Source: Astral Codex Ten
by Scott Alexander

“Most discourse on AI is low-quality. Most discourse on consciousness is super-abysmal-double-low quality. Multiply these — or maybe raise one to the exponent of the other, or something — and you get the quality of discourse on AI consciousness. It’s not great. … But a rare bright spot has appeared: a seminal paper published earlier this month in Trends In Cognitive Science, Identifying Indicators Of Consciousness In AI Systems.” (11/19/25)

https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/the-new-ai-consciousness-paper

Source: Expression
by Chapin Lenthall-Cleary

“I recently wrote about the significant gender tolerance gap. That naturally raises another question: are there controllable factors that actually help make people better or worse on this front? One obvious candidate is political involvement. Maybe political participation broadens people’s exposure to clashing viewpoints and forces them to wrestle with ideas they’d otherwise ignore. Maybe it teaches civic virtues like freedom of expression. Or maybe it simply funnels them into ideological echo chambers where bad habits grow and tempers get sharp. Turns out both stories might be true — just not for the same genders …” (11/19/25)

https://expression.fire.org/p/voting-is-tied-to-more-tolerance

Source: International Guild of Professional Anarchists

“Politicians don’t stand up and shout, ‘Give me liberty or give me death,’ anymore. Their version is closer to: ‘Give me your fear and I’ll rent your freedom back to you, one crisis at a time.’ That’s the real slogan of modern governance, and Fearmongering 101 is the core course every aspiring ruler passes with honors. The curriculum is simple: invent or exaggerate a crisis, declare yourself the only solution, demand more power, money, and obedience, then repeat the process until the public is too anxious and exhausted to notice the chains tightening. This isn’t a conspiracy theory; it’s standard operating procedure.” (11/19/25)

https://alexandersnitker.substack.com/p/fearmongering-101-how-politicians

Source: Eastern New Mexico News
by Kent McManigal

“Where do you stand on the penny issue? Are you pro-penny, anti-penny, or do you not care one way or the other? Did you even know there was a ‘penny issue?’ On Nov. 12, the U.S. Mint stopped issuing pennies; it minted its final one-cent coin. Maybe. Some people are upset by this development; others think it’s long past due. The problem with pennies is two-fold: due to the devaluation of the dollar (‘inflation’), each penny costs over three cents to make and distribute. In addition, the rampant creation of inflated U.S. dollars by the Federal Reserve — which I consider the largest counterfeiting operation in world history — has made them useless. Other than psychologically, I suppose.” (11/19/25)

https://www.easternnewmexiconews.com/story/2025/11/19/voices/opinion-penny-symbolic-of-useless-government/232161.html

Source: Bluegrass Institute
by Vance Ginn

“Property ownership is the cornerstone of a free society. It reflects the natural right of individuals to control what they create, earn, or voluntarily exchange with others. From that right flows responsibility, independence, and the ability to build a legacy. Yet today, homeowners must pay the government every year simply to keep what they already own. Property taxes are not a reasonable price for local services — they are an outdated, overly coercive, and economically destructive way to fund government.” (11/19/25)

https://www.bluegrassinstitute.org/the-case-against-property-taxes/