Dez Reads. No One Fs With the AI Jesus.

Our last edition of 2025 features an AI Jesus bot alongside thieving and drug-dealing Santas.

Ain’t that America?

We will pick things up in January with our latest readings and musings. I want to thank our team, which exploded in size and Dez Reads contributions this year. Thank you for helping show off the curiosity and learning that makes our team so creative and impactful.

And thanks, as always, to you all for reading along with us. Happy Holidays; we’ll see you in ’26.

Here we go.

Father, Son, and Holy Algorithm.

The Economist. The race for an AI Jesus is on

There’s a new app called Text with Jesus, built atop ChatGPT, that allows you to chat with whatever Silicon Valley’s idea of Jesus Christ is.

Both Pope Leo XIV and I hate this outsourcing of faith to our AI overlords, but here it is anyway. Merry Christmas!

– Josh Culling

A Pretty Penny.

AP News. Last US cents sold at auction for $16.76 million were worth a pretty penny

According to the Associated Press, a penny could buy a biscuit or a piece of candy when it was introduced in 1793. Now the last three pennies ever produced are fetching more than $800,000 at auction. They were the last of 232 three-cent sets produced by the U.S. Mint, selling for a total of $16.76 million.

This is nuts. What gives? For the past 40 years, we’ve been throwing pennies into wishing wells and forgetting where they hide under sofa cushions.

I’ll tell you what gives. You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.

As the holidays come to a close, remember not to not take the little things for granted, even if they seem worthless in the moment. Those little things will be missed when they’re gone – and you could end up paying a pretty penny to get them back.

– Phil Bogdan

Santa’s Not-So-Secret Stash.

Fox13. California police find Christmas ‘free weed’ display that was anything but jolly

I guess Santa’s sleigh isn’t the only thing flying high this holiday season.

In Auburn, California, an anonymous holiday philanthropist decided to spread some specific cheer. Outside a local high school, a sidewalk display was set up showcasing a sign that read “Merry Christmas! Free Weed! Organic and Cage Free” accompanied by jars of free marijuana. Naturally, one should not take a jar of unlabeled drugs and use said drugs for a whole host of safety reasons, but at least the giver thought to alleviate any concerns by providing manufacturing details.

After discovering the anonymous offering of Kris Kringle’s Kush (trademark pending), California authorities confiscated 29 jars of the “free Christmas weed”. I am most certain that the Santa elf who put the display up had more than 29 jars out originally, so a few early birds most likely scored the stocking stuffer before the Grinch in uniform arrived.

In the end, while the giveaway didn’t last long, it gifted us all an incredibly funny story of holiday spirit. Somewhere out there, a very relaxed citizen is enjoying the true meaning of “peace on earth” this Christmas.

– Nathaniel Beach

Naughty List for the Algorithm.

The Atlantic. Will Australia’s Social-Media Ban Be Good for Teens?

The fears of “algorithmic manipulation” and “predatory design features” that “encourage compulsive usage” have finally been acted on down under.

This Christmas, Australian children and preteens aren’t getting coal or presents but rather having one of their ways to end up on the nice or naughty list removed: social media.

The Australian government believes this will make kids happier, healthier, well-rested, and more engaged in other activities. Basically, a one-off fix-all cure.

Based on their definition of social media, Discord, Pinterest, and Roblox are still allowed, so I’m sure those companies feel like Christmas came early for them… To everyone else, Happy Holidays, and to Australian kids, Happy pinning and channel-messaging!

– Katie Runkle

Heistmas.

CBC. Thieves dressed as Santa and his elves steal $3K worth of goods from Montreal grocery store

Nothing like ending the year with a good Robin Hood story during the holidays. As long-time readers know, I have a soft spot for a creative theft, and this one comes with Santa working overtime.

Earlier this week, a group dressed as Santa and masked elves rolled into a Montreal grocery store, calmly filled carts with about $3,000 worth of food, and walked out without paying. The group later claimed responsibility, saying the food was redistributed under a Christmas tree and stocked in community fridges across the city. They justified this by saying that grocery prices are soaring and corporate profits are rising; they saw the real theft happening elsewhere.

Police are investigating, the grocery chain is unhappy, and social media is largely cheering. The stunt was nonviolent, theatrical, and perfectly timed, which helps explain why many people see it less as shoplifting and more as a political statement with a charitable aftertaste.

I’ll always enjoy a well-executed heist story, and during the holidays I suppose even Santa has to take matters into his own hands.

– Mark Emerson

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