#the commons

[typhlonectes]

[odinsblog]

“All this happening at once is really startling,” said Joseph Schwieterman, a DePaul University professor who researches intercity bus travel and directs the university’s Chaddick Institute for Metropolitan Development. “You’re taking mobility away from disproportionately low-income and mobility-challenged citizens who don’t have other options.”

Roughly three-quarters of intercity bus riders have annual incomes of less than $40,000. More than a quarter would not make their trip if bus service was not available, according to surveys by Midwestern governments reviewed by DePaul University.

Intercity bus riders are also disproportionately minorities, people with disabilities, and unemployed travelers.

A spokesperson for Greyhound, which is now owned by German company FlixMobility, said it strives to offer customers the most options for connections, but has “encountered challenges in some instances.” The spokesperson also said they “actively engage with local stakeholders to emphasize the importance of supporting affordable and equitable intercity bus travel.”

The terminal closures have been accelerating as Greyhound, the largest carrier, sells its valuable terminals to investors, including investment firm Alden Global Capital.

Last year, Alden subsidiary Twenty Lake Holdings purchased 33 Greyhound stations for $140 million. Alden is best known for buying up local newspapers like The Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News and The Baltimore Sun, cutting staff, and selling some of the iconic downtown buildings.

Alden has started to sell the Greyhound depots to real estate developers, speeding up the timetable for closures.

“I don’t know the specific details of each building, but it is clear what is happening here: an important piece of transit infrastructure is being sacrificed in the name of higher profits,” said Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh, a professor of real estate at Columbia Business School.

“The public sector has turned a cold shoulder to buses,” DePaul’s Schwieterman said. “We subsidize public transit abundantly, but we don’t see this as an extension of our transit system. Few governments view it as their mandate.”

Bus terminals are costly for companies to operate, maintain and pay property taxes on. Many have deteriorated over the years, becoming blighted properties struggling with homelessness, crime and other issues.

But terminal closures cause a ripple effect of problems.

Travelers can’t use the bathroom, stay out of the harsh weather or get something to eat while they wait. People transferring late at night or early in the morning, sometimes with long layovers, have no place to safely wait or sleep. It’s worse in the cold, rain, snow or extreme heat.

Bus carriers often try to switch to curbside service when a terminal closes, but curbside bus service can clog up city streets with passengers and their luggage, snarl traffic, increase pollution, and frustrate local business owners. In Philadelphia, a Greyhound terminal closure and switch to curbside service after its lease ended turned into a “humanitarian disaster” and “municipal disgrace” with people waiting on street corners.

(continue reading)

[revedetendresse]

Ryan Corr + my personal favorite tv characters he played (in no particular order)

[dipperdesperado]

we need everyplaces

one of the things that we seem to forget in our ideas of world change is how space (as in the spatial environment) is created, recreated and structured. something that i've been thinking about is how we have rigid uses for spaces that are reinforced by their designs. i think that for our liberated societies, we need liberated spaces. Rather than having spaces that are *obviously* homes, shops, etc, we could create modular spaces that ask for input from the users, shaped and reshaped to the needs and desires. A spatial usufruct, with a focus on the ephemerality and contextuality of needs and wants. What if a street was able to become a market, then a concert venue, then a wrestling ring, then a campground, where the design of the space was able to reshape around those events.

[ppeuppeuppeu]

RYAN POSTED ON IG.

FRIENDS, I AM DEAD AND GONE.

edit: here's one more.

[ignitedminds27]

Ladies enjoy the onset of last Ryan Corr's pics for 2023.

With friends, colleagues, and fans.

[danny4xb]

Community groups, charities and even small groups of neighbours would be able to cultivate fruit and vegetables on suitable council land in what campaigners say will provide healthy local food, boost mental health and revive neglected spaces.

Hull councillors unanimously passed the “right to grow” motion that means the council will produce a map of suitable land it owns and help those who want to grow food on it overcome practical obstacles such as insurance or provision of water for the plants.

[titleknown]

I will say, if you're concerned at all about AI art, you should be putting pressure specifically on Midjourney and OpenAI.

Cause, like, for all its faults StableDiffusion is doing a lot right, making itself open source, making its databases open, trying to create an opt-out system...

...But MJ and OpenAi aren't.

Despite Midjourney being widely considered the Best One, it's a total black box, with evidence that it does a lot of stuff "behind the scenes" to make it look better. And yet, despite almost certainly using similar publicly scraped resources from the commons, unlike StableDiffusion, the dataset is not available, and the model isn't Open Sourced.

Same thing with OpenAI, who's also trying to worm its way into things like stock footage and getting buddy-buddy with MS despite their stuff being closed like a bank lockbox.

And I think that SD getting all that crap flung its way when this is arguably way more concerning is... not great.

We need to, at the very least, force them to make their models Open Source and their databases publicly visible, because as a principle, any business that draws from the commons in that way must contribute to the commons.

[shining-scion]

You can always come home (I will come home in time)

[argyrocratie]

"There is not a single European country in which the traditions of the old communal property have entirely disappeared. In certain areas, notably in the Ardennes and in the steep mountainous regions of Switzerland, where the peasants did not have to submit to the kind of oppression to which the German villagers were subjected after the wars of the Reformation, communal property is still widespread enough to constitute a considerable part of the territory.

In the Belgian Ardennes, the collective lands are composed of three parts: the woods, the freshly cleared ground [sart], and the pastures. They also often include arable land and quarries.

(...)

These customs clearly influence the moral character of individuals and greatly develop their spirit of solidarity, mutual kindness, and heartfelt friendliness. Thus it is customary to form voluntary work crews for the benefit of those who need work done. The latter need only to state their request by proceeding noisily through the village, calling out, “So-and-so needs something done! Who wants to help out?” Immediately a group appears and its members put their heads together to figure out who can best undertake the job, and the service is rendered. Such stories also come to us from the Queyras.

In all of Switzerland, two-thirds of the alpine prairies and forests belong to the communes, which also own peat bogs, reed marshes, and quarries, as well as fields, orchards, and vineyards. On many occasions when the co-proprietors of the commune have to work together, they feel as though they are at a festival rather than at work. The young men and women climb to the high mountain pastures, driving their herds before them to the harmonious clinking of the bells. At other times, the work is more difficult. While the snow still covers the ground, the woodsmen, armed with axes, cut the high pines in the communal forest. They strip the sawlogs and slide them down the avalanche corridors to the torrent that will carry them away in its bends and rapids.

Then there are the evening gatherings on winter nights, in which all are summoned to the home of whoever has the most urgent work, whether it is to shell corn, hull nuts, or make wedding gifts for a woman engaged to be married. During these gatherings, the work is a pleasure. The children want to participate, for everything is new to them. Instead of going to bed, they stay up with the adults and are given the best of the chestnuts roasting under the hot embers. When dreamtime is near, they listen to songs and are told stories, adventures, and fables, which are transformed by their imaginations into marvelous apparitions. It is often during such nights of mutual good will that a child’s being permanently takes shape. Here, one’s loves in life are kindled, and life’s bitterness is made sweeter.

Thus the spirit of full association has by no means disappeared in the communes, despite all the ill will of the rich and the state, who have every interest in breaking apart these tightly bound bundles of resistance to their greed or power and who attempt to reduce society to a collection of isolated individuals. Traditional mutual aid occurs even among people of different languages and nations. In Switzerland, it is customary to exchange children from family to family, between the German and the French cantons. Similarly, the country people of Béarn send their children to the Basque country, welcoming in turn young Basques as farm boys. In this way, they will all soon learn the two languages without the parents having to spend any money. Finally, all individuals with a similar trade and common interests—whether they be coal merchants, hunters, or sailors—have established virtual confraternities having neither written constitutions nor signatures, but nevertheless forming small, close-knit republics. Throughout the world, carnival performers who meet by chance on the road are allied in a sort of freemasonry that is far more solemn than that of the “brothers” who gather in the temples of Hiram."

-Elisée Reclus, "Culture and Property" (1905)

[hadesismybaby]

No one asked, but I made a comprehensive list of Ryan Corr’s movies/shows and if they are worth watching.

Here is how they will be graded: 1 to 5 Strong Bastards: The movie/show on it’s on 1 to 5 Perfect Curls: How much Ryan is in it

I’ll also add a little description about my general opinion on each.

Note to Ryan Corr and any associate: Please ignore. Thank you.

I divided between TV Shows and Movies, the list is long. I'm sorry.

PS¹: This is the list of stuff I watched, not everything he did PS²: I won’t talk about his acting, the dude can act, and it'd be redundant to say the same thing all the time

Ok! Let’s go and do this

TV Shows

In Limbo Banished

House of the Dragon (S1):

Show: 4.5 Strong bastards I’m guessing everybody that is here saw it. So you know

Ryan Factor: 1 Perfect Curls It’s only one curl, but when he appears on the screen he is perfect

Wakefield:

Show: 4 Strong bastards It’s a good show about mental health and general struggles, and how people deal with problems, from patients to staff. It's very heavy, and you need to be in the mood to watch it. There are too many characters and the episodes are divided with their story and how they interact between them.

Ryan factor: 2 Perfect Curls He is kind of too good for his own good. There is a sad sex scene that shouldn’t happen, but you can’t blame him for it. Appears heavily in a few episodes, but once his story ends, don’t expect much of him on screen.

The Secrets She Keeps:

Show: 4 Strong Bastards If you like thriller/suspense, watch it. It has some left and turns that are predictable, but still enjoyable, some infuriating characters (I got frustrated multiple times) but good acting all around.

Ryan factor: 3.5 Perfect Curls He doesn’t appear a lot on the first season, but he is there (looking sad and confused), second season he is way more on-screen, and he looks so good (understatement). And we have dork dance, interaction with kids (all your Modern Harwin AU fantasies). Just peek dad vibes.

Hungry Ghosts:

Show: 3 Strong Bastards This show starts so strong and ends kind of meh. The resolution and relationships seem rushed and dragging at the same time. BUT it is fascinating to see aspects of a different culture and as per my (very shallow) research Hungry ghost is a real thing in Buddhism, and they even have a festival.

Ryan factor: 2 Perfect Curls He is the skeptical white guy in the show, even after seeing some crazy shit. He shows up here and there, but not too much. He looks good but he always looks good, is a doctor, some people like that.

The Commons:

Show: 4.5 Strong Bastards I love the concept of this show, in the very near future the world went to shit (even more) because of global warming, it’s not difficult to see the reality they live in. My only main problem is with the main character, she always wants her cake and eat it too.

Ryan factor: 4 Perfect Curls Just my favorite Ryan character. Very smart, but very unserious scientist that looks like (in my humble opinion) the total package. His interactions with his goddaughter are perfect and I’d kill for them.

My Life Is Murder (S1E06):

Show: 3.5 Strong Bastards Murder of the week type of show. I like because even with murders it has a sort of light heart vibe to it, it’s not like Law and Order: SVU (or any of that kind) that everything looks sad and wet all the time. Also, Xena the Warrior Princess is the detective.

Ryan Factor: 3.5 Perfect Curls Family man who just lost his brother, very sad. His wife is super pregs, so yay for family and Dad Ryan.

Bloom (S1):

Show: 4.5 Strong Bastards About youth and regret. Most of the cast is older and when they eat this little fruit, they become young again and kind a new lease in life. I don’t want to say much because of spoilers. It’s a really well made show, you can feel the desperation on their actions.

Ryan Factor: 3.5 Perfect Curls It starts with Ryan taking his clothes off and running on the street, a great beginning. We see a lot of him, he’s one of the people who is older and eats the fruit. Ryan was more of the antagonist. He’s interacting with a kid, but more of the older brother vibes.

Cleverman (S1):

Show: 2 Strong Bastards CW level entertainment. There is a good message behind, if you skint and look from afar they did a good job with the message. The main is also a problem, he’s very passive and doesn’t want to do anything.

Ryan Factor: 2.5 Perfect Curls He’s the protagonist's BFF, when he shows the character is fun. But he doesn’t show much, he is not involved with the main plot in the first 4 episodes.

Wanted (S1E01-02):

Show: IDK how many Strong Bastards Two very different ladies become friends after they are kidnapped, also police corruption. I only watched the first 3 episodes, so I can really say much about the show.

Ryan Factor: 3 Perfect Curls (only 2 first episodes) Maybe the worst kidnapper ever? He looks good in a bulletproof vest, and way over his head.

Blue Water High (S2):

Show: 3.5 Strong Bastards (For a kids show) I’ll never shut up about this show. It was what made me fell in love with AUS teen dramas. It's about a bunch of teens competing to see who wins a sponsor and a place in an international surf comp. (Spoiler: Ryan’s character wins it) They all live together, they are friends and fight, all that. As a kids show I think it is good and it passes a very good message, the kids make mistakes, they are punished by it but never villainized.

Ryan Factor: 4.5 Perfect Curls (The show doesn’t have a lead) He was 16/17 when this was filmed, his hair is a disaster (but very mid 2000s) and I can’t even explain how this is the same person as Harwin Strong. Looks like he’s having a lot of fun.

Movies

High Ground:

Movie: 4 Strong Bastards Very good movie about how colonizers think they’re better than anyone else and justice doesn’t apply to them. I think it’s based on a real story about a massacre in northern Australia.

Ryan factor: 0.5 Perfect Curls Glorified extra. I think he has 2 lines in the whole movie, he’s a priest.

Ladies in Black:

Movie: 3.5 Strong Bastards It’s a cute movie, heavy subject but they manage to make it cute and light. It’s about immigration and sexism, but they don’t go too deep into either and everything is solved with the power of love.

Ryan factor: 3 Perfect Curls He’s a Hungarian immigrant in Australia looking for a wife, he has an accent, he falls in love. He is adorable in it.

Outlaws/1%:

Movie: 2 Strong Bastards Outlaw Motorcycle club, they ride bikes and do outlaw stuff. Look, the movie isn’t good and there are a couple of SA scenes. I hate every character (except Ryan’s and his brother). The actors and direction are good, but the lack of depth and character development kills the movie.

Ryan Factor: 5 Perfect Curls He’s the lead (YAY!) and the only reason to watch the movie*. Exasperated, loving and sexy are the words I can use to describe his character.

*or any other actor if you like them.

Below:

Movie: 4.5 Strong Bastards I don’t even know where to start with this one. It’s crazy and violent, also about a very important subject (I sense a theme here) about refugee detention centre and how desperate people do anything.

Ryan factor: 5 Perfect Curls He’s the main, and embodies the unhinged nature of the movie very well. He is a grifter who would do anything for money, but you can see deep down he's a good man and cares about people.

A Few Less Men:

Movie: 4 Strong Bastards This movie is all comedy. The 3 main guys have to take their dead friend's body back to England, but they have 2 brain cells between the 3 of them. A lot of shenanigans.

Ryan factor: 2.5 Perfect Curls Ryan’s character is back in England and he screams with the mains via phone a lot. Looks like he’s having a lot of fun with the part. Looks great in pastels.

Ali's Wedding:

Movie: 4.5 Strong Bastards If you like romantic comedies, watch it. It’s a real story about a muslin guy falling in love in a community they can’t really date, plus he feels a lot of pressure to be the perfect son.

Ryan factor: 0.5 Perfect Curls White guy in the movie, he’s in it to throw in a few funny lines, but the story isn’t about him, and he’s just another glorified extra.

Hacksaw Ridge:

Movie: 4.5 Strong Bastards Another true story, Andrew Garfield is a super religious guy who wants to be a medic in war but doesn’t want to hold a gun because god doesn’t like guns. It loses 0.5 point because the beginning drags a bit. But it is a very good movie once we’re in the war zone.

Ryan factor: 1 Perfect Curl He shows up mid movie, dies and that is it. But he looks very good all bloody.

Holding the Man:

Movie: 4.5 Strong Bastards True story (another theme), about a gay couple in the 80s - 90s during the AIDS epidemic. The movie kind of rushes in some parts, but you can feel they really love each other. It’s sad, but not one of those movies where people don’t know how to laugh.

Ryan factor: 5 Perfect Curl Main character, we see him in most scenes and there is a lot of skin. It’s hard to thirst over him when the subject is AIDS, but he’s so good in this movie. it’s just a little weird to see him in HS age with a 30 y/o face and body.

The Water Diviner:

Movie: 4 Strong Bastards I think it is a true story, if not, it looks like one. Russel Crowe loses his sons and goes to the place they died to try to find their bodies. It’s a very loving and sad movie. It’s been a while since I watched, I don’t remember a lot about it, I just remember I liked it.

Ryan factor: 1 Perfect Curl He’s one of the Russel’s kids, he only shows up in the beginning and has a lovely moment with Russel Crowe. But hey, Jai Courtney is in the movie and he’s very hot.

Wolf Creek 2:

Movie: 4 Strong Bastards Slasher!!! Brutal slasher, the kind of movie you feel anxious watching. The killer is HORRIBLE, a disgusting human being. It’s also loosely based on true stories from the 90s - early 2000s about the murders of turists in the Australian outback. I hate the couple in the beginning, too many dumb decisions.

Ryan Factor: 4 Perfect Curls He is not in the beginning, but he shows up and the killer hunts him. We see him suffer A LOT. He’s not dumb, which is good.

The end

[balmacedapascal]

Ryan Corr as Shay Levine || The Commons

[therobotmonster]

New Public Domain Images Incoming

It's going to be entirely contingent on my mood and energy levels, which have been very low in the wake of my recent illness, but I'm going to start dropping more free AI art on The Generative Sluice.

In my experiments with Midjourney and in pursuit of my various projects, I make a lot of images that I don't have a transformative project in mind for but are also not quite right for a DeepDream Nights showcase post.

While they will still be lightly curated for redundancy and quality, these pics will be posted unmodified, any AI glitches or flaws intact. They're going to be in large drops that may or may not be themed.

Prompts will not be included. This is purely for practical reasons, as the part of the post explaining the procedures and prompts I use on my DeepDream Nights posts are very time consuming, and it's not practical for a project of this kind.

These images are not modified or heavily guided, and most of them will be derived from CLIP-Interrogator and image prompting experiments. As such, they don't meet the minimal expression threshold and are in the public domain. Free to use for any purpose.

As such I can't put any kind of Creative Commons-y restrictions. I'll make the recommendation that to make any public domain work your own you should make modifications/remixes (and that's the spirit in which I'm distributing these images), and note that linking back to the source so others can use the same resources you did is a cool thing to do.

This also applies to the images in this post.

[revedetendresse]

Ryan Corr as Shay Levine & Inez Curro as Ivy Green in THE COMMONS (2019-2020)

[kayasfilms]

ryan corr as chris murphett in "wanted" (2016)

[ppeuppeuppeu]

Ryan Corr's luscious curls appreciation post 💕