Just Nerdy Things

Even if you don’t live there, if you still live somewhere in the states, please, listen up.

“The MA legislature and governor just proposed dangerous social media surveillance legislation that would require everyone in the state, including adults, to upload a government ID or submit to a face scan to create a social media account. If something like this passes here, it will spread to other states faster than activists can fight back.

I have an op-ed out in today's Boston Globe explaining why this legislation would hurt kids and help Trump attack LGBTQ youth and undocumented folks. You can read it here (no paywall) https://archive.ph/rAK4P

If you're in MA, please send this to your state senators and the governor! They need to read it! You can also use this tool to easily call the key lawmakers who will be making decisions about this: https://www.stoponlineidchecks.org/ma “

- Fight For the Future Signal chat

I encourage reading EFF’s article linked below as it goes into the greater details of the legislation aside from this, but key notes:

• Forces everyone (not just kids) to upload a government ID or submit to a facial recognition scan to create a social media account or post online, even on educational sites like Wikipedia

• Force parents to send even more sensitive information to Big Tech companies to “verify” custody in order for a minor to create an account (think: sending a birth certificate to Mark Zuckerberg to let your teen create an account)

• Allow unsupportive parents to lock queer and trans youth off the Internet, restricting access to life-saving community and information with zero recourse

• Expand the Trump admin’s surveillance capabilities, making it easier for them to persecute people organizing protests, monitoring ICE, and criticizing the administration

• Cost Massachusetts tax payers enormously, as the legislation is clearly unconstitutional and would face legal challenges.

• Specifically harm undocumented folks who use social media to warn communities about ICE activity and raise money for family members

• Fine smaller and non-profit tech platforms like Mastodon and Bluesky out of business, further expanding the monopolies of Big Tech platforms

It is one of many of the worst pieces of digital surveillance legislation right now in the states.

If you’re in MA, please call and write to your state senators and governor through EFF’s article below, and if you’re not, either spread the word or call them too, but, don’t give them your ZIP code so they don’t know where you are.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors has a noticeable influence on Stranger Things S5's plot, going beyond a simple homage. The film even makes a cameo in S5E5 during Holly's memory in Camazotz, playing on the TV and mirroring the episode's escape plot.

In a behind-the-scenes TikTok post from the social media marketing campaign, the Duffer Brothers in the video bay are watching playback of more Dream Warriors footage that didn't make the final cut.

That footage reveals a boarded-up house belonging to Nancy Thompson, mirroring both the Creel house and the Wheeler house where our Nancy lives. Perhaps this would have revealed the show's meta nightmare-within-a-nightmare plot so it was cut.

Below is this other post by @wackywriterwhowriteswhenever comparing the two Nancy's very similar stylings predating the release of E5, and further outlines how obvious this parallel is.

Continuing this trend, I'll highlight a few more glaring references to emphasize how S5 is meant to be a shared nightmare that our main characters need to escape.

Freddy vs. Vecna: Souls, Puppets, and Red Mindscapes

Coffee, Coke, and Waking Up ☕️

Dreams and Sexuality ⚣ 💤

Will The Wizard² 🧙

Abuse Allegory, Victims, and "Power"

Fake-out Goodbye 🥀

Only A Dream Lives On 😢

Conclusion 💭

As of now, I have heard that the Kids Act has passed the committee by 28-24 votes. Do not be discouraged, no doomerism, no defeatism, we can still win this fight. To lift up your sprits:

Also still confused on some aspects of news about the committee on the votes on could use clarification on them.

So do not panic, continue to fight these bills and call. The fact that the act has barely passed means that our actions are working and that people more than aware about kosa and directly oppose it.

I can't donate or make calls, but what I CAN do is post about it.

Anything you can do, do.

While the title of this post is KOSA related, there were several bills to watch for in today's House Energy and Commerce committee markup, including the The App Store Accountability Act and the Kids Act (which I believe is KOSA and some other age-verification bills meshed together).

The House Energy and Commerce committee voted 28-24 to pass these bills out of committee, making them eligible for a floor vote whenever Mike Johnson may choose to bring them up.

While this is bad, I refuse to be defeated. In the past age-verification bills have passed by large margins, and are often bipartisan. This vote clearly was not that, which signals to me that there is weakness and that for whatever reason, Congress members do not agree.

We can take advantage of these weaknesses and that fact that the House and Senate do not agree on the final outlook of these bills (which is why there even is a Senate and a House version of KOSA), we just have to keep opposing and pointing out the flaws in these bills and how ineffective they are. They clearly see it, like when AOC referenced the mess with discord.

From here next steps are to rest, see how organizations like Fight for the Future, EFF, and Net choice interpret today, and be ready to continue calling, emailing, and faxing our representatives, senators, and House Leadership:

⭐Steve Scalise

(202) 225-3015

⭐Mike Johnson

(202) 225-2777

⭐Hakeem Jeffries

(202) 225-5936

Unfortunately, these three age verification laws passed markup today.

There is no date for a floor vote as of now.

Keep calling your representatives!

All is not lost; We still have time!!!

Spread this around d!

Keep calm & fighting!!