Michael Feinberg
@michael-feinberg.bsky.social
Lawfare Senior Editor - MS NOW National Security and Intelligence Analyst - Former FBI Special Agent - “I am an American, Chicago born…”
On August 26 at 1pm ET, join @benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org, @juliacurlee.bsky.social, and @michael-feinberg.bsky.social for our monthly Ask Us Anything webinar. Access to the August 26 webinar is exclusive to paid supporters. Join the community today!
Ask Lawfare Anything: August 2026
You Have Questions. We Have Answers.
lawfare.substack.com
It gets better: The guy in charge of big DOD strategy literally wrote a book on how we should never do this, with the threat of China being his main reason as to why we should avoid more wars in the Middle East. It’s idiots and hypocrites all the way down.
Will Stancil@whstancil.bsky.social · yesterdayI have zero knowledge about military stuff. So correct me if I'm wrong: Basically we spent decades building up a big stockpile of advanced weapons so we could be ready for any potential conflict with China or Russia? And then Trump used ALL OF THEM in a literally aimless war with Iran?
Most importantly, this provided the main plot for “Who Framed Roger Rabbit,” one of the most unjustifiably forgotten children’s movies, and a genuinely interesting commentary on both film noir tropes and Los Angeles history.
David Ho@davidho.bsky.social · 3d agoIs everyone aware of the General Motors streetcar conspiracy? In the mid-20th century, auto and oil interests bought up electric streetcar systems across the US and systematically replaced them with bus routes and paved roads, funneling commuters toward private cars.
Perhaps I’m out of step with the times, and a bit old fashioned, but I miss the days when being an overly-privileged ex-junkie, who’s never really faced consequences for any of his actions, and still maintains a penchant for debasing animal corpses, might hinder one from becoming a cabinet official.
Chet Baker - I'm Old Fashioned (Official Audio)
YouTube video by Chet Baker
youtube.com
Re-upping this lecture about elite institutions’ surrender to Trump and the implications of it for our democracy, in the hope that Yale’s trustees might read it. www.justsecurity.org/131653/horac...
The Spirit of Liberty—Horace E. Read Memorial Lecture
Knight Institute Director Jameel Jaffer on the role of ordinary citizens in defending democracy when powerful institutions fail.
justsecurity.org
Happy Saturday #BookSky Just a reminder! You've spent your whole life learning how to understand the expressions of other people. You're a better reader than you think you are! Read a book you think is difficult. You might discover some things. If you don't like it, well, it's OK to not like things
That this utter lunatic has a seat at any table is an utter disgrace. I’ll say it again: The sooner American politics is quit of this awful, sociopathic-level narcissistic family, the better. The sense of entitlement without real expertise or morality is untenable.
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 3d agoRFK Jr yelling at Dana Bash sounds like a rabid dog barking
While I’m spouting off counterintuitive opinions about Japanese cinema, I’ll reiterate that Kurosawa’s best films have absolutely nothing to do with samurai. “Red Beard” is one of those rare works of art that can actually make you a better human being.
Michael Feinberg@michael-feinberg.bsky.social · 4d agoI might go further; I mean, I’m not even entirely certain that there’s a direct line of continuity between, say, “Kwaidan” or “Ugestsu” and the tropes people now think of when they hear the term “J-Horror.”
I might go further; I mean, I’m not even entirely certain that there’s a direct line of continuity between, say, “Kwaidan” or “Ugestsu” and the tropes people now think of when they hear the term “J-Horror.”
Julian Singleton 🎃@juliansingleton.bsky.social · 5d agoI know “J-Horror” makes for snappier headlines but while all J-Horror = Japanese horror, not all Japanese horror = J-Horror. When describing anything outside of 1988-2008 (w/ limited examples up to 2010) it just sounds impatient & deeply incurious, like calling every horror survivor a final girl.
There are exactly two types of people: Those who know *exactly* what @gravitysra1nbow.bsky.social is talking about here and agree, and those like the woman I married, who still, years after suffering through me making her listen to it — over and over and over — are not convinced.
James@gravitysra1nbow.bsky.social · 4d agoNo you probably haven’t heard of it. Yeah so it’s a concept album. It’s about Anne Frank. Yeah. Yeah her. And it sounds like it was recorded inside of a tin can. No you’ll love it. You just gotta get past the part where he screams about Jesus for five minutes
Just because. (Even if I fear knowing what “left of the dial” means dates me, these days.)
The Replacements - Left Of The Dial (Official Promo Video)
YouTube video by UPROXX Indie Mixtape
m.youtube.com
In my entire career with the FBI, had I investigated a case without first ensuring that I had *all* of the evidence we would need at trial, no federal prosecutor would even consider seeking charges. These AUSAs should be referred — as should their chain of command — for disbarment.
I disagree with many of @mguariglia.bsky.social’s conclusions and extrapolations in the thread, but as an actual description of how law enforcement and national security products are marketed and sold, he is 100% correct.
Matthew Guariglia@mguariglia.bsky.social · 6d agoLess than a year ago, I attended a police convention quasi-incognito to learn about what the police tech industry is selling to departments, how cops are using this tech, and what the future of policing looks like. These insights get more relevant every day:
I agree with the substantive conclusions and judgements on the individuals mentioned in the cited article (which quote tweeting cut off), but the idea that all Jews, by virtue of their identity, should support a single political party or POV is fairly problematic.
Joel S.@joelhs.bsky.social · 6d agoI made the "court Jew" comparison in an essay last March, just two months into the second Trump administration. slate.com/life/2025/03...
It’s the little guy’s 돌잔치 this weekend, and while I baked way, way too many desserts for our guests, the sugar cookies with a swirl of caramelized and sweetened gochujang are an nothing short of an absolute delight.
Having spent a career in law enforcement, I’d actually agree with Washington’s more judgemental nomenclature. What ICE is doing in these facilities — regardless of physical architecture or internal logistics — is fundamentally outside of how the United States has used the prison system.
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick@reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 6d agoI love John Washington's work (have his books on my shelf), but I have to disagree somewhat here. I think there are specific ICE facilities which should get the "camp" moniker, but when the physical infrastructure of most detention sites are literal jails/prisons, I'm for calling them jails/prisons.
Watch it till the end. This is moral clarity -- TMZ understands the moment, and what that Rand Paul kangaroo court was, better than any coverage I've seen so far. www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zaO...
This Is Personal
YouTube video by TMZ
youtube.com
So, just to make sure I understand: The administration is basically trying to turn the Smithsonian into a less diverse version of an American Girl store, from the era when the company focused on historical dolls, right?
There’s a mode of thought, too present on this site, that claims to abhor MAGA’s effects on political discourse, but is entirely — often gleefully — willing to adopt its intolerant and belligerent means when it suits their own political ends.
Will Stancil@whstancil.bsky.social · last wk.The mode of politics being practiced here is “form a mob and go beat up people who aren’t fully on our side.” History tells us that mindset has a lot of appeal, it will attract people who like having an excuse to beat people up, it’s good at maintaining in-group loyalty.
I’m not in agreement, but @jenszalai.bsky.social and @calebcrain.bsky.social have probably forgotten more about criticism than I’ll ever know, and are good people always worth reading. Given how much I ragged on the original LRB piece, I figured I’d repost their takes.
Jennifer Szalai@jenszalai.bsky.social · last wk.100 percent agree. I also think that what a lot of people appreciated about her honest opinion was that in a criticism-starved culture, someone in her position will too often hold her tongue. There‘s something thrilling about seeing someone exercise such critical freedom.
Let’s not allow his funerary bunting to obscure that he supported an attempted coup, and betrayed both his oath of office and every ideal of the nation he claimed to serve. The people now praising him have no conception of what patriotism actually is, and they never will.
Lindsey Graham’s Last Laugh
The senator’s funeral featured foreign dignitaries, security lines, and a eulogy from the president whose approval he never stopped seeking.
theatlantic.com
While the part of me that fondly remembers watching 60 Minutes is sad, I haven't watched it in decades, and the part of me that still actually reads the NYT is not sad.
“The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream, and this year, his wrath will turn the country into a frozen hellscape.”
Jesse Hawken@jessehawken.bsky.social · last wk.Studio execs are going to want to adapt more poems for the big screen now
I love @willsommer.bsky.social's newsletter, but he erroneously attributed an appearance of the demon King Paimon to the film “The Witch.” A24’s only movie with the character is “Hereditary.” These things matter to the few of us who subscribe to both @thebulwark.com and @fangoria.bsky.social.
This is one of the more informed debates I’ve seen on the topic (and just to be clear about my priors, I’m — reluctantly, given my strong preference for institutionalism — with @andycraig.bsky.social in favor of court packing.
The UnPopulist@theunpopulist.net · last wk.1: So … court packing. What should we think about it? Because this is a topic on which reasonable liberals of good faith can disagree, we sought the best arguments pro and con. 🧵
Literary and academic culture has so, so much to offer us at this moment, but every time one of its members seemingly holds the masses or its tastes in contempt, just to seem clever, important scholarship and arguments—which we need to extricate ourselves from this morass—get dismissed or ignored.
Was having a fair-to-good day but then saw this 1961 photo of Yves Saint Laurent & realized I was, alas, doing everything wrong.
That’s not remotely what I’m saying. But what are common decency and basic manners if not an effort to subordinate our own inclinations, opinions, and instincts for the benefit of others’ feelings, if out of nothing more than a recognition of their basic humanity?
@luisgarcia905.bsky.social · last wk.So she should subordinate her honest opinion in gratitude for helping sales of her book... Got it. The profit motive trumps everything.
