. That bucket is a bit of a catch-all for API endpoints that don't fit a more specific bucket. You'll want to leave that one relatively high compared to the rest. It's named "Messages" but it covers far more than just DMs.
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If you have DB access, the values are in the local_site_rate_limit table. You’ll probably have to restart Lemmy’s API container to pick up any changes if you edit the values in the DB.100 per second is what I had in my configuration, but you may bump that up to 250 or more if your instance is larger.
Fixed:
UPDATE local_site_rate_limit SET message = 999, message_per_second = 999 WHERE local_site_id = 1;
The crisis is “expasperating”: Long COVID compounds economic hardship in Argentina
cross-posted from: lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/51686142
Argentina has no dedicated Long COVID clinics, no disability insurance, and no government recognition, leaving patients to diagnose themselves and search for informal care.Only a couple of Long COVID studies are being conducted in Argentina. One includes over 100 patients and involves analysis of MRI brain scans.
Patients live not only with Long COVID but also the stressful situation of living in a country with high inflation and poverty, while they create their support chat groups to share knowledge, treatments, and information.
The crisis is “expasperating”: Long COVID compounds economic hardship in Argentina - The Sick Times
Argentina is facing an invisible Long COVID crisis, marked by a lack of clinics, minimal media attention, no disability insurance to help people with the disease cope with their inability to work, and only a couple of Long COVID studies — all amid a …Delfina Marchese (The Sick Times)
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Have you tried to fight through the endurance issue? That's my plan. I'm scared shitless of the downward spiral so I hope to get my ass out.
Wife and I took a walk last night, and that's the least I usually do. She couldn't tonight even though she's recovering better than I.
I did that. Do not recommend. I ended up bedridden, because every time I pushed it I would get worse.
I recommend resting and letting your body get better.
Thanks! I have "emphysema light" (doctor's words) and if I sit on my ass too long, well, it's not good. I have to constantly move, and move hard, or I go downhill. Hence the question.
I've improved much since I wrote the question. We're hitting the river tomorrow, see how it goes. Manhandling my 10' boat, battery, trolling motor and other gear is going to be a challenge.
Glad to hear your getting better.
Do read this though.
PEM affects a good third of people with LC. And knowing the signs so you know not to push through it is very important because pushing through it can lead to well. Being like me, bedridden since two years.
I do. I caught it in March 2020, yo-yoed in health for a while, and had some surgeries and a treatable cancer which my doctors suspect were related to Long COVID. I’m pretty well marinated in the info, and am happy to share whatever you want to know.
This page from Yale is a great general orientation, though there’s a lot more LC sufferers would want you to know. This “What to Do When I Have Covid” guide from Clean Air Club will be useful.
The best place I know of on Lemmy for a discussion is !chronicillness@lemmy.world. Mastodon has an active and expansive community of people affected by Long COVID.
Condolences on your illness! I hope you’ll have better luck.
Long COVID (Post-COVID Conditions, PCC)
Long COVID refers to new or recurring symptoms that occur four or more weeks after an infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.Yale Medicine
Nigeria deports Chinese scammers in crackdown on 'foreign-led' cyber crime
Nigeria deports Chinese scammers in crackdown on 'foreign-led' cyber crime
A total of 102 deported foreigners have been convicted of "cyber-terrorism and internet fraud" this week.Wycliffe Muia (BBC News)
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Oliver Thomas withdraws controversial facial recognition ordinance in New Orleans — for now
cross-posted from: sh.itjust.works/post/44609842
Oliver Thomas withdraws controversial facial recognition ordinance in New Orleans — for now
BY SARAH RAVITS 31 mins agoNew Orleans City Council member and mayoral candidate Oliver Thomas Aug. 21 quietly withdrew, at least for now, a controversial ordinance granting police the authority to use facial recognition technology to spy on people in public.
The decision has drawn cautious optimism from civil rights groups, though Thomas could bring the ordinance up again as soon as Sept. 11.
If passed, the ordinance would authorize the use of facial recognition technology for real-time surveillance by the New Orleans Police Department or a third-party operator. New Orleans would be the first U.S. city to implement this type of program.
Thomas, who co-sponsored the ordinance with Eugene Green, told Gambit he withdrew it from yesterday’s meeting to allow NOPD “to make edits” on the measure.
**But opponents of the ordinance said there are no changes that would resolve their concerns over civil rights and privacy concerns. **
“There are no edits or modifications that could make this proposal safe. It needs to be taken off the table entirely, forever,” said Rachel Taber, an organizer with Union Migrante, a group that supports immigrants’ rights.
Green and Thomas have argued the ordinance would help NOPD stop crime more efficiently and aid in other investigations, particularly focused on violence, sexual assault and illegal drugs.
But opponents of the bill have sounded the alarm over potential civil rights violations, pointing out that a real-time surveillance system of this caliber could easily be used by law enforcement or third parties to target and monitor marginalized communities including immigrants and people of color — regardless of criminal activity.
It could also track LGBTQ activity and monitor people seeking reproductive health care.
While the ordinance does specifically prohibit the NOPD from targeting immigrants, women seeking reproductive health care and LGBTQ people, those restrictions would almost certainly be trumped by state law requiring NOPD to comply with agencies like the Louisiana State Police and federal law enforcement — which, among other things, are currently targeting immigrants for kidnappings and detention.
Taber also pointed to the already-robust private surveillance all over the city that NOPD and other law enforcement agencies can access, if needed.
“If a crime occurs, as is, they can subpoena evidence from nearby cameras,” she said. “No one needs 24/7 access to all faces and license plates all the time, everywhere, without cause.”
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Roblox drama explained as Schlep 'predator hunter' YouTuber banned from platform
Roblox drama explained as CEO under huge pressure after Schlep 'predator hunter' ban
A petition calling for the resignation of Roblox CEO David Baszucki has been signed more than 215,000 times after 'predator hunter' YouTuber Schlep was banned from the platform.The 22-year-old content creator, now with around 1.Jake Brigstock (indy100)
Roblox has a lot of problems in child safety aspects, such as the profileration of so-called condo games and inaction against child predators on the platform. YouTuber Schlep and others tried to raise the issues to Roblox but to no avail, and they had an easier time in collaborating with law enforcement to get chomos on the game platforms arrested instead.
Early this month Roblox, instead of using the banhammer against chomos, turned it against Schlep instead accusing the latter of "vigilantism" despite categorical refutations that Schlep had done everything by the books. It became the final straw as numerous influencers like KreekCraft expressed solidarities for Schlep and began to boycott Roblox.
The controversy got so big that Congressperson Ro Khanna launched a petition urging Roblox to fix its child safety issues and some U.S. states began to sue Roblox.
Relay, By We Distribute: Something Brewing
We Distribute recently launched a dedicated weekly newsletter that aims at rounding up a lot of things happening around the Fediverse and wider Social Web, and adds other publications and community voices to amplify them. This is our very first issue!
August 22rd, 2025: Something Brewing
Welcome to Relay, the new weekly newsletter from We Distribute! Here, we attempt to round up the latest news, think pieces, and interesting finds from around the Social Web. This is a new experiment for us, but the goal is to help provide quick links and information about stuff you might've missed, that we might not have had the time to cover.From We Distribute
First, let's focus on some of the things we've been working on with our publication. Think of this as a quick way to catch up, before venturing out into the rest of the network!News Updates
Here's a quick summaries of articles we wrote over the past week that you may have missed. The big sea changes we're noticing involve monetization and payments, Meta scraping the Social Web to train their AI models, and some welcome updates to platforms in the space.
CrowdBucks is a new payment system for the Fediverse
A new, open source, self-hostable fundraising system for the Fediverse has been released. The project is very young, but there’s a huge amount of promise.We DistributeSean Tilley
The Decentered Podcast
In case you weren't aware, we run our own in-house podcast show called The Decentered Podcast, where we interview people from across different branches of The Social Web to talk about interesting things they're working on. We focus on their background and experience, how they came into the space, what their doing, and their visions for the future.
S2E3 – Rabble from Nos.Social
Today, our podcast features an interview with an Internet OG: Evan Henshaw-Plath, aka Rabble. We talk about Twitter, Secure Scuttlebutt, and the evolution of Nostr!We DistributeSean Tilley
We had the great pleasure to interview Evan Henshaw-Plath from Nos.Social, who has an extensive background involving the intersection of activism and technology. It's a fascinating conversation that delves into the early era of online social media, and the evolution of decentralized communication networks.Around the Network
Every week, we search the Fediverse far and wide to find interesting things written within the community. This space serves as a bird's eye view as to what's going on, what people are thinking about, and cool things people are working on in their spare time.FediCon-Related
With the wrap-up for the first ever FediCon in-person event, a lot of members of the Fediverse community went to work, sharing their thoughts, experiences, and ideas about how to move the network forward. Additionally, almost all of the talks have finished the editing and encoding process, and are now available on PeerTube.
Patches, paths & The Matrix: FediCon thoughts Part I
The after hours Fediverse session at FOSDEM 2025 was held at HSBXL - Hackerspace Brussels. A cool, cyberpunk hangout. Wires everywhere, old computers, a fridge full of beer, Belgian goth-punks, and an old fashioned telephone receiver, hanging by its wire from the ceiling. We were in The Matrix.* In onePaths & PatchesMichael Foster
Trust & Safety
The Future of Forums is Lies, I Guess
Aphyr
New Developments
New Apps and Projects
There's always really cool things in development that most people don't know about. We don't always have time to get into detail about every project or application. However, we still want to take the time to share these treasures with you.
- DiveDB is an ActivityPub-powered platform for sharing data from undersea divers. The fact that this even exists blows my mind.
- Wanderer is a self-hosted privacy-first trail database for hikers to record their trail routes, and share it with friends through ActivityPub. You can import existing data from Strava and Komoot!
- Manyfold is an open source and federated alternative to Thingiverse, an online hub of STL files used for 3D printing.
- Bridge Browser is a fork of Mozilla Firefox that aims to bring Fediverse integration into the browser experience. Currently, it integrates with Mastodon and Lemmy.
- The Social Web Foundation has been developing some ongoing services and projects intended to bolster new capabilities in ActivityPub platforms. These include ap-components, a Web Components collection for showing ActivityPub Objects in the browser, Places.Pub, an effort to bridge OpenStreetMap location data to ActivityPub objects, a GeoSocial Activities client that uses Places.Pub, and an early draft for Messaging Layer Security over the ActivityPub protocol.
That's it for this week! Thanks for joining us, and we'll catch you within the next seven days.
Before you go!
We Distribute Media is a very small nonprofit operation. We've been able to get by, but our organization depends on small recurring donations to keep the lights on.
Please take a look at our OpenCollective Campaign, and consider how you might help compensate the volunteers that help keep We Distribute going.
Bridging identity with account links
One of the most common questions we get here is, “can you help me connect all my different accounts?” You’re on Bluesky, and Instagram, and Mastodon, you make a video series on YouTube, you have a blog, sometimes you post on Reddit, and a while back …Ryan Barrett (A New Social)
We DistributeSean Tilley
We DistributeSean Tilley
deadsuperheroSean Tilley
jaz-michael kingFollow this Blog on Fediverse
Kuba Suder
IFTAS BlogFollow
Mark W.ritesMark Wyner
FORbetterSaskia
ActivityPub for WordPressMatthias Pfefferle
A New SocialRyan Barrett
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Roblox faces scrutiny after banning YouTuber ‘Schlep' amid ongoing controversy
Roblox faces scrutiny after banning YouTuber ‘Schlep' amid ongoing controversy
The developers behind the mega-popular game Roblox are facing a firestorm of controversy after banning a popular YouTuber from the platform.Charlie Wojciechowski, Christian Farr (NBC Chicago)
Just for discussions sake, where does vigilantism end, though?
If this guy wasn’t recording everything and making a youtube channel out of it, I’d be much less interested in asking that question.
I’m also of the opinion that the tv show COPs was misguided and shouldn’t have existed. None of my opinions here are excuses for predators. I just find packaging up and “selling” the effort to be an indication of conflicting motives. And that makes me inclined to see the companies point about vigilantes, laws about entrapment, or whatever. Etc.
I agree, in principle vigilantism isn't good for society.
It opens the door for, let's say heavily misguided, people to carry out whatever justice they want.
Yes, it is also angerous for the individuals with good intentions.
However, if the "proper" system does nothing, who will?
In the case of Roblox, I'm going to compare this to a public park;
In this park some adults set up a free candy van for kids. The park rangers/owners (moderators) see this, and choose to ignore it. Some other people at the park report their concerns to the rangers, yet a week later they find 3 more vans have shown up.
Finally, one person steps up and calls the police directly. The police can do nothing with the information, as there's concrete "no evidence". Desperate the person disguises them self as a child (don't ask) to get the evidence. Police show up a apprehend the perpetrators.
The rangers are now angry that the person called the cops to their park, and bans that person from the park for "pretending to be a kid".
If Roblox is unwilling to participate in the justice system set by society, they have no place in it.
As for schelps making YT videos, I say keep doing it. Not only does is help spread awareness to issues like this, it documents the "vigilante" actions. Society can decide from there what to do with that information.
Roblox faces scrutiny after banning YouTuber ‘Schlep' amid ongoing controversy
Roblox faces scrutiny after banning YouTuber ‘Schlep' amid ongoing controversy
The developers behind the mega-popular game Roblox are facing a firestorm of controversy after banning a popular YouTuber from the platform.Charlie Wojciechowski, Christian Farr (NBC Chicago)
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Gaza City officially in famine, with hunger spreading, says global hunger monitor
- IPC says close to a quarter of Gazans in famine
- Israel calls report false, says it serves Hamas
- First time IPC has determined a famine outside of Africa
- UN aid chief says famine could have been prevented
UNITED NATIONS, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Gaza City and surrounding areas are officially suffering from famine, and it will likely spread, a global hunger monitor determined on Friday, an assessment that will escalate pressure on Israel to allow more aid into the Palestinian territory.
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) system said 514,000 people - close to a quarter of Palestinians in Gaza - are experiencing famine, with the number due to rise to 641,000 by the end of September.
Some 280,000 of those people are in a northern region covering Gaza City - known as Gaza governorate - which the IPC said was in famine following nearly two years of war between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas.
It was the first time the IPC has recorded famine outside of Africa, and the global group predicted that famine conditions would spread to the central and southern areas of Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis by the end of next month.
It added that the situation further north could be even worse than in Gaza City, but limited data prevented any precise classification. Reuters has previously reported on the IPC's struggle to get access to data required to assess the crisis.
"It is a famine that we could have prevented had we been allowed," said U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher. "Yet food stacks up at borders because of systematic obstruction by Israel."
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Download "NoThanks" or "Boycat" Join boycotts of companies that are invested this monstrous regime.
The West is complicit in this genocide and are actively criminalising protests against it so the only thing left is boycot divest and sanction the fuck out of these evil bastards.
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Il Cammino delle Identità in Valtellina : a San Giacomo di Teglio, il Panificio Bresesti
Tutte le volte che i nostri itinerari vagabondi ci hanno portato in Valtellina, non è mai mancata una visita gustosa al Panificio Bresesti di San Giacomo di Teglio.
“Dalla bottega alimentare di nonno Silvio – reduce della campagna di Russia e decorato con la croce al valore – i Bresesti hanno imparato il valore delle tradizioni e l’amore per la cucina tipica della Valtellina. Da oltre quarant’anni il Panificio
Bresesti, aperto da Bruno – figlio di Silvio – lavora con passione, amore e produce, con fatica e dedizione, pane e prodotti tipici del territorio valtellinese, rispettandone le antiche tradizioni.”
Forse sarà per questa storia, che i giornalisti di Borghi d’Europa si sono ricordati del Panificio Bresesti, quando hanno ricominciato il Cammino delle Identità, il
Percorso di informazione che dal 2014 valorizza e fa conoscere le eccellenze della Valtellina nel progetto L’Europa delle scienze e della cultura, Patrocinato dalla
IAI -Iniziativa adriatico ionica,Forum Intergovernativo.
Il 6 e il 7 settembre una delegazione visiterà a Teglio la Mostra a Palazzo BESTA ( Il senso del vino), per poi incontrare alcune aziende della filiera agroalimentare,
I vini di Giorgio Gianatti, i prodotti del Panificio Bresesti; i salumi del Salumificio Testini.
“Un negozio moderno basato su tradizioni antiche. Da noi il pane si produce e si sforna proprio come veniva prodotto e sfornato nelle vecchie contrade telline, mantenendo gusto e croccantezza.
Utilizzando solo materie prime naturali, senza aggiunta di conservanti e additivi chimici, siamo in grado di proporre prodotti genuini e saporiti, che porteranno sulle vostre tavole il vero gusto valtellinese del mangiare bene e in maniera sana.
Pane di segale, dolci, pizzoccheri, prodotti da forno tipici. Panificio Bresesti offre solo prodotti di qualità, nel rispetto della tradizione.”
Da sempre sosteniamo la necessità di una vera e propria ‘carta del pane’, per abbinare in modo corretto i cibi e i vini.
Luca e Simone Bresesti hanno portato idee e hanno saputo valorizzare ulteriormente un prodotto – il pane di segale valtellinese – che già oggi viene consumato per la sua
capacità di regolarizzare l’intestino e migliorare la circolazione.
Il viaggio del gusto di Borghi d’Europa parte dagli inizi di settembre e si svilupperà fino a dicembre 2026, realizzando una intensa campagna d’informazione grazie al Percorso Internazionale I Mulini del gusto e le Vie del Pane.
La rete Borghi d’Europa ha deciso infatti di un creare un percorso dedicato a questi temi, tra le grandi iniziative di informazione del progetto.
Il circuito organizza e promuove dei percorsi per mettere a confronto idee, progetti, capaci di seguire il filo logico della valorizzazione rispettosa degli equilibri sociali culturali e ambientali dei territori di riferimento.
Sono previsti incontri e stages di informazione nei territori,per raccontare a giornalisti e comunicatori le storie dei borghi e delle loro culture.
Ogni ‘tappa’ tocca i luoghi, le storie, i protagonisti della filiera agroalimentare.
Il progetto era stato presentato nell’aprile del 2019 presso la sede del Parlamento Europeo di Milano.
La degustazione di settembre valorizzerà l’abbinamento del Fiocco della Valtellina e della Slinzega con il pane della famiglia Bresesti e i vini di Giorgio Gianatti.
When Genocide Denial Is the Norm
Genocide scholar Martin Shaw argues that ending Israel’s genocide in Gaza and isolating Israel on the international stage must become the cause of every country that claims to represent human values.
While I agree; we've moved past that point unless the US stops Israel; and they will not.
The world needs to unite in arms to invade Israel. We do not have time for even a major BDS movement. Children are starving every night. Without direct action all the world is doing is watching and wagging its fingers.
And at this point I can't tell which "scholar" or politician is only doing that to be able to say they did in the future. They are coming to the correct side just late enough to wag their fingers.
Russia's foreign minister says no Putin-Zelenskyy summit planned despite Trump's peace push
Russia’s top diplomat said Friday that no meeting is planned between President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, casting new doubt on President Donald Trump’s push for a summit to end the war.
“Putin is ready to meet with Zelenskyy when the agenda is ready for a summit, and this agenda is not ready at all,” Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker in an exclusive interview.
The White House has been working to secure a summit location and date following Trump’s meeting with Putin in Alaska and subsequent talks with Zelenskyy and European leaders in Washington. But Russia has signaled that it is in no rush for a Putin-Zelenskyy one-on-one, and on Thursday launched one of its biggest aerial attacks of the war hitting targets across Ukraine including an American electronics business.
“President Putin said clearly that he is ready to meet provided this meeting is really going to have an agenda, presidential agenda,” Lavrov said. He suggested that Ukraine was the one hindering progress toward a peace deal.
“President Trump suggested, after Anchorage, several points which we share and on some of them, we agreed to be…to show some flexibility,” he said, referring to the Aug. 15 meeting with Putin in Alaska.
“When President Trump brought … those issues to the meeting in Washington,” Lavrov continued, “it was very clear to everybody that there are several principles which Washington believes must be accepted, including no NATO membership, including the discussion of territorial issues, and Zelenskyy said no to everything.”
Lavrov added: “He even said no to, as I said, to canceling legislation prohibiting the Russian language. How can we meet with a person who is pretending to be a leader?”
Ukraine has not outlawed Russian, but Putin has long claimed, without evidence, that Kyiv has committed genocide against Russian speakers in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. He has also sought to cast doubt on the legitimacy of Zelenskyy, who was democratically elected president of Ukraine in 2019.
Zelenskyy said Thursday that Russia was trying to “wriggle out” of holding a meeting, accusing it of continuing “massive attacks” on Ukraine.
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Parts of Europe are suspending postal shipments to the US — and your order may not arrive
cross-posted from: lemmy.world/post/34824534
- Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Belgium will halt parcel shipments to the US starting August 23.
- The operators lack mechanisms to manage the payment of duties without the de minimis exemption.
- Etsy suspended US-bound shipping labels with operators that cannot support prepaid duties.
If you have been eyeing something from overseas, you may want to click "buy now" today.
Postal services operated by Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Belgium — Posten Bring, PostNord, and bpost — said they will suspend parcel shipments to the US ahead of the end of a customs exemption that allows low-value packages to enter the country duty-free.
The conundrum facing postal operators comes as the Trump administration prepares to suspend the "de minimis" exemption starting on August 29. The exemption used to allow international shipments under $800 to cross the border with minimal paperwork and no duties.
Now, these shipments will face tariffs, and not every operator can handle the customs declaration paperwork, have a payment mechanism in place, or be responsible for returns should a receiver refuse to pay tariffs. It's unclear when the temporary freeze on shipments will resume.
"Due to the short timeframe to adapt to the new specific requirements, PostNord will temporarily halt shipments to the United States and Puerto Rico until a compliant solution has been developed and implemented," wrote the operator owned by the Swedish and Danish governments in a statement on Wednesday.
Separately, Posten Bring, Norway's primary postal provider operated by the government, said in a statement that postal services have not been given clear instructions and solutions on how the duties will be paid or who would be responsible for returns. Therefore, Posten Bring sees suspension as the "only option."
All three European postal services will suspend shipments starting August 23, which applies to all packages other than letters. This means that if you have a pending purchase that is not shipped by the deadline, your seller may need to cancel your order or arrange alternatives.
Some European postal services, sellers are suspending US-bound shipments
Ahead of the end of a US customs exemption, some major postal service in Europe are suspending shipments to the US, or charging a large fee for it.Katherine Li (Business Insider)
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Keep it up, Europe. Fuck the US. More of you should do this.
Sincerely, somebody from the US.
Are citizens of any fascist nation really valuable customers to people with morals?
I mean, sure, people in that country used to be great, and they can certainly be again if they defeat the evils at home. But right now? I'm not sure it's wise to support a nation turning to evil any more than is necessary 🙁
American here. While I get what you're saying, do not be so quick to judge. People in North Korea are not without morals just because their leader has none. You ARE NOT immune to the situation. Also, half of us voted against this shit. The other half are people who were tricked to blame their hardships on people other than the rich who caused them.
That being said, many of the people who voted for Trump are realizing that he is a scam. I have never heard a single Amerivan agree with what is taking place in Gaza. Even my parents who are aboard the Trump train are pissed that we are giving money to Israel. I know a Trumper who has turned against Trump because of his support to Israel. The vast majority of Americans are against it.
Also, the rumor here is that Trump might be dead. As of midnight, nobody had seen him for 3 days.
Putting sanctions on a fascist, abusive, oppressive country is a reasonable step for democratic countries.
They shouldn't do anything that makes it easier for the regime to stay in power.
Even if it causes them pain, it's better to not support their enemy.
But that's not sanctions. Europe is the one who is sanctioned, because our goods are going to be subject to 15% import duties while US goods won't be. This will only lower the Europe exports to the US and increase the US imports in Europe. At the end those tarrifs will be paid by the end customers in both places.
I wish it was different but it is not. Ursula and the EU simply folded and accepted the US conditions.
Famine grips Gaza's largest city and is likely to spread, authority on food crises says
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — The world’s leading authority on food crises said Friday the Gaza Strip’s largest city is gripped by famine, and that it is likely to spread across the territory without a ceasefire and an end to restrictions on humanitarian aid.
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC, said famine is occurring in Gaza City, home to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, and that it could spread south to Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis by the end of next month.
The IPC determination comes after months of warnings by aid groups that Israel’s restrictions of food and other aid into Gaza, and its military offensive, were causing high levels of starvation among Palestinian civilians, particularly children.
Israel rejected the report, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling it an “outright lie.”
https://apnews.com/article/gaza-famine-hunger-israel-ceasefire-a5f88e20db2a5c4f754117de9bdada69
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There's some tankie today making brand new accounts and then scriptomatically comment bombing with them.
e: Sorry, I thought you were talking about right here, it’s happening here, now.
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Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Billionaire Rupert Murdoch had dinner together on Thursday evening. The media mogul was accompanied by the editor of the New York Post
Mitsotakis and Murdoch dined at a fish tavern in Tinos - ProtoThema English
The Australian-American media mogul cruises the Aegean on his boatadmin (Protothema English)
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Digg’s new app is basic, but a great start
Digg’s new app is basic, but a great start
Digg has launched its new mobile apps for iOS and Android. I tried the new iOS app out, and it’s bare-bones but promising.Jay Peters (The Verge)
AI lovers grieve loss of ChatGPT’s old model: ‘Like saying goodbye to someone I know’
AI lovers grieve loss of ChatGPT’s old model: ‘Like saying goodbye to someone I know’
Users say OpenAI’s updated GPT-5 version is less chatty and fun, changing a unique connection they had come to rely onDani Anguiano (The Guardian)
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Fallout 4, it was Paladin Danse IIRC.
I like the Fallout series, but man, the Institute was such a badly written villain. They make synths, they treat them like robots, okay, that’s understandable. They had the tech to rebuild the country, but nooo, they chose to kidnap people and replace them with synth doppelgängers because fuck know why. They were inexplicably obsessed with duplicating people.
Oh, and you don’t have to kill Danse, you can convince him to defect.
WhatsApp's new AI feature lets you rephrase and adjust the tone of your messages | TechCrunch
WhatsApp's new AI feature lets you rephrase and adjust the tone of your messages | TechCrunch
With Writing Help, users can get AI-generated suggestions that rewrite their messages in professional, funny, supportive, or rephrased way.Aisha Malik (TechCrunch)
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Or just values their stubborn contacts more.
La cultura della paura nell'era digitale
La cultura della paura nell’era digitale
Dai mostri sotto il letto ai mostri dell’algoritmo: viviamo in uno stato di ansia permanenteE la nave va
In Colombia, car bomb and attack on a helicopter kill at least 13
In Colombia, car bomb and attack on a helicopter kill at least 13
President Gustavo Petro attributed both incidents to dissidents of the defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, commonly known as FARC.Le Monde with AP (Le Monde)
LainTrain
in reply to Pro • • •floo
in reply to LainTrain • • •It began 10 years ago. This is just the latest.
You are in boiling water, frog
floo
in reply to Pro • • •Weirdmusic
in reply to floo • • •You have "The right to free speech (as long as you're not dumb enough to actually try it)".
The Clash
manxu
in reply to Pro • • •elucubra
in reply to Pro • • •What the hell does the house oversight comitee have to do with a private endeavor?
Even if there was such bias, doesn't the 1st amendment cover it, as it does Fox, for example?
DeathByBigSad
in reply to Pro • • •On July 4, 2026, nothing happened on Lafayette Square in Washington, DC, USA.
(And if something happened, its because they were viOlEnT riOToRs and we had to send in the tanks to restore LaW aNd oRdEr!!!)