I cursed a lot in this one. This week, we're getting into everything that's been keeping us up at night about AI, starting with the news that broke this week around Jacob Coxon and the growing chorus of whistleblowers sounding the alarm on superintelligence. We talk about why this fear isn't new, why the environmental, moral, and educational damage has been accumulating for years, and why I think AI is categorically different from every other disruptive technology in human history. We also get into the "you'll get left behind" argument that AI proponents love to make, and why, honestly, I've always been okay with that. I'm not here to tell you we're all doomed. I'm here to tell you that people are already fighting back, it's working, and there are concrete things you can do. Show notes with legislation, resources, and action steps are linked below. Please be a part of the solution. Show notes: I'm on Substack now!Subscribe to the free tier for the same blog posts, podcast episodes, and monthly newsletter all in one placeSubscribe to the paid tier for an extra podcast episode every month where we get to talk about things I normally can't here 👀Follow me on InstagramThanks to DayFox for the intro/outro song!Legislation to know about: Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act Introduced September 4, 2026 by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Representative Greg Casar (D-TX). Would permanently ban the development and deployment of superintelligent AI, pause advanced AI development until a federal regulatory agency establishes safety rules, and pursue international agreements to prevent superintelligence from being developed anywhere in the world. Penalties for violation are on par with illegal nuclear weapons development: up to 20 years in prison for individuals and the corporate death penalty for entities. → sanders.senate.govAI Data Center Moratorium Act (S.4214) Also introduced by Sanders, March 2026. Would prohibit building or upgrading AI data centers until laws regulating AI and AI data centers are enacted. Currently referred to the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. → congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/4214Stop Rogue AI Act Introduced September 9, 2026 by Representatives Josh Gottheimer (NJ) and Mike Lawler (NY), notably bipartisan. Rather than an outright ban, this bill directs NIST to develop standards for identifying, tracking, and controlling AI agents operating inside networks, with requirements for real-time monitoring and the ability to revoke an agent's access at any time. The framing: humans should always have the final say over what AI can access or do. → gottheimer.house.govAI Civil Rights Act Led by Representative Yvette Clarke and Senator Ron Wyden. Would treat algorithmic discrimination in hiring, housing, credit, healthcare, and policing as a civil rights violation, with federal audits, disclosures, and penalties. This one is the most tangible for everyday people - AI is already being used to deny mortgages, jobs, and healthcare. Has 29 cosponsors but has not cleared Congress. → Search "AI Civil Rights Act Yvette Clarke" at congress.govThe Great American AI Act (bad!!!) A 269-page bipartisan draft released June 2026 by Representatives Obernolte and Trahan. On the surface it establishes federal AI oversight, but buried inside is a preemption clause that would freeze every state-level AI law enacted after January 1, 2024 for three years. This would suspend existing state protections in California, Colorado, Illinois, and Texas while the federal government - currently not especially friendly to regulation - takes over the conversation. Civil society groups including Public Citizen and the AFL-CIO have raised serious concerns. Worth contacting your representatives about. → Search "Great American AI Act 2026" at congress.govHow to take action: Contact your representatives: The single highest-impact thing you can do. Call, don't just email! Find your representatives at congress.gov/members, or use the 5Calls app. Tell them you support the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act and the AI Civil Rights Act, and express concern about the Great American AI Act's preemption clause. If you live in Texas, contacting Greg Casar's office directly is especially meaningful.If there's a data center proposed near you: Community opposition has already blocked or stalled $156 billion worth of data center projects. 69-75% of Americans now oppose data center construction near their homes. You are not alone and your voice matters.→ servercountry.org/resources/legal-actions — a step-by-step guide to zoning challenges, public hearings, and organizing neighbors. Includes documented success stories.→ datacenter-playbook.netlify.app — a free community resource updated in 2026, used across 40 states. Covers what to do if you just heard about a proposal, if a vote is coming up, or even if the vote already went the wrong way.→ commonslibrary.org — search "How to Stop a Data Centre" for the full toolkit, including the Brockovich AI Data Center Reporting map showing operational and under-construction facilities with community-reported concerns.Grassroots organizing — stopai.info is Oakland-based activist organization seeking to ban the development of artificial general intelligence, for those who want to connect with organized opposition beyond the legislative route.Further reading: A very relevant blog post: That's enough transhumanism for me, thanksCNN: 'Gambling with our lives': Another AI employee quits over safety concernsDario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic: We Must Pace the FrontierEngadget: How to Fight a Data CenterProject Censored: Communities Push Back Against AI Data Center ExpansionCenter for Democracy and Technology 2026 AI Legislation Updates: cdt.orgAI bill tracker with current status: https://legisletter.org/issues/ai-regulation As always, thank you for listening. 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