dmitry strakovsky

artist, teacher, father, tech nerrd - Strong opinions loosely held. And yes, views expressed are exclusively my own and not of any employer, collaborator, etc.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

We are on a touchy-feely idiocy vs performative cruelty timeline. 😒

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@SteveKerins @clairlemon @CathyYoung63 …they are just on the wrong side of the moat during yet another peasant revolt powered by grievance mongers like Piker.

It is a story with no perfect victims and lots of bloodshed. See founding of modern Ukraine by Bohdan Khmelnytsky 🤷

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@SteveKerins @clairlemon @CathyYoung63 To be brutally honest, Jews of Europe are often the oligarchs or in very close service of the oligarchs. As I said before, they often think that they are in the castle because they are in the center but really…

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@SteveKerins @clairlemon @CathyYoung63 Nope. East European oligarchs became wealthy *because* of their original proximity to the state. Because the state wanted/needed to *control* them in the first place.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

One of the deseases of “the Left” — moralizing.

Elon makes shit and sucks at social critique.

Nathan just sucks at social critique.

[Nathan J Robinson @NathanJRobinson]

There is no way to morally justify having a trillion dollars

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@SteveKerins @clairlemon @CathyYoung63 I see very specific deseases based on grievances and grievance merchants like Piker. And very West European-coded need for control — East European oligarchs and Musk are not even the same phenomena.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@SteveKerins @clairlemon @CathyYoung63 Nope. I take one step back and observe systems *because* I am a Jew familiar with both East and West European history.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@SteveKerins Political economy > reactive politics

“Left” without political economy and a sense of humor is a scary place.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

The irony of a bluecheck saying all this…

[David Yelland @davidyelland]

What has Elon Musk taken from you? So ask many including Andrew Neil.

Here's the answer:

He has taken our peace of mind.

He has purposefully pushed us apart, divided us further and profited from our loss of community.

And that is hard to ever forgive.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@SteveKerins @clairlemon @CathyYoung63 Control is a drug that liberal should avoid. Please consider staying a liberal.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@Mr_Andrew_Fox @DrJillStein Kremlin crack is the best crack 😁

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

Ehem… Art for the people — here is a private donation — Free Admission Revolutionizes Access to Contemporary Art in 2026 https://t.co/bavqnXECWO.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

This conversation at PS 1?! the Left without political economy is a site to behold.

[Claire Valdez @claireforny]

Art can't be a luxury made by and for the few. But the cost of living has made it impossible for so many New Yorkers to create the culture that makes this city beautiful.

I joined Mayor @ZohranKMamdani at MoMA PS1 to talk about my journey in the arts and keeping NYC vibrant.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@SteveKerins @clairlemon @CathyYoung63 It means that leftoids need to move the fuck away from the “luck” argument and anyone with a brain and integrity needs to stay the fuck away from Piker. Categorically the fuck away. Pretty simple really 😁

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

Israelis are hilarious and direct. They have very little time for NYT-level bullshit. 😁 def had a chuckle

[Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib @afalkhatib]

Will Europe Save Hamas in Gaza? I recently met with a high-ranking European official from a country deeply involved in the Israel and Palestine file to discuss Gaza’s future and immediate options for relieving civilians trapped under Hamas’s grip. I presented a simple proposal: create safe zones across the "Yellow Line" into the Israel‑controlled green zone and support new, organized, secure, Hamas‑free communities where Gazans could finally begin rebuilding their lives. Whether the issue is humane living conditions, deradicalization, education, healthcare, or shielding civilians from both Hamas or Israeli strikes, the green zone is the only place where meaningful action is possible. Instead of engaging, the official launched into a long monologue about their country’s contributions to the Palestinian Authority, UNRWA, and other institutions, all while insisting on their own “humility” as a faraway European nation.

Then came the truly alarming part: a casual normalization of Hamas. The official proudly described how easy it had been to work with Hamas before October 7, praising the group for providing “excellent security” and being “easier to work with than others.” What they called pragmatism was, in reality, a twenty‑year pattern of enabling a violent terrorist organization responsible for immense civilian suffering.

When I explained that any Hamas‑free zones would require vetting at the Yellow Line to prevent weapons or operatives from entering, the official reacted with shock. “This vetting would violate international law,” they repeated, insisting that their country could not fund projects with any checks on who enters. I noted the absurdity: I had undergone extensive vetting just to enter their country, and even this building, yet they believed Hamas fighters should be able to walk into new civilian safe zones unimpeded. Their only response was vague appeals to “international law,” which, in their interpretation, seems to require allowing terrorists to hide among civilians.

The meeting ended on an even more surreal note. When the official asked what would happen to Hamas fighters left in the red zone, I said I didn’t care; they could fight the Israeli military on their own all they wanted once they no longer held two million civilians hostage. The official lamented that “this isn’t the old American West” and expressed concern for what would happen to Hamas without human shields. Disgust doesn’t begin to describe my feelings and reactions.

I left convinced of something long suspected: Hamas’s twenty‑year rule was sustained not only by its own brutality but by an ecosystem of NGOs, donor nations, Western European governments, journalists, academics, activists, lawyers, and even self‑styled human‑rights defenders who normalized Hamas, treated it as a legitimate authority, or tolerated its abuses because their hostility toward Israel outweighed their concern for Gazans.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@AliceFromQueens @alicianieves__ Crime is down because ehem… uncomfortable… gentrification… when you don’t have 15 your old boys shooting at each other, your numbers look much better. Doesn’t happen in affluent communities taking over many US city cores.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

Co-signed on everything here 👇 this fear-based marketing approach is creating a major moral panic. Surprise?

[rohit @krishnanrohit]

Some reads from the current Fable ban situation:
- Vagueposting that a model can hack everything has consequences if you then end up releasing anyway. Saying other models also can after the fact is not enough.
- Asking for regulation when you can't specify exactly what regulation has predictable consequences.
- The ratchet is clearly moving towards license raj
- There are many who want an implicit license raj (AISI testing with power to block) but it's the same thing in practice. It is bad. Bad for safety, since now there's no choice but to accelerate for others.
- There's no way to allow models to be used "at large" going forward if the govt treats models as weapons.
- This is *fantastic* for Chinese models.
- The govt is ofc overstepping but honestly if you didn't expect that then you're naive!
- Leopold's narrative is almost too on the nose.
- Safetyists have wanted "perfect safety" as a goal, which is unachievable, and I've said a thousand times before it will backfire. This is the backfire.
- This *still* assumes the old view that the individual model is the bad part and not a system, which will inevitably lead to bad governance.
- This will get reversed in a bit and the model will get released (license raj), but the precedent is set. And many will say "ah this was bad but at least we got a license raj". They will be wrong.
- Openai has more breathing room for a better model to be released. And they're toning down the rhetoric. This will help them.
- Competition is good.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

Dont give them any ideas. “Capital” was kind of interesting but could be summarized in one sentence and, at least according to humans who know more about economics than me, complete hogwash from data perspective.

[Noah Smith 🐇🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼 @Noahpinion]

Everyone is talking about how bad the ideas in this Piketty proposal are, and it's true: They're very bad.

But what's also notable is how *out of date* they feel. A one-world government to fight climate change? Seriously? Even Greta Thunberg has moved on to Palestine activism.

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@MarkChangizi Soviet era propaganda worked 🤷

[dmitry strakovsky @dima_strakovsky]

@LucBernard @skotrds I don’t think you and I agree on politics but completely agree on how to treat fellow human beings, especially from the safety of one’s own keyboard. 🤛 🤜