The piece argues that Democrats’ sweeping 2026 midterm victory discredits the belief that Trumpism represented a lasting change in American politics. It cautions against treating one election as proof of a permanent political realignment, but says technology investors and executives who interpreted Trump’s 2024 win as a chance to secure lasting power made a serious miscalculation. It singles out figures including Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Marc Andreessen, and Peter Thiel, along with companies that courted Trump or echoed his priorities in hopes of gaining influence. Their spending and control of major platforms did not prevent their political side from losing badly, suggesting that tech billionaires’ ability to shape public opinion may be overstated.
The author expects Silicon Valley to face political and regulatory consequences, which may be warranted for executives who actively promoted authoritarian politics. The danger is that lawmakers respond by imposing rules that burden smaller services and independent developers, while large companies can afford compliance and gain even more control. Rather than punish big tech in ways that entrench it, the piece calls for strengthening Section 230, reforming the DMCA’s anti-circumvention rules and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, curbing patent litigation that suppresses competition, and allowing decentralized social media and AI tools to operate without government approval. The broader goal is to shift power from companies toward internet users, while holding tech leaders accountable without destroying user-empowering alternatives.
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Usenet Rewind makes decades of Usenet posts easier to search, opening the archive to researchers and curious readers. Its revival also exposes how supposedly ephemeral online conversations can resurface years later without their original context. (tedium.co)
Team JokerD became the first to reach level 60 in World of Warcraft: Forever, less than three days after launch. The team used an improved Undead Cannibalize ability to recover health and mana while leveling rapidly. (vice.com)
Ryszard Kapuściński spent decades reporting across Africa, covering post-colonial governments, coups, and life in poor and unstable regions. The review presents Shadow of the Sun as a vivid account of his risky travels and the pull of a life devoted to adventure and journalism. (mattlakeman.org)
Tesla is ending Cybertruck production after selling about 70,000 vehicles, far below Elon Musk’s forecast of 250,000 a year, and will focus on its Cybercab. The truck became a symbol of Musk’s overpromising and America’s get-rich-quick culture. (rollingstone.com)
World of Warcraft: Forever is now live as a permanent experience alongside modern and Classic WoW, taking players through a reimagined Azeroth from levels 1 to 60. It adds more than 1,000 quests, new zones, the playable Skyborne race, and expanded race-class combinations. (news.blizzard.com)
Richard Lloyd, Television’s guitarist and co-architect of its intricate art-rock sound, died at 75 from bile duct cancer. The band helped shape New York’s 1970s punk scene, and its acclaimed debut, “Marquee Moon,” influenced generations of musicians. (nytimes.com)
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