Pluralistic: The enshittification of solar (and how to stop it) (23 Sep 2025) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow
Society
Visualized: U.S. Government Spending (1980 vs. Today)
See how U.S. government spending nearly tripled since 1980, with major increases in Social Security and Medicare.
Does WiFi Make Students Smarter? - Cal Newport
At a time when educators are increasingly concerned about technology’s impact in the classroom, the Washington Post published an op-ed with a contrarian tone. The ... Read more
The Grand Imposters
In Grace, a Movement’s Moral Bankruptcy on Grotesque Display
Canada and Mexico Turn to Trains and Ports to Skirt U.S. Tariff Wall
Prime Minister Mark Carney touched down in Mexico City to regain Mexico’s trust and strategize with President Claudia Sheinbaum.
The lost art of thinking historically ⊗ How climate broke reality ⊗ Does the Bitter Lesson have limits?
No.371 — Why 95% of AI commentary fails ⊗ Designing futures you can live in ⊗ AI water usage at data centers ⊗ “Solarize everything we possibly can” ⊗ Warsaw opens metro station “express” library
The historical contingencies of Anglo-capitalism
Capitalism is a social technology and a system of governance predicated on specific historical developments.
U.S. already has the critical minerals it needs – but they're being thrown away, new analysis shows
The findings, published in the journal Science, show that improved recovery of critical minerals such as cobalt, lithium and rare earth elements currently being discarded as tailings of other mineral streams could meet the U.S. demand for energy, defense and technology applications.
“What’s a ‘Libertarian Authoritarian’?”
…Let Me Help You Out In a review of Offended Freedom: The Rise of Libertarian Authoritarianism, Reason’s Brian Doherty summarizes the book’s topic as “people formerly of the left, who ‘were once committed to an emancipatory transformation of the existing order,’ who have pivoted to hostility toward openness to foreigners and the wider world and...
They’re kidnapping people off the street cartel-style
I've become accustomed to being lied to every day by now. About Israel and immigrants and trans people to name but a few. But there has been a superlative concentration of lies this past week. A novel density of lying. Something that feels massive. And not just from the people
Prediction markets are booming. Oversight is barely there.
Prediction markets once lived on the academic fringe. Now they’re trading billions on politics, sports, and celebrity gossip — under rules never designed for retail gamblers.
The Corporate Power Reset That Makes Citizens United Irrelevant
By using their authority to define what corporations are—and what powers they hold—states can end the era of corporate and dark money in U.S. politics.
"$330 Million Fleet Crosses 5,280 Miles": Mark Zuckerberg Uses Two Superyachts to Bypass Norway's Helicopter Landing Regulations
During the Easter holidays, while many sought relaxation, Mark Zuckerberg embarked on a grand adventure. The Meta CEO mobilized his two superyachts for an
Police cameras tracked one driver 526 times in four months, lawsuit says
Flock Safety says it has become “the largest public-private safety network” in the country.
From “how might we” to “at what cost”
Designing with curiosity and criticality for responsible outcomes.
When CEO pay exploded (update) : Planet Money
(Note: A version of this episode originally ran in 2016.)It’s no secret that CEOs get paid a ton – and a ton more than the average worker. More than a hundred times than what their average employee makes. But it wasn’t always this way. So, how did this gap get so vast? And why? On today’s episode … we go back to a specific moment when the way CEOs were paid got changed. It involves Bill Clinton's campaign promises, and Silicon Valley workers taking to the streets to protest an accounting rule. And of course, Dodd Frank. Subscribe to Planet Money+Listen free: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the NPR app or anywhere you get podcasts.Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.This episode was hosted by Jacob Goldstein and Stacey Vanek Smith, and was originally produced by Nick Fountain. This update was reported and produced by Willa Rubin and edited by Alex Goldmark.
American Higher Ed Never Figured Out Its Purpose
The centuries-long debate over who and what college is for has yet to be resolved.
A Deep Dive On Creepy Cameras
George Orwell might’ve predicted the surveillance state, but it’s still surprising how many entities took 1984 as a how-to manual instead of a cautionary tale. [Benn Jordan] decided to …
Epistemic Collapse at the WSJ
For a long time now fundamental theoretical physics has been suffering not just from a slowdown in progress, but from a sort of intellectual collapse (I wrote about this here a while back in the co…
“The Wider Benefits of Choosing Life Off the Grid” | naked capitalism
An argument that going off the grid is about a lot more than solar power and gardens.
Pluralistic: Wallet voting (13 Sep 2025) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow
Megawatts and Gigawatts of AI
We can’t not talk about power these days. We’ve been talking about it ever since the Stargate project, with half a trillion dollars in datacenter investment,
Pluralistic: Trump steals $400b from American workers (09 Sep 2025) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow
Pluralistic: Hate the player AND the game (10 Sep 2025) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow
DHS Claims Videotaping ICE Raids Is ‘Violence’
The expanded definition has justified assaults on journalists who have documented detentions of immigrants.
What the Polls Are Screaming to ‘Mainstream’ Democrats
Today on TAP: The Democratic rank and file is much more aligned with Bernie, AOC, and Zohran than it is with Chuck and Hakeem.
The death of the corporate job.
Last week, I had coffee with someone who works at a big consulting firm.
The Ascension of William and Mary, Britain's First Co-Monarchs, Marked a Victory for Protestantism
The equal rulers returned England to Protestant rule and began a new era of royal leadership defined by parliamentary oversight
AI vs. MAGA: Populists alarmed by Trump’s embrace of AI, Big Tech
AI “threatens the common man’s liberty,” says GOP Sen. Josh Hawley.
Bartender explains why he swiftly kicks out Nazis even if they're 'not bothering anyone'
Would you want to drink with a Nazi?