A good summation of David Brooks and "civility" politics generally: no one on the right-wing can ever be described honestly, while everyone who isn't on the right-wing is always portrayed as a radical breaking cherished norms.

driftglass@driftglass.bsky.social · 3d ago

"Jon Ossoff, my advice to him is, if you start calling your political opponents Nazis, maybe it's time to shut up. That's just not what we do here in this country." -- David Brooks, this evening. Remember, Brooks still gets very handsomely rewarded by the fossilized media for saying shit like this

question for brooks: what if they are, literally, nazis?

driftglass@driftglass.bsky.social · 3d ago

"Jon Ossoff, my advice to him is, if you start calling your political opponents Nazis, maybe it's time to shut up. That's just not what we do here in this country." -- David Brooks, this evening. Remember, Brooks still gets very handsomely rewarded by the fossilized media for saying shit like this

The courts should block this. If they don't, we should tear it down on the very first day of the next administration. If possible, Trump should be made to watch the demolition. This, the ballroom, whatever he does to the Kennedy Center and all of the rest. Erase it all. Full damnatio memoriae.

Nick Kodama 🌳👻@nickkodama.bsky.social · 3w ago

lol what

A minor detail is missing from the headline.

It's a big day. My novel Pound Foolish is out. It's about a serial killer who plays on an NFL team. If you love the NFL (like I do), but feel conflicted because the league does EVERYTHING IT CAN to lie to us, steal from us, and sweep scandal under the rug... ...I think you'll like Pound Foolish!

There's no forgiving this. No living it down. It's a stain on our humanity. When all this is over, the monsters who did this should be pariahs. And the soulless thugs who cheered it on while dehumanizing Haitian immigrants should be reminded of what they did every day of their lives.

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick@reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · last mo.

The situation in Haiti is terrifying. On Sunday, 150 gunmen swept down on a town to kill, rape, loot, and burn. 22 people were executed in a churchyard. 52 were taken hostage. Stephen Miller mockingly says Haiti is safe and ICE just sent its second deportation flight this month; with kids on board.

Doctors say that measles can kill young children. A guy who snorts cocaine off toilet seats and drives around with dead bear cubs in his car says they'll be fine as long as they eat enough beef tallow. For busy parents, it can be hard to know who to trust.

Dolly’s final gift. At a time of extreme ugliness and hate, she has inspired an outpouring of love. It’s still out there, folks. Nowadays, that can be easy to forget.

This is a nice explanation of why the idea that LLMs are conscious is absurd, of why some people might be fooled into thinking they are. www.theatlantic.com/philosophy/2...

No, Artificial Intelligence Is Not Conscious

Taken to its logical conclusion, this line of thinking is absurd—and damning.

theatlantic.com

I wish Ken Paxton would protect puppies the way he protects pedophiles.

Team Talarico@teamtalaricohq.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Unearthed documents just revealed Ken Paxton, as Attorney General, protected a research lab that tortured 400 puppies. Paxton was also one of the only Texas lawmakers to vote against a bill to hold animal abusers accountable.

This is really alarming. I would not be surprised to see some of the tactics described here, such as defining “religion” to exclude Islam, tried at the national level. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/17/u...

Islamophobia’s Rise in Texas: ‘I Won’t Rest Until Every Muslim Is Gone’ (Gift Article)

Muslim communities have been growing for decades, particularly around Dallas. Now, conservatives want to roll up the welcome mat.

nytimes.com

🤦‍♂️ It’s a fucking aircraft carrier, it’s not supposed to be pretty. I don’t understand why the Navy would even entertain this nonsense. He wants the tower/command center to be closer to the front of the ship. It would cost billions and result in years of delays.

This is, bar none, the stupidest fuckung thing I’ve ever heard. And the idea that there’s nobody in the chain of command - civilian or military - with enough courage to say so is a disgrace.

Navy weighs major warship redesign to match Trump’s preferences

The president wants the new fleet of aircraft carriers to more resemble those from World War II. Such a change could cost billions.

wapo.st

Worth reading. @nickkristof.bsky.social gives voice to brutalized Palestinians in the WB (& Gaza) and strikes a balance between hope for a change Israeli leadership and realism that “even if that happens…, Gazans will still suffer unconscionably, and the West Bank will remain oppressed and unequal.”

Opinion | Israeli Settlers Are Out of Control (Gift Article)

If Netanyahu is ousted in October’s balloting, don’t expect peace to break out, but the worst violence might be reined in.

nytimes.com

These sailors are being put through this for a war that is unauthorized by Congress and for which funds haven’t been appropriated by Congress, a war that is now utterly pointless and which Trump simply doesn’t have the courage to end. Disgraceful. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

USS Abraham Lincoln sailors tried to jump overboard amid extended deployment – reports

Aircraft carrier’s crew in ninth month at sea and has spent record 250 days consecutively without making land

theguardian.com

Research question! In a May 26, 1919 speech, James Reed (D-MO) denounced the League of Nations for including non-white states. He cites a DuBois article in The Crisis to make his point. I want to read this article, from the May 1919 issue, but can’t find it online. Does anyone have it?

“Trump has rejected disaster aid for Democratic-run states at the highest rate in the 47-year history of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.” Right now people in blue states are basically paying federal taxes as if they’re colonized territories of red states. www.politico.com/news/2026/03...

Accountability isn't optional in a democracy. The FBI has just issued a license to kill to Trump's goons who can now murder whoever they want with no consequence. Our constitutional right and freedoms under assault by the very people sworn to uphold and protect them.

The New York Times@nytimes.com · 3mo ago

Breaking News: Federal agents are said to have been told that the FBI will no longer investigate confrontations with immigration agents. If enacted, such a change would sharply limit law enforcement scrutiny of immigration agents.

This is why we read books.

WAIT FOR IT WAIT. FOR. IT! 🪶 🐣

So, Your Country Hosted the World Cup... LOVE THIS open.substack.com/pub/contrari...

So, Your Country Hosted the World Cup

Maybe we should embrace the joy and forget American reality for a few more days.

open.substack.com

The rig I'm on has put up first aid guides that were made with AI. Wouldn't bother with CPR there, would be more concerned by the fact is head isn't connected to his body

The justices that upheld birthright citizenship in 1898 were racist men in a racist era who still could not avoid the plain text of the Constitution. What changed between is that the GOP now sees multiracial democracy as a threat rather than an ideal or aspiration www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

Palantir Acquires Pentagon For $800 Billion https://theonion.com/palantir-acquires-pentagon-for-800-billion/

Every time Trump threatens to attack Iran he is violating the terms of his surrender. Here's the very first graph of the MOU he signed:

Eliot Higgins@eliothiggins.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Peace negotiations are going swimmingly

The three players in this photo: 1. Nigerian heritage, grew up in England, and is only a citizen thanks to birthright citizenship. 2. Born + raised in Holland, has a dad who immigrated to the US from Suriname. 3. Said he wanted to “make people who look like me proud” while playing on Juneteenth

and all of them are senior university administrators

Matt Novak@paleofuture.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Only 16% of Americans believe AI will have a positive impact on society

i really, truly, find this offensive

Olga Nesterova@onestpress.onestnetwork.com · 4mo ago

In front of the Lincoln Memorial. This.

This might be hard for Americans to hear, but the USA getting humiliated by its abject failure as a power during this Iran War might be the best thing possible at this time. The country needs to understand there are consequences for electing a crook.