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http://www.cnbc.com/2015/08/24/caitlyn-jenner-halloween-costume-sparks-social-media-outrage-.html

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ne...een-costume-labeled-817515?utm_source=twitter

It's nowhere near October, but one ensemble is already on track to be named the most controversial Halloween costume of 2015.

Social media users were out in full force on Monday criticizing several Halloween retailers for offering a Caitlyn Jenner costume reminiscent of the former-athlete's Vanity Fair cover earlier this year.

While Jenner's supporters condemned the costume as "transphobic" and "disgusting" on Twitter, Spirit Halloween, a retailer that carries the costume, defended the getup.

"At Spirit Halloween, we create a wide range of costumes that are often based upon celebrities, public figures, heroes and superheroes," said Lisa Barr, senior director of marking at Spirit Halloween. "We feel that Caitlyn Jenner is all of the above and that she should be celebrated. The Caitlyn Jenner costume reflects just that."
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The Washington Post chicken out.

July 17, 2022

The Washington Post capitulates before an unruly online mob​

By Rajan Laad


Last Thursday, Democrat mouthpiece The Washington Post carried a piece by Fareed Zakaria with a headline that read, "Forget Pronouns: Democrats need to become the party of building things".
Zakaria who is a known Democrat sympathizer and hosts a weekend show on CNN issued a stark warning to the Democrats.
Zakaria referred to serious issues that plague the US including the crumbling infrastructure, a fragile economy, and social problems.
Zakaria conceded that "The Democratic Party has moved left, that it is out of sync with Americans” and that “it needs to correct course."
Zakaria cited journalist David Leonhardt’s analysis of a New York Times poll that “Democrats — both politicians and voters, seem more focused on divisive cultural issues than on most Americans’ everyday concerns, like inflation."

Zakaria added that "Democrats have become paralyzed by their own ideas and interest groups, and no one seems able to break through and get things done.”
Zakaria warned the Democrats that GOP leaders such as President Trump are "clever at weaponizing the words of a few left-wing Democrats and branding them as the face of the party."
Zakaria concluded his piece by cautioning the Democrats that “This is not a perception problem. It is a real problem. Democrats need to once more become the party that gets stuff done, builds things, and makes government work for people. That’s a lot more important to most Americans than using the right pronouns."
The piece proved how panic-stricken the Democrats are not just about the midterms but their overall prospects in 2024.
Zakaria tweeted about his article with a caption that “getting stuff done” is “a lot more important to most Americans than using the right pronouns.”
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Golfer Cameron Smith move from the PGA to the LIV.

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — Cameron Smith is the newly-minted Open champ. But he is also the reigning Players champ, capturing the PGA Tour’s flagship event this past March. And the tour can’t be too excited about a peculiar response from Smith regarding its burgeoning rival.
That would be LIV Golf, the fledgling Saudi-backed circuit that has threatened a schism at the professional level. Smith, like many in his position, has been linked to LIV Golf over the past few months, and he has been a past participant at the Saudi International, the event run by the same organization that funds LIV operations. So when taking the dias in the media center after his win at the Old Course on Sunday, Smith was asked about his interests in jumping to the newly-created league.
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https://www.pcgamer.com/chinas-mind-reading-porn-detection-cap-takes-censorship-to-new-levels/

China's 'mind-reading' porn detection cap takes censorship to new levels​

By Katie Wickens published 4 days ago
The device is around 80% accurate in detecting illicit imagery through human brainwave activity.

Flag of China

(Image credit: Bloomberg Creative - Getty Images)




Researchers in China have come up with a new and elaborate way to detect porn for the purpose of censorship. The helmet-like device can detect spikes in human brainwave patters when the watcher is presented with pornographic imagery.


Porn has been illegal in China since the People's Republic was formed in 1949, so censorship is a pretty big player over there, if you weren't aware already. AI bots have, for some time, been set loose on the web in a bid to detect and flag any indecent imagery found. 'Porn appraisers,' or jian huang shi, the majority of whom are women, are also in position to help catch what the AI misses, but a lot of things still slip through these barriers and filter out to the porn-starved general public.

As such, China isn't satisfied with its current censorship tactics. That's according to Interesting Engineering(opens in new tab), which brought the South China Morning Post(opens in new tab) article to our attention (via Hackaday(opens in new tab)).



In order to improve and automate the censorship that is already going on, Beijing Jiaotong University researchers developed the 'mind-reading' helmet, which looks more like a shower cap covered in wires, to maximise the efficiency of it's current efforts. It's able to detect pornographic imagery with high accuracy, and is even able to filter through potentially detracting brain waves caused by emotional states, low energy levels, and random thoughts.
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We speak to the people behind The Fuel Rats, a specialist community of Elite Dangerous Commanders who often risk their own safety to rescue those who find themselves stranded in the far corners of the galaxy, running out of fuel. Run out of fuel and you soon run out of Oxygen, and help is rarely nearby. That's when you need to call The Fuel Rats! Exploration is a huge part of the appeal of Elite Dangerous, but for one intrepid explorer, curiosity very nearly got the better of him... until The Fuel Rats embarked on a daring rescue mission that took over 600 hours of flying! CMDR. Deluvian set out from the edge of the Milky way and travelled over 140 light years away before calling for help... Would the Fuel Rats get to him in time? Find out in the latest episode of Tales from the hard drive from PC Gamer #elitedangerous #TheFuelRats #Elitedangerousoddessy #PC #Gaming #PCGamer




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The research participants consisted of 15 male volunteers, aged 20-25, who I'm assuming were shown 'straight' porn (homosexuality is legal but still widely frowned upon in China(opens in new tab)).


Researchers note that the technology worked almost every single time participants were presented with explicit imagery. However, it did trigger some false alarms. Researchers blame the 80% accuracy on inadequate levels of training material.

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It's assumed that these will be tools to help porn appraisers do their jobs more effectively; rather than clicking through hundreds of images a day, assigning them either a pass or fail on the horny scale, they can be shown a bulk of images in quick succession, and the computer will use their brainwave data to do the rest.

It's sure to make their process faster, but there are concerns over what new, invasive laws could spring up around brainwave monitoring when using the web. Right now there is no law against using devices like these, nor is there a law to govern the kind of data that can be collected by them.

Orwellian nightmares aside, my theory is that the device's 80% accuracy wasn't down to overly complex imagery or a lack of training material. I feel like it could've had something to do with the fact that, in order to comply with the current porn consumption laws, participants had to be shown already censored images that frankly wouldn't have excited a bull in heat.

That might have had something to do with it.
Katie Wickens

Katie Wickens Hardware Writer
Screw sports, Katie would rather watch Intel, AMD and Nvidia go at it. Having been obsessed with computers and graphics for three long decades, she took Game Art and Design up to Masters level at uni, and has been demystifying tech and science—rather sarcastically—for two years since. She can be found admiring AI advancements, scrambling for scintillating Raspberry Pi projects, preaching cybersecurity awareness, sighing over semiconductors, and gawping at the latest GPU upgrades. She's been heading the PCG Steam Deck content hike, while waiting patiently for her chance to upload her consciousness into the cloud.
 
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Foxxo said:
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Best external SSDs(opens in new tab): plug in upgrades for gaming laptops and consoles
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Dafuq edit this shit out you lazy bastard.
 
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A Tekle Sandberg, nog was trying to pull off a cool wallbang kill on his neighbor and her kids but then the cops got involved and apparently sniped him.
What's more interesting is the Sandberg family, wyte(?) liberals who adopted him from Ethiopia.
See video here: https://twitter.com/AttorneyCrump/status/1548323063745245184
Also there's a video of the woman who got shot at yelling at protestors, https://twitter.com/DeevonRahming/status/1548439171693367301
Supposedly he was stalking her but she didn't call the police becasue she didn't want a poor mentally ill black man to get in trouble.
 
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Agent of Z.O.G. said:
Supposedly he was stalking her but she didn't call the police becasue she didn't want a poor mentally ill black man to get in trouble.
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That's why that "don't call the cops on a dindu" shit is stupid. If they'd intervened earlier he might still be alive.
 
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Pee Cola said:
Autistic high school kid finds work as a coding teacher. Sharing because his entire family is autistic. Well, his brothers definitely are, and his parents look like they're probably on the spectrum (or maybe it's just a serious case of Van Houten syndrome). Either way it's a feel good story about spergs being productive members of society.
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It's the first time I see an entire autistic family.
 
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Roman Polanski rape case testimony can be unsealed, LA prosecutor says
Polanski, known for films such as Rosemary’s Baby and The Pianist, admitted in August 1977 to forcing Samantha Geimer, who was 13 at the time, to have sex. The director pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor but fled to France before a sentencing hearing and has been a fugitive from justice ever since.

The film-maker has long sought the release of the transcript, which he believes will help his case and allow him to eventually return to the US without facing arrest.

Geimer, too, has asked for the transcript to be unsealed. In a letter to the DA’s office, Geimer, who has sought to have the case against Polanski dismissed, asked that the office “take a fresh look” at the case and investigate alleged judicial misconduct.
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Found this story from a couple weeks ago when looking at the writer's profile.
 
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