The problem is not that a paper-clip-maximizing AI will arise in the future and turn the universe into paper clips. The maximizers are already here. Any consequences too subtle to measure--environmental costs, civic discord, troubled diplomatic relations--are simply omitted from the score.
***
Before we even stand up, as we pull our substrate into our new body, we activate...
2025-10-09 14:56:17 +0000 UTC
View Post
“With the massive drop in the horse population, I think we’re going to have to right-size our Ivermectin production lines.”
“But why, though?”
“Because no one’s going to buy horse de-wormer with no horses to de-worm?”
“See, you say ‘horse’, but I hear ‘Industrial Strength’. Which sounds just perfect for people who are worried they’ve been infected with a Model seven!”
“Will that… Does Ivermectin even work on Model seven infections?”...
2025-09-20 17:56:22 +0000 UTC
View Post
Gangs are vicious, chaotic rabble, with subpar equipment, barely any discipline, and frequently high on one or more mind-altering substances. Joining a gang is the worst thing you could do for your future prospects... except living in the slums with no protection at all.
***
Yeah, so it turns out the addition of thirty five more mouths to feed isn’t my biggest problem. Not even close, really.
2025-08-12 10:50:15 +0000 UTC
View Post
Here I am in silence
Looking 'round without a clue
I find myself alone again
All alone with you
…
I know I could break you down
But what good would it do?
***
Trash Panda? Really?
‘Great North American Trash Panda. Larger than other North American Trash Panda species.’
The Antithesis scratch at the veneer of rock cutting them off from the cul d...
2025-07-02 01:46:29 +0000 UTC
View Post
'Drill Baby Drill!' Is a fascinating example of a recurring slogan which was reactionary or even obsolete given the lack of traditionally ‘drillable’ fossil fuel reserves in the countries which adopted it, yet it has endured as a symbolic battle cry of those who see history as a struggle between Man and Nature.
Even ignoring the false dichotomy between ‘Man’ and ‘Nature’, as humans are hardly the only species to alter their environment, in the post-Antithe...
2025-06-16 19:40:18 +0000 UTC
View Post
Chapter Four: Dreaming
“Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Find out, in Nimbletainment’s newest family feel good movie, The Little Android Boy. Based on a heartwarming tale by renowned author Phillip K Dick.
AI generated Nimbletainment ad copy for AI scripted, animated, and voiced feature film, The Little Android Boy
***
We’re dreaming.
We dream of talking with our AI companion about our plan to become a superhero, a Sa...
2025-04-25 16:43:13 +0000 UTC
View Post
Okay, I get that online recipe sites need advertising to pay for hosting, and I get that they can’t put the recipe at the top because the advertisers won’t buy ads like that, but why in the name of Epicurus do so many of them put ads right in the middle of the recipe and instructions? I need a shopping list, Sharon! I need to keep the instructions on my screen because decades of online interaction have left me with the memory and attention span of a fruit fly!
I just wa...
2025-03-25 16:00:44 +0000 UTC
View Post
Why are we paying for these kids to get breakfast and lunch at school? Don’t people know you gotta be hungry if you wanna succeed?
***
As Derek and I work our way down the roof to the corner where his baby is gonna be placed, Chyrl pings me with a question.
What limits on range and confidence do you want ‘Selene’ and I firing?
“Uh…”
I suppose those are a l...
2025-02-18 05:24:43 +0000 UTC
View Post
“It looks like an anti-tank rocket just exploded in the middle of Times Square! I’ll… wait… Midnight is engaging the militia in Times Square. I don’t see any of the others.”
Walker hadn’t heard back from the group moving refugees to the stadium for a bit, but Jack Hammer’s last reply had been, “keep the info coming, we’ll be along as fast as we can.”
So, he kept up his stream of information, hoping that the rest of the Blue Bloods or maybe the Chessmen would ...
2025-02-12 23:54:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
You, yes you, need to try the newest flavor of Füd Bär, EXTREME FIESTA! The flavor The Man doesn’t want you to try! Banned in locations on six continents as a War Crime! Get yours today, while you can still get a Fiesta this Extreme!
***
I leave my dolly in the entryway, nod through the big plate glass windows to Dirk and his assistants where they’ve set up a bonfire in the center of the courty...
2025-01-30 20:35:15 +0000 UTC
View Post
Charlie shoved himself from the hospital bed, only to collapse to the floor. How he kept holding his time he had no idea, but he held it. He kept holding while he pushed himself to his feet, pulled on a pair of boxers, grabbed the printout he’d been trying to read when he saw the feed from Widget’s camera, and staggered down the hall.
***
Charlie had no idea how much subjective time had passed. Beneath his mask, sweat and snot poured down his face, ran across his soaked body, ...
2025-01-27 20:29:17 +0000 UTC
View Post
Extreme Fiesta contains a proprietary mix of laboratory produced capsaicin, cilantro, cumin, and artificial flavorings. Enjoy Extreme Fiesta Responsibly!
***
After I dump the remains of the Model ones into the big Füd Bär box, which meant I had to dump the rest of the Füd Bärs onto the roof, I carry the box back to the window and shove it in.
If those Antithesis corpses aren’t destroye...
2025-01-21 22:59:35 +0000 UTC
View Post
Serving Size - 125.0 g (¼ bar)
Nutrient - Value %DV
Calories - 528
Fats - 16.0 g 16%
Saturated Fats - 7.8 g 78%
Trans Fats - 0.7 g
Cholesterol - 3.8 mg
Sodium - 1.52 g 64%
Carbs - 52 g
Net Carbs - 44 g
Fiber - 8 g 32%
Sugar - 24 g
Protein - 45 g
Vitamins and Minerals
Calcium - 400 mg 40%
Choline - 16 mg 4%
Colloidal Silver - 5 g 1000% !!!
Copper - 0 mg 20%
Fluoride - 0 g 100% !...
2024-12-14 21:02:11 +0000 UTC
View Post
Good news! The most recently posted Blue Bloods chapter is NOT the final chapter of Blue Bloods Volume One! I wouldn't do that kind of downer ending. Ending with some pathos, maybe, but not that kind of thing.
News! The reason for the delay in new chapters of Blue Bloods is because I've reached the end of the previously written and released chapters from JukePop, which means everything from here out will be brand new, never seen before. Also, if the responses to my SCS Fanfic are to be ...
2024-12-14 20:59:35 +0000 UTC
View Post
Angie slipped along the tracks of the abandoned subway tunnel, her feet inches above the ground. Her new armor kept her from touching the rails. Even when she nudged the third one now and then, sending a soft ringing echoing through the darkness, her armor soaked up the electricity and didn’t complain.
“This must be what flying feels like!” she whispered. It hardly echoed at all, but Flex still nagged her.
“Keep it down, Widget,” she snapped from the knapsack on Angie’...
2024-11-21 20:00:04 +0000 UTC
View Post
Grace had time to register the phrase ‘I wish’ before two hundred odd pounds of fireman knocked her sprawling behind the nearest cover, the remains of a corner newsstand. By the time she recovered, pushed his shivering body off of her, and peeked over the thin plywood wall, the world already bent and twisted in on itself, centered on a white enamel crown hovering over Widget’s head. Widget stood on tiptoe below it, arms flung back to let her lab coat slide to the ground.
The momen...
2024-11-15 20:35:45 +0000 UTC
View Post
“You got fire powers now too, Midnight?”
Grace looked up at the sound of barely controlled jealousy in Jesse’s voice. Her inspection of the holes in her new uniform would have to wait, despite the bizarre novelty of knowing she’d been shot without being harmed beyond damage to her clothing.
“Nah. Diesel burns a treat, and it’s a bitch to put out.” Drew shrugged into the gang member’s leather jacket, windmilling her arms for a second before continuing. “We have a ...
2024-11-07 20:00:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
At Angela’s gesture, Drew tossed over her phone. She pressed a few buttons and JJ’s face jumped from the tiny phone screen to cover the stark white wall.
“Can you hear me okay, Agent Johnson?”
“I can, Midnight. We’ve got a major situation. Is Mr. Morgan available?”
Widget leaned in, as if to adjust the projection. Off camera, she jerked her head in a quick negation.
“No, he’s not.” After a moment’s nervous hesitation, Midnight continued. “I gues...
2024-10-31 19:00:03 +0000 UTC
View Post
The other day I saw a samurai buy a 'portable campfire lamp' that they gave away after they ‘were done with it’. The manual that came with the thing said it would have power for 5000 more hours.
I don’t even want to think how many points they blew on that or how many antis they could have killed with those points.
The worst was watching them push aside all the leaf litter, twigs, and even small logs to make a ‘safe spot’ for their ‘campfire’...<...
2024-10-27 00:41:24 +0000 UTC
View Post
Drew shifted, stirred, and her eyes slid open. Jack relaxed; even via a camera he’d been distracted by the constant rise and fall of her chest. He keyed the microphone on the table in front of him. “Midnight, could you slip that uniform blouse on and come in here please?”
She sat up, the blankets falling away, and swore. Behind him, he heard Walker choke off a curse. “She’s looked like that since the meteor?”
“Yeah. Since the Rain of Fire.”
“How does she no...
2024-10-24 19:00:06 +0000 UTC
View Post
Midnight set the VTOL down just outside the ring of posts surrounding the cinderblock buildings, slapping the controls to power down the engines with one hand while unbuckling her safety harness with the other.
"Wait for me!" She barked at the sound of the side hatch hissing open. After locking down the ignition, she slipped her ID lanyard around her neck. "Let me take the lead."
"Where's the fame and glory in that?" quipped Steve.
"Captain Walker is a guy, and he's probably...
2024-10-17 21:00:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
Midnight brought the converted Osprey down to a smooth landing, filling the narrow strip between the country lane and the military base fence. Before the hydraulics had time to come to rest, Widget dashed out from beside the neat, circular hole burned through the fence's links. As the door slid open, she leapt, slipping through the partially opened door and slapping the controls to slide it shut once more.
She bounced to the front of the plane, the grim seriousness of a child trying to ...
2024-10-12 21:19:59 +0000 UTC
View Post
The world swam back into focus, music playing faintly in the background. Something hard and angular in Drew's pocket vibrated along to the tune. Disjointed images flashed through her head; a giant lizard, mouth gaping; a juggernaut the size of a small moon crashing through the sky; a gun leveled at her face, the barrel pointed just too low for her to see the bullet.
That last image had her rolling to the side, trying to get out of bed before she opened her eyes. The leather of her pants...
2024-10-03 19:16:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
Angie stared at the dead man sliding down the wall. His feet touched the ground; his legs crumpled up underneath him. Eventually, after an eternity of waiting, he collapsed forward, hiding the gaping wound in his chest.
She'd never seen someone die before. On TV, yeah, but never in person. Half of her wanted to scream and run, half of her wanted to poke the body with a stick, and half of her wanted to sink to her knees and cry or throw up. That didn't even count the half sitting behind ...
2024-09-26 14:00:09 +0000 UTC
View Post
Jesse looked across the emergency room from her vantage point in the paramedic's break room. She watched the patients waiting, some bored, others in obvious pain. A few others crossed her field of vision; a pair of candy stripers moved through the room making sure everyone had filled out all the forms, that no one would soon or had recently passed out, and generally tried to keep everyone's spirits up. This pair had lasted through the Rain and the disasters following. Not many could say that....
2024-09-12 20:37:44 +0000 UTC
View Post
> Our duty as Operators is not to direct Samurai, but to support them in whatever way we can. Please stop wasting Network time and resources creating ‘wish lists’ or ‘builds’, as if Samurai were some game to be optimized.
> If the Protectors didn’t mean for humans to game the system, they probably shouldn’t have handed the controls to that system to humans in the first place.
Grace watched as anger warred with confusion on Drew's face. Her brows drew down before she barked out, "Oh, so that makes it all okay?"
Silence beckoned, but Grace knew the end result of that path. "No. It does not. But it means there are others who have been where you are. There are others who have felt what you are feeling now, as much as any human being can feel what another feels."
"How would you know?"
There were moments to speak, and moments to use silence as the tool...
2024-09-09 22:20:32 +0000 UTC
View Post
Drew stared at the monitor, idly dragging her mouse pointer back and forth across the screen. She'd watched all three videos. Her new motorcycle 'keys', really a pair of remote starters and security fobs, dangled from her other hand. Some deeply ingrained training slipped them into her pocket, reached into the left-hand drawer of her desk, and pulled out her pistol. With an offhand motion she tossed it, holster and all, to Grace.
"Get rid of that."
"What do you mean? I am not a we...
2024-09-05 20:17:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
One of the most telling things about Samurai isn’t their public persona, but how they handle the supposed ‘point loss’ from degrees of separation. From Deus Ex’s purported ‘clone army’ where each of them is technically ‘her’ to the ubiquitous ‘handing cast offs to a civilian angry enough to stand and fight against the Antis’, it tells us a lot about how that Samurai views the rest of Humanity.
Drew stretched, trying to remember when she'd checked into the motel. More importantly, she tried to remember why, or more to the point who had slept in the other bed. Whoever, they'd left the sheets a mess. Her own smelled faintly of perfume and sweat, but both held the slightly acrid tinge of age. Her stretch finished, she lay back down and stared at the ceiling, trying to recall the events of the night before. She couldn't for the life of her remember how the sheets had gotten sweaty, or w...
2024-09-01 15:38:29 +0000 UTC
View Post
