A 22-year-old medical student from India created an AI-generated MAGA girl influencer to rake in thousands of dollars from U.S. men by way of millions of social media views, softcore AI-generated content subscriptions and selling anti-woke apparel, according to a new report.
The tech outlet WIRED interviewed the Indian man about his creation, registered nurse “Emily Hart,” whom the pseudonymous Sam described as “pro-Christian, pro-Second Amendment, pro-life, anti-abortion, anti-woke, and anti-immigration.” The fake influencer would post selfies of herself in a bikini, or doing activities like firing guns, ice fishing and drinking Coors Light.
The whole story sounds made up, except it probably wasn't:
“Every Reel I posted was getting 3 million views, 5 million views, 10 million views. The algorithm loved it.” he claims. Within a month, Emily Hart had more than 10,000 Instagram followers, many of whom also subscribed to her softcore AI-generated content on the OnlyFans competitor Fanvue. And between Fanvue subscriptions and selling MAGA-themed T-shirts (one sample message reads ”PTSD: Pretty Tired of Stupid Democrats”), Sam estimates he was making a few thousand dollars a month.
I wonder what Rawan would do if her paid contract with the state of Israel was terminated, if she found out that her genetic test was bungled and in fact she has negligible Jewish ancestry, if Israel were to clamp down on liberalism, feminism and immigrants (like we've seen elsewhere) and/or if her conscience would eventually catch up with her.
Dreamwidth Shockwave Flash embed #117. I'm the only creature on Dreamwidth who uses a Flash embed for YT videos. Each embedded Flash video gets a site-specific ID number. Flash is the only way I know to get embedded YouTube videos to play without Javascript or Cookies. It's "legacy" code for both YouTube and Dreamwidth that allows old scripts from The Early Days to continue to work. YouTube does not give you Flash code anymore, I MacGyver in the YouTube ID string from the URL to make it work.
That's episode one of eight. I think there is only one more episode to go before this series is complete. The Amazing Digital Circus is from the Australian animation studio "Glitch" and is well worth watching. It's about a bunch of people trapped in a virtual environment as whimsical avatars subjected to a gameshow host type entity. They have no way to get out and no memories of how they got there or what their names are. Each episode is about 25 minutes long.
Закончим / начнём день важным. В ночь на 26 апреля ЦСО «А» СБУ совершил очередной визит в Севастополь. По отзывам российских оккупационных властей и ошалевшей от впечатлений российской ваты, это был самый масштабный и насыщенный визит с 2022 г.
Поражены:
• БДК «Ямал» • БДК «Николай Фильченков» • Разведывательный корабль «Иван Хурс» • Штаб радиотехнической разведки сил ПВО • РЛС МР10М1 «Мыс-М1» • Самолет МиГ-31 на аэродроме «Бельбек» • ТЭЧ аэродрома «Бельбек» • Один из учебных центров ЧФ РФ.
Не считая того, что россияне сбили на голову жителей.
Стоит отметить несколько моментов. Хронология:
• 18 апреля - предыдущий визит дронов СБУ в Севастополь (три корабля, такая же РЛС, резервуар с нефтью и т.д.). • 19 апреля – визит ГУР. Снова корабли. • 22 апреля – ещё один визит Сил обороны Украины. Атакован пункт управления кораблями «Стрелецкий» и один из сторожевых кораблей (подтверждено повреждение рубки). • Ночь на 26 апреля – снова успешный визит СБУ. Второй для службы за неделю и 4-й для Сил обороны в целом.
Всякий раз под ударом оказывались российские корабли. Нет, их не потопили (как зачем-то пишут некоторые издания). Но им постепенно вынесут все радиотехнические девайсы и системы управления. По итогу это будут слепые корыта, пригодные лишь для того, чтобы утонуть вместе с личным составом. Даже роль статичных элементов ПВО они не смогут выполнять.
Деактивация элементов ПВО делает российских оккупантов в Севастополе всё более уязвимыми. Издержки контроля над захваченным городом растут.
Происходит де-факто принудительная демилитаризация Севастополя (как и Крыма в целом). Хотя Кремль планировал использовать оккупированный полуостров ровно наоборот – как военный плацдарм для проецирования силы на Балканы и в Средиземноморье.
Сейчас же всё сложнее с опорой на Крым поддерживать оккупационную группировку на Херсонщине и в Запорожье.
Сам процесс демилитаризации Крыма – это уже политический и переговорный фактор. Россия не может защитить свою выдуманную скрепу. Челябинск и Сызрань (как и Туапсе) никому в РФ не жалко. А провал обороны Севастополя – это чувствительно. И замолчать сложнее.
Повторный визит СБУ за короткое время с таким обилием поражённых целей делает ситуацию неприличной для роскомандования.
Ну, и в очередной раз показан контраст. Украина атакует военную и сопутствующую инфраструктуру, российское ПВО (ракетами и РЭБом) создаёт для росграждан на порядок больше рисков.
Россияне же умышленно атакуют гражданских в Украине, если речь идёт о портах – умышленно атакуют невоенную инфраструктуру (бочки с подсолнечным маслом, элеваторы).
Исправить повадки террористов можно только силой. Иначе они будут повторять, если не в Украине – то в Европе.
Записал для россиян речь их нацлидера, пусть порадуются:
Вот что касается, эмнаа, ЖКХ, вы сказали, да? Ну да. Э-э-смотрите, жилищно-коммунальные платежи, они, эээээм-ну, подрастают в зависимости от инфляции.
Потому что если они не будут вообще никак подрастать, то у нас ЖК-ЖКХ, где и так проблем очень много, они копились десятилетиями, ЖКХ, сфера сама, она просто разрушится.
Что мы сделали, эх-по, кх-хее, по тарифам на электроэнерго, на тепло, на воду? Мы, мнэа, сдвинули платеж справа налево (показывает рукой), то, что мы должны были, эээа, то, что мы должны были (морщит лоб), мнэаааа, аэээм, даввввв, (показывает пальцем вниз) ыы, да, направо перегрыли (показывает рукой). Так? А то, что должны были сделать, аэээээ-ввуу, в этом году, мы передвинули... не в этом, а с первого января следующего года, мы передвинули, таким образом, полтора года индексации не должно быть (показывает пальцами свой отрезок).
Но поскольку, ээээ, значит, зззссборы (показывает руками, как что-то тянет в карман) за эту индексацию, то средства появились. И мы очень расчитываем на то, что и в регионах российской федерации эти средства будут направлены на развитие системы ЖКХ.
Поэтому, поэтому, за, (показывает отрезок) кхм-кхм, за, чьпи, да, эээыу, растут, конечно там, эээх. Стоимость проезда, может быть, в городском транспорте и так далее, вот, но-о, иыыых, вопрос-то самый ключевой! В самом деле! (смеется)
Для всей страны (покатывается со смеху). Для любого рабочего человека это самый ключевой вопрос! (смеется)
И эта, иэээы, решение этой задачи является ключевой для государства! Абсолютно, задача номер один! (улыбается)
Three Weeks for Dreamwidth is running April 25-May 15. People aim to make a new post each day, or participate in various activities to celebrate the platform.
"No Faster or Firmer Friendships" belongs to Polychrome Heroics and needs $45 to be complete. Josué makes friends with Maria-Vera.
The weather has been mild here. We got some rain the other day. Seen at the birdfeeders this week: a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a male cardinal, and a fox squirrel. Red-winged blackbirds have been singing overhead. I heard a bluejay screaming but didn't see it. Currently blooming: violets, tulips, anemone, Solomon's seal, pansies, violas, sweet alyssum, bleeding heart, chokecherries, alliums, lilies of the valley, marigolds, honeysuckle, raspberies, snapdragons, lantana, million bells, blue lobelia, petunias, portulaca, nemesia, wild chives, star of Bethlehem. Flower buds: peonies. Green fruit: mulberries.
Comic for Monday April 27th, 2026 - "We're a couple of misfits" [ view ]
On this day in 1999, Corrie was quite offended by the new sheepskin Rudy had bought Bruno because it was said to be more 'fashionable' than her... [ view ]
Today's Daily Sponsor - Today's comic strip is sponsored by: Ken Cowan. [ support ]
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 27, 2026 is:
boondoggle • \BOON-dah-gul\ • noun
A boondoggle is an expensive and wasteful project usually paid for with public money. Boondoggle is also a word for a braided cord worn by Boy Scouts as a neckerchief slide, hatband, or ornament.
// Critics say the dam is a complete boondoggle—over budget, behind schedule, and unnecessary.
"A controversial proposal to construct a new bridge from Bridgeport to Long Island is either a bold, visionary step into the future or an unaffordable boondoggle that could cost more than $50 billion." — Christopher Keating, The Hartford (Connecticut) Courant, 8 Mar. 2026
Did you know?
When boondoggle popped up in the early 1900s, lots of people tried to explain where the word came from. One theory traced it to an Ozarkian word for "gadget," while another related it to the Tagalog word that gave us boondocks. Another hypothesis suggested that boondoggle came from the name of leather toys Daniel Boone supposedly made for his dog. But the only theory that is supported by evidence is much simpler. In the 1920s, Robert Link, a scoutmaster for the Boy Scouts of America, apparently coined the word to name the braided leather cords made and worn by scouts. The word came to prominence when such a boondoggle was presented to the Prince of Wales at the 1929 World Jamboree, and it's been with us ever since. Over time, it developed the additional sense describing a wasteful or impractical project.
The through line for the western United States so far in the 2026 water year is simple: there’s very little snow. With few exceptions, the mountains of the U.S. West have seen unusually little snow accumulation since October 2025, constituting a widespread snow drought. The lack of mountain snowpack has resource managers on alert going into the warmer months. Meager meltwater can affect hydropower production, agriculture, aquatic ecosystems, and wildland fire risk.
The Upper Colorado Basin was exceptionally dry in spring 2026. This map illustrates the state of its snowpack on March 15, depicting estimates of snow water equivalent as a percentage of the 2001-2025 average. Snow water equivalent (SWE) is a measure of how much water there would be if all the snow in a given area melted at once. SWE peaked for the season around March 15 at below-average values for the time of year in most watersheds. Note that values below 8,000 feet (2,400 meters) in elevation are not shown, as snow at lower elevations often melts quickly and is therefore not representative of overall snowpack health.
To derive these estimates, researchers at the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR) combined data from instruments on NASA’s Aqua, Terra, and Landsat satellites, ground-based snow sensors, and a data assimilation model called the Land Information System. The group provides regular, near-real-time snowpack reports to water managers, government agencies, tribes, and other stakeholders in Colorado, California, and other western states throughout each melt season.
The snowpack in spring 2026 was notable not only for its low level but also for its early peak. In the Upper Colorado Basin, SWE peaks on April 6, on average, according to data published by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. In 2026, the peak occurred about four weeks early. Similarly, SWE topped out much earlier than normal across all western states, the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) reported.
Extreme heat contributed to the shift. In the second half of March, an intense heatwave gripped the southwestern U.S., toppling many high-temperature records. “This heatwave is the big snow story of the year,” said Noah Molotch, mountain hydrologist at INSTAAR and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The Colorado Basin experienced its warmest March on record, according to NIDIS, with temperatures 13.7 degrees Fahrenheit (7.6 degrees Celsius) above normal. Snow water equivalent in the basin plunged through the end of the month.
NASA Earth Observatory/Michala Garrison, with data from NSIDC Snow Today
Snow cover across the West (above) dropped noticeably during the late-March heatwave. The melting helped cement March 2026 as the lowest March snow cover in the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) record dating back to 2001. January and February 2026 also had the lowest snow cover for those respective months in the MODIS record, despite widespread snowstorms in the third week of February. The snow cover data is produced by Snow Today, a NASA-funded project of INSTAAR and the National Snow and Ice Data Center.
Snow albedo, another metric tracked via satellite, helps tell the story of this winter’s snow drought as well, said Karl Rittger, research associate at INSTAAR and lead scientist at Snow Today. Albedo, or surface brightness, was at average levels for only limited periods during the winter and was otherwise low, Snow Today’s analysis showed, leading to more energy absorption in the snowpack and accelerated melting. Albedo also plunged during the March heatwave.
Storms can “refresh” or brighten the snow, but if they are infrequent, snow grains grow larger and darker, and dust and debris accumulate on the surface. “Storms since the heatwave brought albedo levels back to highs not seen since early March, buffering Colorado’s snowpack temporarily, but not fundamentally changing the outlook,” Rittger said.
The most pronounced effects of the snow drought are expected in areas experiencing consecutive years of drought or snow drought, the NIDIS noted. This includes the Rio Grande and the Pacific Northwest—where a statewide drought was declared in Washington—as well as the Upper Colorado.
Lake Powell, fed by the rivers of the Upper Colorado Basin and impounded by the Glen Canyon Dam in northern Arizona, has dropped to near-historic low levels and was 24 percent full as of April 19, 2026. The Bureau of Reclamation, which manages the dam, projects that the lake could fall below the minimum level needed to produce power by August 2026 “without major intervention,” according to an April 17 news release. The agency said it is considering mitigation strategies, including releasing water from an upstream reservoir and reducing releases from Lake Powell.
NASA Earth Observatory map and chart by Michala Garrison, using data courtesy of L. Lestak, E. Tyrrell, N. Molotch/ Mountain Hydrology Group, University of Colorado, Boulder, and snow cover area data courtesy of K. Rittger/NSIDC Snow Today. Story by Lindsey Doermann.
While reading the conversation between Ernu and Racu about Stăniloae, legionarism and BOR, it dawned on me that liberal democracy more often than not overlaps almost too perfectly with Santa Claus: a nice soothing grandpa that makes it all better by doling out free gifts at periodic intervals (except of course that he is not our grandpa, he exists only in our collective imagination, the gifts are not free as we always pay for them one way or another and with interest, and the joy brought by these gifts only lasts a few days as the bill eventually comes for these gifts and the monotony and dreariness of our normal existence resume until the next gifting event). There is also some Sisyphean angle to Santa Claus and liberal democracy, but that is a discussion for another time.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ionelv
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
