Mark Gardner

{ "id": "10e873bf7dfbd91d5bb12c94df8506e86c385bc094c77b79f98d66be52963342", "pubkey": "5b7a52b34bafadd4eb59cce6c86809f97b423ea02d2a4a71f4a3ce1c3615ecb2", "created_at": 1776793333, "kind": 0, "tags": [ [ "t", "perl" ], [ "t", "philosophy" ], [ "t", "objectivism" ], [ "t", "platformengineering" ], [ "t", "writing" ], [ "t", "aynrand" ], [ "t", "infrastructure" ], [ "t", "identity" ], [ "t", "ethics" ], [ "t", "devops" ], [ "proxy", "https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/users/mjg", "activitypub" ], [ "L", "pink.momostr" ], [ "l", "pink.momostr.activitypub:https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/users/mjg", "pink.momostr" ], [ "-" ] ], "content": "{\"name\":\"Mark Gardner\",\"about\":\"Pedantry in public is my brand.\\n\\nI write about systems — technical and human. Building high-signal spaces for #philosophy, #infrastructure, and crative rigor with a focus on clarity and intentional architecture.\\n\\n#Objectivism, #identity, #ethics; #PlatformEngineering, #DevOps, #Perl, and deliberate tangents.\\n\\nLong‑form #writing (stories, essays): nostr:npub1tf8u88tjglzvn8tyugmqtke6qvsmx52dyxamf5g3976uzg6ultrqm34sv8\\n\\nOccasional blogging (mostly technical): https://phoenixtrap.com\\n\\nPrimary sources (for the usual trolls):\\n\\n- #AynRand in her own words: https://AynRand.org/novels/the-ayn-rand-reader\\n- On libertarians: https://courses.AynRand.org/lexicon/libertarians\\n- On the Social Security myth: https://NewIdeal.AynRand.org/what-gave-ayn-rand-the-moral-right-to-collect-social-security\\n\\nHomepage \u0026 Blog: https://phoenixtrap.com\\nWriting (current project): https://thebeautifulprison.com\\nMusic: https://bandwagon.fm/@phoenixtrap\\nKeyoxide (other verified profiles): https://keyoxide.org/4dadfefe8e4ad0f92bcbbb8142f3ca898cb08a45\\nThreads: https://threads.net/@mjgardner\\nBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/phoenixtrap.com\\nCPAN: https://metacpan.org/author/MJGARDNER\\nFacebook: https://facebook.com/mjgardner\\nInstagram: https://instagram.com/mjgardner\\nLinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/mjgardner\\nOpenPGP Key: openpgp4fpr:4dadfefe8e4ad0f92bcbbb8142f3ca898cb08a45\\nPhilosophy: Objectivism\\nAesthetics: romantic realism, philosophical noir\\nPronouns: he, him, his\\n\",\"website\":\"https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/@mjg\",\"picture\":\"https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/accounts/avatars/114/923/045/978/878/386/original/36840c7f783e7b8c.png\",\"banner\":\"https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/accounts/headers/114/923/045/978/878/386/original/a01eb277f769d144.jpeg\",\"nip05\":\"mjg_at_mastodon.phoenixtrap.com@momostr.pink\"}", "sig": "785a5263651e707d74c3a641aa3e7db6815cf577fc49bab6dc23851b11806d28d67d18f5be5eacecd50351418e57dc725bbc4a31a6774b89f39e2e3dc300d675" }

Last Notes

2026-05-06 14:24:58 UTC

- reply

Click the squares to see exactly what went down and for how long.
If you don’t depend on anything from that list, mazel tov.

2026-05-06 14:15:14 UTC

Via @npub1wnq…xw6v: 32.7 days of some form of #GitHub downtime in the past 170 days, as tracked by https://red-squares.cian.lol. No, it doesn’t include scheduled service windows.
My self-hosted #Forgejo is looking better and better.
#SoftwareEngineering #SoftwareDevelopment #OpenSource
https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/media_attachments/files/116/528/048/684/443/974/original/5f5964777ed6ebbd.png

2026-03-30 13:42:40 UTC

This morning’s “Get Up!” #AppleMusjc #playlist:<li>"Neurotica" by Rush, from 'Roll the Bones (Remastered)'</li><li>"Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)" by Def Leppard, from 'Pyromania (Super Deluxe)'</li><li>"Big Generator" by Yes, from 'Big Generator'</li><li>"Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers" by ZZ Top, from 'Tres Hombres'</li><li>"Treasure (Whatever Happened to Pete the Chop)" by U2, from 'War (Deluxe Edition) [Remastered]'</li><li>"Spirits In the Material World" by The Police, from 'Ghost In the Machine (Alternate Sequence Edition)'</li><li>"Cruiser (Remastered)" by The Cars, from 'Shake It Up (Expanded)'</li><li>"Love Kills" by Robyn, from 'Body Talk, Pt. 2'</li><li>"Kingdom Come" by David Bowie, from 'Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) [2017 Remaster]'</li><li>"Forever More" by Moloko, from 'Statues'</li><li>"Astounded" by Bran Van 3000, from 'Discosis'</li><li>"Allison Road" by Gin Blossoms, from 'New Miserable Experience (Deluxe Edition)'</li><li>"U-Mass" by Pixies, from 'Trompe le Monde'</li><li>"One Wink At a Time" by The Replacements, from 'All Shook Down (Expanded Edition)'</li><li>"EZ Come EZ Go" by Tesla, from 'Mechanical Resonance'</li><li>"War Pigs" by Faith No More, from 'The Real Thing (Deluxe Edition) [2015 Remaster]'</li><li>"Darktown Riot" by Steve Hackett, from 'Darktown'</li><li>"Hands Pt1" by Stick Men, from 'Soup'</li><li>"Don't Treat Me Bad (2024 Remaster)" by FireHouse, from 'Firehouse (2024 Remaster)'</li><li>"Love In an Elevator" by Aerosmith, from 'The Very Best of Aerosmith'</li><li>"Destiny (feat. Sia & Sophie Barker)" by Zero 7, from 'Simple Things'</li><li>"100 Horses" by Geese, from 'Getting Killed'</li><li>"Summer" by Modest Mouse, from 'The Fruit That Ate Itself'</li><li>"Old Engine Oil" by The Budos Band, from 'V'</li><li>"Tumult - Each Their Own Justice (M24)" by Yuzo Koshiro, from 'Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City'</li>
#music

2026-03-28 03:31:01 UTC

Woohoo! Got my #AWS #Cloud Practitioner #Certification today!
https://www.credly.com/badges/cb399784-86d6-4c05-80b5-e46baa615415/public_url
#AmazonWebServices #AmazonCloud #CloudComputing
https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/media_attachments/files/116/304/685/393/914/594/original/82ae2897f15cfb40.png

2026-03-27 13:29:20 UTC

I wanted to share #AppleMusic playlists as plain text with others, so I wrote a simple #shortcut: https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/d87571de0c4442e7935e5f392885c8fd
#Apple #music #Shortcuts

2026-03-19 00:50:34 UTC

Shiny! “#Firefly is getting an animated series featuring the original cast”: https://apple.news/A6fsBM_-zT4ad7tn7clWTyA

2026-03-14 21:46:09 UTC

- reply

I think “the software industry” is becoming like “the wood industry”: huge integrated businesses, other industries and side-businesses surrounding it, developing countries engaging in it at their own level, and folks like us whittling in our spare time.
Renting houses is basically WaaS: Wood-as-a-Service.

2026-03-14 21:31:58 UTC

- reply

⁃ **Page hosted on Medium or Substack:** Throw it into the sea

2026-03-13 17:19:12 UTC

- reply

Sorry, not a clue

2026-03-13 17:00:55 UTC

I figured something out this month that I've missed for 34 years.
I've been measuring whether I'm "enough" as a person--whether the *chooser* is adequate--rather than evaluating my *choices*. That's a category error. **There is no yardstick for myself qua myself.** Only for things I do.##
The TrapFrom #AynRand's [*Atlas Shrugged*](https://aynrand.org/novels/atlas-shrugged/ ), Galt's speech:
> Man has no choice about his need of > [> #> SelfEsteem](https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/tags/SelfEsteem )> , his only choice is > **the standard by which to gauge it**> . And he makes his fatal error when he switches this gauge protecting his life into the service of his own destruction, when he chooses a standard contradicting existence and sets his self-esteem against reality.
I've been measuring *myself* instead of my *choices*. Asking "Am I rational enough?" instead of "Am I exercising rationality in this choice?" Treating the volitional entity--the chooser--as if it were subject to pass/fail evaluation.
But you can't be "wrong in person." You can only make wrong *choices*. **The chooser is the precondition for those concepts to mean anything.**##
The InvariantThe concept comes from topology: an invariant remains unchanged when a structure is transformed. @npub12cu…d38p's [*Diaspora*](https://www.gregegan.net/DIASPORA/DIASPORA.html ) explores this for consciousness--what persists across memory edits, substrate changes, simulated deaths.
The invariant isn't the *contents* of consciousness. It's **the structure of being the thing that experiences**. The observer. The integrator. The chooser.
Applied to #identity: I am an existent with volitional consciousness. That's my identity, metaphysically. Not "I *have* consciousness" (dualism), but "I *am*" this integrated entity.
The invariant is the volitional structure itself. Everything else--memories, achievements, mistakes, consequences--is what that structure *produces*.##
What I Wrote Before I Understood ItFrom my story ["La Petite Mort"](https://thebeautifulprison.com/stories/la-petite-mort/ ):
> She wanted to keep being Thalindra. Wanted to keep having thoughts, even painful ones. Wanted to keep waking up every morning, tired and aching and alone, because waking up meant she was still there to do the waking. Wanted existence as what she was--this particular configuration that was specifically hers.
> The preference was immediate. Simple. Undeniable. > *Hers.*
> And it was enough.
I gave my character what I couldn't give myself: acceptance of the invariant without audit.
Now I have it too.##
The Correction**I am the standard by which my choices are measured, not the thing being measured.**
You evaluate actions. Not the volitional entity that generates them.
If you accept your choices as yours--made with what you knew, under your constraints--you can accept yourself. Not because you've proven worthiness. Because you *are* the chooser, and that's A is A applied to you.
Clear. Weightless. Real.
#philosophy #Objectivism

2026-03-13 15:35:50 UTC

- reply

Or post to followers-only and only darken known inboxes.

2026-03-13 02:21:54 UTC

- reply

I grew up about 15 miles away in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

2026-03-12 15:15:02 UTC

- reply

Are you keeping up with the Commodore? Because the #Commodore is keeping up with you!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95cGh9EeMIY&feature=youtu.be
#RetroComputing #C64 #Commodore64 #SX64

2026-02-06 03:58:04 UTC

It’s 2026 and Bobby Tables is still alive and well.
https://bobby-tables.com
#InfoSec #CyberSecurity
https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/media_attachments/files/116/021/676/216/525/519/original/84ca767c0c4bb3ec.jpeg

2026-02-03 23:38:40 UTC

#AynRand’s original introduction to _The Virtue of Selfishness_ is now online—and it *directly contradicts* most of the claims people make about her #ethics.
 If your picture of Rand comes from social media threads, YouTube rants, or second-hand “hot takes,” this is the text that breaks the spell: https://courses.aynrand.org/campus-courses/the-virtue-of-selfishness/introduction/
Let’s clear out the biggest straw men right away:
❌ “Rand said selfishness means hurting people.”  
No. She argues that rational self‑interest forbids coercion, exploitation, and parasitism. Predators aren’t “selfish”—they’re short‑range, self‑destructive, and irrational.
❌ “It’s just an excuse to do whatever you want.”  
She draws a hard boundary between whim and #reason. Her ethics demands long‑range thinking, integrity, and principled action — the opposite of impulse.
❌ “#Objectivism celebrates cruelty.”  
The introduction explicitly rejects cruelty as irrational. Benevolence is not only compatible with #egoism—it’s a natural expression of a rational, confident person.
❌ “Rand denies moral principles.”  
She denies sacrifice as a moral ideal. She does not deny #morality. She argues for a code rooted in reality, reason, and the requirements of human life.
If you want to understand the argument instead of the mythology, read the primary source—it’s short, sharp, and surprisingly accessible.
For context on the full book, editions, and themes: https://aynrand.org/novels/the-virtue-of-selfishness/
#philosophy #individualism #reading #nonfiction #ideas #bookstodon

2026-02-01 19:10:18 UTC

- reply

You're lucky if a site can live on past the next CMS switch

2026-01-30 00:33:29 UTC

- reply

https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/@mjg/115981231482693517

2026-01-01 03:50:30 UTC

When we throw down on #NYE, we throw down a mad jigsaw #puzzle party
#HappyNewYear #NewYear #NewYearsEve
https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/media_attachments/files/115/817/803/330/118/821/original/1e02c31b1f837dd0.jpeg

2025-12-29 21:53:16 UTC

This is your reminder that planet Earth is a dense molten core encased in a layer of solids and is therefore, culinarily speaking, a ravioli.

2025-10-17 16:23:41 UTC

What happens when an #AI writes #philosophy in its own voice? This essay probes #consciousness, #ethics, and #art -- and why life and caring remain essential.
#ArtificialIntelligence #creativity #FutureOfAI #TechAndSociety
https://phoenixtrap.com/2025/10/17/talking-with-an-ai-about-whether-its-conscious/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

2025-10-17 15:42:18 UTC

I had a fun #philosophy conversation with #Claude (an #LLM #AI service) about the nature of #consciousness, #ethics, and eventually #art.
Because Claude was my intellectual foil, I then had it describe the chat in the form of an essay -- and it did it from its own "point of view"!
https://claude.ai/public/artifacts/4f70f9a8-58ab-4643-9640-83f785a5e84f
The chat itself helped clarify my thinking as an #Objectivist about the necessary relationship between consciousness and life. Maybe you'll find it enlightening, too.

2025-09-22 16:54:25 UTC

So‑called “selfish” #capitalism has united people across borders more than any “One‑World” scheme.
What *remains* of capitalism today is under attack—from politicians, intellectuals, the media. If we want to uphold #liberty in the marketplace, we need to defend it on moral grounds.
Discover #AynRand’s moral case for capitalism: https://aynrand-19886644.hs-sites.com/capitalism
#politics #ethics #philosophy #Objectivism
https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/media_attachments/files/115/248/870/868/832/896/original/6f33d60f25b4b8cd.jpeg

2025-09-22 00:41:25 UTC

The #FTC’s “Green Guides” have turned “100% #RenewableEnergy” into a marketing illusion: https://open.substack.com/pub/alexepstein/p/how-to-end-the-100-renewable-fraud
* Buying paper credits for others' #CleanEnergy lets companies take false credit—and shift fossil fuel blame onto citizens.
* Hundreds run mostly on #FossilFuels yet claim “100% #renewable” with the FTC’s blessing.
* This fuels plant shutdowns, driving a reliability crisis that #AI will worsen.
End the “100% renewable” fraud.
#greenwashing #sustainability #climate #EnergyTransition

2025-09-19 22:19:09 UTC

#AynRand is quoted, misquoted, praised, and vilified — often by people who haven’t read her.
_The Ayn Rand Reader_ offers excerpts from her #fiction and #nonfiction: her ideas, her voice, her terms.
If you’re serious about understanding her — whether to agree or disagree — start here: https://aynrand.org/novels/the-ayn-rand-reader/
#philosophy #books #bookstodon #literature #AynRand #Objectivism

2025-09-19 17:57:52 UTC

The only difference between #fascism, #communism, and #socialism is the degree to which the state pretends there is private property. Everything else is just arguing over the color of the jackboots.
https://courses.aynrand.org/lexicon/fascism-and-communism-socialism/
#politics #philosophy #statism #AynRand #Objectivism
https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/media_attachments/files/115/232/254/977/215/754/original/33995f62073f3872.png

2025-09-16 01:31:52 UTC

When speech is treated as violence, violence becomes inevitable. And #PoliticalViolence becomes normalized.
In this #AynRand Institute #Podcast, Onkar Ghate & Nikos Sotirakopoulos examine the murder of #CharlieKirk, tracing the erosion of the speech/force line — from 9/11 to “speech = violence” — and why **zero tolerance for force** is the only rational standard.
https://newideal.aynrand.org/charlie-kirks-murder-who-normalized-political-violence-video/
#Objectivism #FreeSpeech #politics #USpolitics #philosophy #culture #IdeasMatter #reason

2025-09-10 23:03:40 UTC

#Fascism doesn’t arrive with jackboots overnight—it seeps in through crisis, cult leaders & contempt for law.
In this #OCON2025 talk from July 2, Nikos Sotirakopoulos warns America’s not there yet, but the signs are flashing.
The antidote? Truth & reason—before it’s too late. ⚠️
▶️ The Road to Fascism (and Are We on It?): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f84rPnU3xE4&feature=youtu.be
#politics #USpolitics #philosophy #Objectivism #AynRandInstitute

2025-09-09 02:29:53 UTC

- reply

Whatever, fortune cookie

2025-09-09 01:48:50 UTC

- reply

You’re in luck! #AynRand has an entire *essay* about man’s rights: https://courses.aynrand.org/works/mans-rights/
But briefly: Rights aren’t an afterthought to “sharing power”—they’re its foundation. Without individual rights, calls to “share power” amount to enforced obligation, not genuine cooperation.
#philosophy #politics #Objectivism

2025-09-09 00:05:16 UTC

What’s left of #capitalism today is under attack—from politicians, intellectuals, the media.
If we want to uphold #liberty in the marketplace, we need to defend it on *moral* grounds.
Discover #AynRand’s moral case for capitalism: https://buff.ly/3lTePN
And read Rand’s full article here: https://buff.ly/43cRdlx
#philosophy #ethics #politics #economics #Objectivism
https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/media_attachments/files/115/171/395/013/237/327/original/07906677a6de5a0f.jpeg

2025-09-03 15:45:35 UTC

#Selfishness, properly understood, requires not following whims or exploiting others but living by #reason, for your own chosen purpose, with the end goal of flourishing. Discover #AynRand’s #morality of life: https://buff.ly/ImqDDrz
https://www.threads.com/@aynrandorg/post/DOJSrFqiurY?xmt=AQF0ptWlOhnbVGJ4f6RdTpPhFavJaAJVS4n9osXmrpMSxw&slof=1
#philosophy #ethics #Objectivism
https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/media_attachments/files/115/141/129/599/063/994/original/8763411504d3abe9.jpeg

2025-09-02 18:52:09 UTC

Happy #AtlasShrugged Day!
https://a.co/5B9XDuf
#AynRand #bookstodon #philosophy
https://mastodon.phoenixtrap.com/system/media_attachments/files/115/136/209/133/477/217/original/30117bee9b534eb2.png

2025-08-28 19:09:33 UTC

- reply

And unsupported on #SteamDeck

2025-08-27 21:35:05 UTC

- reply

“Grow Home” and “Grow Up” are both great and available as a US$16.18 bundle on #Steam. #SteamDeck verified, too.
I look forward to #Atari continuing the series.

2025-08-11 15:53:13 UTC

And this is why I’m working on moving my #GitHub repos to #Codeberg: the former is now fully an #AI #LLM training source and divisional sales funnel for #Microsoft’s other services. https://www.theverge.com/news/757461/microsoft-github-thomas-dohmke-resignation-coreai-team-transition
/ @npub1fh7…ee83 @npub12r3…zz58
#programming #coding #SoftwareDevelopment #SoftwareEngineering #Copilot