polisciguy
@askpolisciguy.bsky.social
central appalachian political scientist. primarily interested in international relations, the middle east/west asia, war/origins of conflict, and american government. tech industry veteran. ama.
DuBois warned the failings of the U.S. to implement a liberal order domestically represents the same structural problem with the pursuit of a liberal international order. Just as relevant today. His IR writings are often overlooked but required reading www.foreignaffairs.com/united-state...
The Du Bois Doctrine
Race and the American century.
foreignaffairs.com
A prescient reminder that it is possible to use the institutions of democracy to implement authoritarianism. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
How Hitler Dismantled a Democracy in 53 Days
He used the constitution to shatter the constitution.
theatlantic.com
One of my favorite things to do is find controversial Facebook posts and laugh react at random commenters, even ones I totally agree with. It’s the main reason I open the FB app. It’s especially fun to do it to whomever is the voice of reason in an otherwise insane and chaotic comments section.
Barney Frank, Gay Pioneer and Liberal Stalwart in Congress, Dies at 86 www.nytimes.com/2026/05/20/u...
Barney Frank, Gay Pioneer and Liberal Stalwart in Congress, Dies at 86
nytimes.com
Updated ArtemisTimeline.com with about 100 photos from the new drop! You can click "new crew photos" if you just want to see the new ones!
Artemis II Photo Timeline
An interactive photo timeline of NASA's Artemis II mission — scrub through every crew moment, lunar flyby shot, and audio clip from April 1–10, 2026.
artemistimeline.com
Ukraine war latest: Three Russian ships, MiG-31 aircraft damaged in major overnight strikes on Crimea Key developments on April 25-26: Three Russian ships, MiG-31 aircraft damaged in major overnight strikes on Crimea, SBU reports Ukrainian drones strike Russia's Yaroslavl oil ...
Ukraine war latest: Three Russian ships, MiG-31 aircraft damaged in major overnight strikes on Crimea
kyivindependent.com
(3) When I talk to policymakers they show every time they don't know anything. You say 'it's not a matter of more money' for 20mins and then they look at you incomprehending and say 'no more money'. There's no capacity in the system even to read a 2 page summary. (4/4) observer.co.uk/news/columni...
Why saving universities is far more than academic
Modern Britain needs young people with degrees – here’s how to make sure they still have somewhere to study them
observer.co.uk
A rare win for the Trump administration. Rescheduling it removes some barriers to patient access and gives doctors more flexibility in prescribing it. Marijuana rescheduling: Trump eases rules on medical cannabis www.npr.org/2026/04/23/n...
Trump administration eases rules on some marijuana categories. Here's what to know
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said he is immediately moving medical marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III, which includes drugs like ketamine, Tylenol with codeine and anabolic steroids.
npr.org
Pete Hegseth is so insecure about being wimpy, effete, and impotent that comes out every time the man speaks. And informs his decisions apparently, as he is removing the military influenza vaccine mandate. If he can’t see the strategic need for a simple flu shot, he’s less qualified than I thought
They've had 6 years to prove the 2020 election was "stolen" in a court system filled with Trump appointees, and they can't do it. Because he lost. Because there isn't a shred of legitimate evidence that indicates he won. He is delusional as is anyone who buys into the idea.
Jen Bendery@jbendery.bsky.social · 4mo agoNew from me: All 40 of Trump's judicial nominees who have taken Qs from the Senate Judiciary Committee have refused to say Trump lost the 2020 election. Now his high-level executive nominees are dodging the Q, too. www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-...
This wild document is the basis for the State Department's decision to cancel the visas and green cards of tech researchers who study the social media platforms and of tech regulators who enforce privacy and transparency laws. Disclosed to us last night in @thecoalition.bsky.social v. Rubio.
Any chance the president gets to diminish the plight of black people, be it slavery or civil rights, he does so. It's telling when someone refuses to state plainly what it was these people lived through and fought against. Of course, it doesn't tell us anything we didn't know already.
John Garrison Marks@johngmarks.com · 4mo agoNot only does this project seem to implicitly admit there will be no actual statues for this thing, it continues the trend on display at the President’s House: taking credit for ending bad things without ever exploring why they came to be or who benefited. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/24/a...
Editor's spotlight from Foreign Affairs this morning calls attention to a great piece by @lianafix.bsky.social on the risks of European destabilization as Germany begins their first military ascent since World War II link.foreignaffairs.com/click/453772...
Europe’s Next Hegemon
The perils of German power.
link.foreignaffairs.com
“In the end the Party would announce that two and two made five, and you would have to believe it."
I firmly believe presidents & people with control over medical agencies should understand percentages! If *you* don’t, no judgment; I will explain in the next couple posts how they work. The short version is that Senator Warren is correct in the clip, and there’s NO interpretation in which RFKJr is
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 5mo agoRFK Jr: "President Trump has a different way of calculating percentages. If you have a $600 drug and you reduce it to $10, that's a 600% reduction."
New piece on Ukraine-Russia, and why the Trump administration's cut to aid and push for a ceasefire is a big win for Moscow open.substack.com/pub/poliscig...
Ukraine-Russia Ceasefire Now Isn't Peace, It's Surrender
Why Washington’s next move will determine whether Russia is contained or rewarded
open.substack.com
A brief piece with some of my initial thoughts on the outcome of the Virginia referendum, mainly aimed at those in my home district of the 9th. open.substack.com/pub/poliscig...
NOVA Does Not Control Your Destiny
Virginia Redistricting Referendum and what it means
open.substack.com
All models now project the Virginia referendum passes. New York Times, the Hill, and others project that Yes votes narrowly prevail. Legal challenges are no doubt already in progress.
"No" has been leading in the VA referendum since the polls closed, which is not unexpected, but its lead has reduced substantially as votes from more populated counties are being counted. No currently leads with 50.43% to 49.57%, but there are roughly 1 million votes left to count from Dem areas
A couple of models I'm seeing at the moment indicate the VA referendum has a chance to pass by somewhere between 2-4%. Other models are less favorable for passing. What's certain is that the results are likely to be very close.
Virginia is a solidly purple state. Should the referendum succeed and survive the onslaught of court challenges, I would expect Republican and conservative leaning voters to be motivated in the midterms and future elections. Central/Eastern districts would not be as solidly blue as the image shows.
polisciguy@askpolisciguy.bsky.social · 5mo agoThis shows the current Virginia districts vs. the proposed redistricted version. The new version is somewhat overly optimistic and is unlikely to result in that kind of boon for Democrats, but it does certainly swing in their favor.
This shows the current Virginia districts vs. the proposed redistricted version. The new version is somewhat overly optimistic and is unlikely to result in that kind of boon for Democrats, but it does certainly swing in their favor.
The Virginia redistricting referendum is in direct response to president Trump, nervous that Democratic and anti-Trump support has been increasing substantially in Texas, requested that the districts be redrawn to favor conservatives, which created 5 new solidly Republican districts.
Challenges to the referendum have been ongoing, and attorneys opposed to it were successful in getting a judge to agree that the legislative process was an issue, which it most certainly is. But the VA Supreme Court ordered that the referendum go forward. Should it pass, legal battles will continue.