The Bi of Hormuz
@joshstein.bsky.social
Philosopher by training; cranky by nature. Professional in science and technology policy. Also photography, combatting antisemitism, politics, and ethics.
I cannot imagine the Judge being sympathetic to this motion, given how terrible and extensive the conduct in Boutros’ office has been.
Ben Collins@bencollins.bsky.social · 1h agoYour little oopsie "mistakes" had me worrying for a year of my life about my partner going to jail for up to a decade based on lies likely fed to you by the top of the federal government. Show everyone what you're covering up in these emails and texts. There's a reason you don't want them released.
Never forget that Mike Pence argued that smoking doesn't kill people
Mike Pence said smoking "doesn't kill" and faced criticism for his response to HIV. Now he's leading the coronavirus response
Pence has espoused false beliefs that are disproven with data easily found on U.S. government webpages.
cbsnews.com
Michael Hobbes@michaelhobbes.bsky.social · 3h agoI'm calling it: "Start smoking" is going to be mainstream MAHA / Republican health advice by 2028. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
I’ve heard a lot of discussions of Tucker Carlson running for President. I honestly think the Jeremy Culhane impression (like Tina Fey’s Palin) makes him culturally inviable.
WIRED@wired.com · 2h agoJoe Kent says that he and other anti-Donald Trump MAGA figures have formed a new movement. They want Tucker Carlson to run for the presidency in 2028. www.wired.com/story/maga-i...
Well, that’s good. Thanedar is one of the more ethically questionable (to be extremely polite) members of the Democratic caucus. His private sector history alone is pretty damning. I’m not up on McKinney, but the bar was low here.
Qasim Rashid, Esq.@qasimrashid.com · 3h agoBREAKING: Donavan McKinney has defeated incumbent Shri Thanedar in the MI-13 Democratic Primary! McKinney is an unapologetic progressive while Thanedar is a pro AIPAC pro genocide corporate puppet. A huge win for working people in MI!
"That which is hateful to you, do not do to another; that is the entire Torah, and the rest is its interpretation. Go study." - Hillel, from Shabbat 31a
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 2h agoEl-Sayed: "My commitment to Jewish safety is the same commitment that I have to the safety of my own daughters. Because if there is one question of political philosophy that ought to animate us all, it's what would we do if we treated all our kids like they were all of our kids?"
“I ran the largest hospital company in the world…” Yes you did, Rick. You ran Columbia/HCA while the company perpetrated the largest Medicare fraud in American history. Scott’s on Bartiromo b/c she won’t point that out, because she’s not a journalist.
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 5h agoRick Scott: "We want people to get healthcare, but ... "
Theres a special kind of narcissism in having a marble bust made of yourself, especially as an opinion columnist in your late 30s, as Weiss was when this was done. I have friends who would mock me so hard for this. Bari, apparently, does not.
Nate O@nateo.bsky.social · 5h agoThinking again about the marble Bari Weiss bust that's set up in the common room of the fake 'University of Austin' university she started in property owned by Harlan Crowe, the billionaire Nazi memorabilia collector that bought a Supreme Court justice
I’m BEGGING, people, please stop boosting this bit of rage bait. The headline is inflammatory and misleading. GPS jamming was off and the pilots were on a visual approach when the incident occurred.
Mike Lee's SCREEN Act, which heads to Senate Commerce Committee for markup on Wednesday, would expand age verification requirements to a nearly limitless scope of websites, and is supported by the architects of Project 2025.
The SCREEN Act is a Christian Nationalist Nightmare
Mike Lee's SCREEN Act, which heads to Senate Commerce Committee for markup on Wednesday, would expand age verification requirements to a nearly limitless scope of websites, and is supported by the architects...
404media.co
Yup. Running for office is a horrible experience. My father wanted to be in politics and public service his entire life. When I was a little kid, he ran for city council and ran a tight race into a runoff (and ultimately lost)... it was a horrible experience for our whole family.
William B. Fuckley@opinionhaver.bsky.social · 16h agothere actually isn't an infinite supply of charismatic people willing to have the most miserable year of their lives running for office, you have to actually find those people
I'm not sure this messaging is going to work the way that these right-wing evangelicals think, in part because a lot of these Christian pastors that are running are just really nice and inoffensive. They've tried to do it with Talarico and it just seems to be making Paxton look more deranged.
Jack Jenkins@jackjenkins.me · 21h ago"Pastors in Name Only" "Wicked Witch of Woke" “I've never seen anyone commit so much blasphemy against the word of God." As pastors become Democratic nominees — at least 5 so far, and likely one more tonight — their Republican opponents are attacking their faith. religionnews.com/2026/08/04/p...
If I ever write a Jordan Peterson-style guide for men, one of the rules will definitely be "Wipe your ass."
Ben Collins@bencollins.bsky.social · 21h agoOh my god the dietician who is telling everyone in the White House to only eat steak and sauerkraut doesn't wipe his ass.
Ken Jennings, in the tradition of the great Alex Trebek, being a good dude. Get 'em Ken.
Ken Jennings@kenjennings.bsky.social · 3d agoI saw yesterday that some right-wing outlets were running stories about me, which I’m used to. But this time I’m going to say something about it, because these were framed to imply that I was aligned with their own transphobia. ⬇️
Just a reminder that Seth Moulton still sucks. "... if my comments hurt you." Conditional drek. "I will always have your back." Except when I'm throwing you under the bus for political cred. www.advocate.com/politics/ele...
Seth Moulton’s anti-trans rhetoric comes back to haunt him in Senate debate with Ed Markey
"I deeply recognize your trauma, and I'm sorry if my comments hurt you," the congressman said.
advocate.com
I think this kind of stuff shows some pretty atrocious political and moral judgment on AOC’s part, especially at a moment where “MAHA activist” health policies are killing people and destroying the institutional drivers of American science.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez@ocasio-cortez.house.gov · 2d agoThere is pervasive corruption across our healthcare and agricultural systems that defy party lines. I meet with MAHA activists because a lot of their concerns are bipartisan issues that major corporations paint as partisan. The fight isn't left and right, it's top and bottom.
The fact that Moreno is closeted isn’t really much of a secret, since Miller has been leaking the details of his AdultFriendFinder account to the DC muckrakers consistently for the last six weeks.
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 20h agowhoa -- Max Miller on CNN threatens Sen. Bernie Moreno with "exposing a deeply and personal embarrassing matter" after Moreno called for his resignation
Fed has eggs at 2.15 and USDA has milk a little over 4.10/g. So… he’s not even close. Eggs have not been 78 cents in my lifetime, and I’m not that young anymore. But you don’t get credit for food at 3% inflation (which is not great anyway) when energy is over 15% (which is very bad).
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 21h agoTom Emmer on Republicans trailing Dems by 8 points in the generic ballot: "Right now there are great things happening in our economy. Nobody wants to talk about 78 cent eggs, nobody wants to talk about milk that's under $2. No no. They want to focus on gas prices."
This was predicted by TKO ahead of time, down to the $30 million amount, to say nothing of how the event juiced their biz in innumerable other ways. I see antagonists taking a victory lap over this news, but TKO posted record revenue just yesterday from this same quarter. Don’t fall for it.
Lee Hurley@hleehurley.com · yesterdayUFC loses $30m on Freedom 250 event at White House www.bbc.co.uk/sport/mixed-...
Khanna with the political equivalent of a fatality in Mortal Kombat. The only thing he has wrong here is that Dan Goldman doesn't have a long career ahead. Unlike Khanna, he's not going to learn from this.
#StupidSuez@diplomatofnight.com · 2d agoIt says a lot about how whiny and incoherent centrist Democrats have been in recent years that Ro Khanna of all people can just 360 windmill slam dunk on Dan Goldman like this
Anyway, tis the season for this classic GIF:
The Good Place Chidi Anagonye
Alt: Scene from The Good Place where moral philosopher Chidi Anagonye, a ripped Black man with short hair and glasses wearing a pink "Who, What, Where...Wine" baby t-shirt, melts down in front of his class and stirs candy into a pot of canned chili while chanting "You put the Peeps in the chili pot, and it makes it taste...bad"
static.klipy.com
Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi@rjelevi.bsky.social · 24h agoThis is a major reason I increasingly dread syllabus revision season, which is now upon us. I straight-up do not know how to deal with this effectively, not least because I simply do not have the energy or executive function or desire to be AI cop. That is not my damn job.
The Republican Party embraces antisemitism and conspiracy theories as a central party of political messaging.
Kyle Clark@kylec.bsky.social · yesterdayDepicting Jewish people with horns is a centuries-old, dehumanizing, antisemitic trope. Democratic Gov nominee Phil Weiser is outspoken about his mother’s birth in a Nazi concentration camp, his family members killed in the Holocaust, and the threat posed by antisemitism today.
This will get a fraction of the attention that Zohran Mamdani got for calling Netanyahu a war criminal.
Kyle Clark@kylec.bsky.social · yesterdayDepicting Jewish people with horns is a centuries-old, dehumanizing, antisemitic trope. Democratic Gov nominee Phil Weiser is outspoken about his mother’s birth in a Nazi concentration camp, his family members killed in the Holocaust, and the threat posed by antisemitism today.
"The sabotage of government functions is itself a reward for antiliberals, but also a weaker IRS fosters easier tax evasion and financial fraud for their rich and powerful friends." www.liberalcurrents.com/actually-col...
Actually Collect Taxes
A gameplan for turning an overlooked federal agency into a flagship of liberal governance.
liberalcurrents.com
I’ve spent some time this week talking about how academic norms are cruel and punitive. But another problem is that they don’t stop really loud, confident, and wrong people from spewing absolute howlers like this.
Aparna Nair@disabilitystor1.bsky.social · yesterday"History involves sorting and organizing hundreds of thousands of facts" I remain astounded by how loud and wrong people are about what history actually is.
“… we have no alternative but to take his word.” You actually do have an alternative, which is to reject his nomination and put forward legislation blocking the creation of such a fund.
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · yesterdayCornyn: "As to the idea it could be revived in the future, I think it's highly unlikely that could happen without the cooperation of the DOJ. And I think Mr Blanche gave us the assurances that it was dead and would not be revived and in this case we have no alternative but to take his word" 🙃
“I’m going to support Blanche’s nomination, but I hope I see him totally change his behavior. This behavior needs to stop, and that’s why I’m giving him total unchecked power to continue doing it.” - a spineless jackass
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · yesterdayTillis admits Trump is weaponizing the DOJ during his speech announcing he'll vote for Todd Blanche: "Maybe it's a little bit more intense in this administration than the last one ... I'm going to support Mr Blanche's nomination"
The Trump administration tried to use visa denials and deportation to silence researchers who study social media. A court said no. Sunday Tagliasacchi and Elisabeth Snyder, former legal externs at the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, break down the CITR v. Rubio ruling.
Trump Cannot Use Immigration Law to Silence Technology Researchers
Sunday Tagliasacchi and Elisabeth Snyder detail an initial court victory for the Coalition for Independent Technology Research in CITR v. Rubio.
buff.ly
Gonzales (who resigned when his sexual harassment of a staffer became public) won this district by 25. A Dem win here seems possible, but it’s also a major swing.
Chris Hayes@chrislhayes.bsky.social · 2d agoEarlier tonight, @michellegoldberg.bsky.social read *another* quote from this weirdo that reflected the same general sentiment. www.sacurrent.com/news/san-ant...
This is going to continue to be a story in OH and nationally, and it resonates with the (accurate) picture of the GOP as violent, lecherous, and generally evil.
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · yesterdaySen. Husted won't call for Rep. Max Miller to withdraw from running for reelection despite abuse horrible allegations: "Let's focus on letting them sort through this on a family level"
This is the tragic yet logical result of a decades-long project—undertaken by rightwing politicians and “business-minded” administrators alike—to distort the meaning of higher education, to deny the intrinsic value of the pursuit of knowledge, to deprive us all of richer, more purposeful lives.
The New Republic@newrepublic.com · 2d agoPresident Trump is banning students majoring in degrees that don’t make enough money from taking out college loans. Degrees for social work, art, religious studies, teaching aides, and music will be hit the hardest. trib.al/aaAEu6v