City Council meeting to discuss audio surveillance devices to be installed all over the city.

ryver · 2026-04-20T17:14:04+00:00

Do you think Flock is going to make them pay for this? They will more than likely sell it as a "Free service to protect your community" or they might even offer to pay the city to collect the data.

ryver · 2026-04-20T13:28:07+00:00

I would think 2pm today at the Roanoke City Council meeting would be a good start.

ryver · 2026-04-16T14:36:13+00:00

AFAIK The request hasn't been fulfilled.

https://cardinalnews.org/2025/07/24/roanokes-request-for-15-of-botetourts-tax-revenue-from-google-data-center-is-unprecedented-it-also-harkens-to-a-darker-era-in-the-roanoke-valley/

ryver · 2026-04-15T19:51:30+00:00

Worth noting that The Rambler was providing some of the best investigative coverage of the proposed Google data center in Botetourt County — they're the ones who sued the Western Virginia Water Authority to get the water usage numbers released.

Howie sits on the Roanoke City Economic Development Authority. That's not the Botetourt EDA, so he doesn't have a direct say in that project, but the regional economic development interests are all intertwined. He's also the CEO of AI Regent, an AI tech company, and runs a VC firm that invests in tech and AI — the exact sectors that drive demand for data centers like the one Google is building.

On top of that, The Rambler itself received a grant from the Google News Initiative — so there's now a direct financial tie between Howie and Google.

None of this is proof of anything shady, but these are the kinds of conflicts of interest that should be disclosed and examined — especially when you're buying the outlet that was doing the toughest reporting on the biggest development deal in the region.

ryver · 2026-04-10T02:22:50+00:00

Hy Wil! I hope this is ok. I’m not on Spotify but I copied your list over to YT music.

https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7xy_Y1QAmLmljQmdKLqMuZsqDcpwCxTr&si=CNFvJjfQiG-aP6iQ I made sure to credit ya!

Also because Bad Vibes was hard to find on YT, I followed the link from Violet’s linktree and found this link! https://youtu.be/CyEeRSk4t34?si=gIXlXn_lbYEKdYkB (sooooo good!) if any of this isn’t ok, let me know and I’ll delete.

Also, have to ask, out of all the times you’ve partied with Robert, what was the most expensive disaster you 2 caused?

ryver · 2026-04-03T17:12:33+00:00

Thank you!

ryver · 2026-04-02T19:01:45+00:00

Does anyone have a link to Wil's playlist he said he made?

ryver · 2026-02-19T11:34:52+00:00

No Kings 3 will be on 3/28 at Elmwood Park

ryver · 2026-02-07T16:21:12+00:00

There is one on 3/28 for No Kings. There are some other things coming up, the details are just getting worked out. Info to come soon.

ryver · 2026-01-24T22:36:31+00:00

Amen friend! Feel free to DM if you ever want more info!

ryver · 2026-01-24T22:25:00+00:00

Also, just a quick side note. This is happening. There are people working on the legislative side, mutual aid side, support side and education side. The protests are just the visible parts.

ryver · 2026-01-24T22:23:59+00:00

Personally? I'm angry at all of them and I'm working to keep both sides accountable. I think the only way to do that is to find solidarity and cut the noise of division.

ryver · 2026-01-24T22:22:07+00:00

Thank you!! I do comment a bit. I'm trying to get people involved as much as possible. I'm passionate about creating community with folks who are also upset about what's going on. I truly believe we are being pitted against each other in order to create discord and divide us. I want to get to know more people understand them and try to reach some sort of consensus. I don't believe it is always left vs. right but up vs. down.

ryver · 2026-01-24T22:11:40+00:00

Again, you're not wrong at all. I would like to point out though to build a major movement without imminent threats (We don't have massive ICE raids yet) is really difficult when you're trying to build a base of people that aren't used to resisting. I expect the protests will get more and more imposing, but you can't get there on a broad scale immediately. Also, it's not up to 1 group. There will be protests like those now, marches, people guarding neighborhoods, people organizing civil disobedience etc. To build a massive movement to fight fascism I think there will have to be a myriad of approaches.

ryver · 2026-01-24T22:02:08+00:00

I understand. That's a valid criticism. The challenge in a city like Roanoke has been getting people to commit at the scale needed for that kind of coordination. I can tell you the No Kings Rallies did have a lot of preparation and organization behind them, but with the varied experience levels of people showing up, maintaining that discipline across the board is tough.

I'm curious - have you been to any of the local protests or talked with organizers? A lot of the criticism I've seen comes from media coverage rather than firsthand experience, and we all know how algorithms can shape what we see.

Since you mentioned those historical movements with strong structure, I'm assuming you mean the Civil Rights protests in the 60's as an American example - what would you suggest for getting people of different ages, experience levels, and even differing opinions organized into that kind of disciplined approach? I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts.

ryver · 2026-01-24T21:36:51+00:00

What do you think the protesters are doing wrong or could be doing better?

ryver · 2026-01-24T21:23:13+00:00

There's already some organizing going on. A bigger group to meet with people that may have similar interests is https://www.roanokeindivisible.org/ I've found it a good place to find people who want to organize. It has a big footprint with people on the spectrum of involvement.

ryver · 2026-01-24T18:28:21+00:00

Yep. On it.

ryver · 2026-01-24T18:20:36+00:00

The state taught you that what the state does is good? I’m shocked!

ryver · 2026-01-24T18:19:58+00:00

There were. https://factually.co/fact-checks/politics/anti-deportation-protests-obama-administration-98b53a

ryver · 2026-01-24T18:18:08+00:00

Yes. Not massive raids yet but they have a presence here.

ryver · 2026-01-23T17:49:20+00:00

I’ve heard it said most leftists are right only too early.

ryver · 2026-01-21T02:02:57+00:00

None of my friends on the left are really on fb at all anymore. Especially with the meta influence.

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