Jonathan Webber

Jonathan Webber

@jonathanwebber.bsky.social

Half victim, half accomplice, like everyone

461 followers301 following201 posts

Jonathan Webber reposted

Jonathan Webber reposted

Replying to @strategictaper.bsky.social

This is why people try to destroy music, why the music industry, streaming industry, AI are all designed to function in a way that crushes and humiliates music. Because for people who dislike music, there is no other outlet. This is the only way our society accepts an expression of not liking music.

Jonathan Webber reposted

#philsky British Society of Aesthetics and Welsh Aesthetics Forum present … Environmental Aesthetics & Valuing the Natural World 9.00 - 17.30 Wednesday 30 September 2026 Council Chamber, Main Building, Cardiff University Free! All welcome! Register here:

eventbrite.co.ukEnvironmental Aesthetics & Valuing the Natural World: A BSA/WAF WorkshopThis workshop brings together some of the most prominent thinkers to reflect on the role and future of environmental aesthetics.

Jonathan Webber reposted

Replying to @sturdyalex.bsky.social

Incidentally on both occasions - Tuesday's statement and PMQs - gilt rates spiked the moment markets opened (the hallmark of imported volatility) and actually came down while Burnham was on his feet. Every single part of the media machine confecting the narrative understands this and does it anyway.

Jonathan Webber reposted

Jonathan Webber reposted

Open plan offices are the best approach for office space. But the open plan desks should be used by managers. The actual workers need to concentrate and should have individual, soundproofed offices. Managers need to chitchat, so they need a noisy room.

Jonathan Webber reposted

They should build loads of data centers all over the place that contain huge quantities of books that people can borrow for free if they fill out a form to get a data center card and promise to return the books on time and don’t make too much noise in the data center.

Jonathan Webber reposted

Jonathan Webber reposted

It is with deep sorrow and profound love that we announce the passing of Sonny Rollins. The Saxophone Colossus died this afternoon at his home in Woodstock, NY at the age of 95. 1/2

“investigation had found that AI services gave voters misinformation to 34% of the questions it posed … invented fictitious scandals, gave the wrong date for the election, claimed wrongly that voters in Scottish elections needed ID at polling stations and placed candidates in the wrong contests.”

theguardian.comChatGPT and other AI bots made huge errors before Scottish election, study findsExclusive: Electoral Commission calls for new controls as Demos finds tools made up fake scandals, invented candidates or gave wrong date

Jonathan Webber reposted

I enjoyed two years in the Philosophy department at UH and had stellar students there from Herts and the north London commuter belt. This closure of Philosophy and local opportunities for young people like them is heartbreaking.💔

Dr Keith 🎃 Wilson@keithwilson.eu

Can an institution that doesn’t teach #philosophy even call itself a university? This is a terrible loss to Hertfordshire and UK #HigherEducation. My heart goes out to staff and students who are affected. dailynous.com/2026/05/08/h...

Jonathan Webber reposted

Replying to @samfr.bsky.social

This entire pointlessly destructive war so far has cost the US military around $60 billion, which is around twice the amount cut from USAID which saved millions of lives.

Jonathan Webber reposted

Jonathan Webber reposted

“When faced with greed, envy, calumny, perfidy, or lies, people […] say indulgently, ‘That's human!’ With an excuse like that, they clearly show that they are renouncing any expectations of generosity or greatness from man.” —Simone de Beauvoir In this new 🐧 📕 ed. @jonathanwebber.bsky.social 👏 👇

Jonathan Webber reposted

Jonathan Webber reposted

🎈Book launch! The Penguin Book of Existentialist Philosophy edited by Jonathan Webber Wednesday 12 November 2025 : 18:00 - 19:30 Oat & Bean, 26 Park Place, Cardiff CF10 3BA Everyone is welcome! No need to register. Just turn up!

Jonathan Webber reposted

Books. No cookie preferences. No cookies. No GDPR. No pop ups. No bots. No floating videos. No AI. No ads. No trackers. No misinformation. No fascist techbros. No distracting animations. No paywalls. No influencers. How good are these things? Books are frickin awesome

Jonathan Webber reposted

Police officer, running up to me: "Stop, what's that brown liquid you're pouring into the drain?" Me: "It's 1,000 gallons of untreated sewage" PO: "Phew, I thought for a minute it was a few dregs of coffee"

Michael Bench-Dracula@mikebenchcapon.bsky.social

Surprised to learn that this is illegal www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Jonathan Webber reposted

I think it's excessive to remove all his titles. He should have just been downgraded to The Marquis Of Granby, or maybe The Slug And Lettuce.

“We should support universities. We should cherish the value of what they do and recognise that if we run them down for sport we will not realise what we’ve lost until it’s gone. And, just once in a while, we should give students a break.”

Jonathan Webber reposted

Calling English a 'rip-off degree' is one of the most blatant exhibitions of personal barbarism I've ever seen. You've demonstrated nothing but the poverty of your own mind.

Jonathan Webber reposted

Jonathan Webber reposted

“AI has turbocharged the spread of bullshit and falsehoods. It is not able to produce actual, qualitative academic work, despite the claims of some in the AI industry. As researchers, as universities, we should be clearer about pushing back against these false claims by the AI industry.”

ru.nl‘Opposing the inevitability of AI at universities is possible and necessary’ | Radboud UniversitySince the widespread release of ChatGPT in December of 2022, AI has taken over much of the world by storm – including academia. Most of this happened with very little pushback, despite a myriad of iss...

Jonathan Webber reposted

Replying to @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social

Anyway, you do have to wonder what this means for "growth": yesterday's ID proposals are *designed* to make access to work more difficult for people on low incomes, and they come with the side effect of potentially squashing a growing domestic technology sector.