Alejandro A. Riera
@alejandroariera.bsky.social
Writer, editor, critic, movie lover, Doctor Who fan, proud to be a boricua, a cubano and a gallego. Curmudgeon extraordinaire. You can find my writing here https://alejandroariera.substack.com and at times at outlets like the Chicago Reader.
Reposted by Alejandro A. Riera
The American people electing Trump after he staged a coup attempt 5 years ago was a nail in the coffin of our democracy. You can rationalize it all you want - But inflation! But wokeness! - but ultimately it was a societal suicide attempt and probably the dumbest collective voting decision ever made
January 6, 2026 at 2:51 PM
The American people electing Trump after he staged a coup attempt 5 years ago was a nail in the coffin of our democracy. You can rationalize it all you want - But inflation! But wokeness! - but ultimately it was a societal suicide attempt and probably the dumbest collective voting decision ever made
Especially when countries like South Korea and Brazil showed how it could be done and why it should be done.
I have nothing to add to J6 discourse except that Trump should have been tried, convicted, and imprisoned and it's a stain on this country that it didn't happen.
January 6, 2026 at 11:46 PM
Especially when countries like South Korea and Brazil showed how it could be done and why it should be done.
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No, it was a successful coup. None of the people who led it were punished, and are in fact back in power, rewarded for their efforts to break the system by running it. Donald Trump is currently the dictator he attempted to become 5 years ago, and it’s because nobody treated trying as a crime.
We must speak plainly: January 6th was an attempted coup. It was an effort to nullify millions of lawful votes and subvert the will of the American people.
January 6, 2026 at 6:26 PM
No, it was a successful coup. None of the people who led it were punished, and are in fact back in power, rewarded for their efforts to break the system by running it. Donald Trump is currently the dictator he attempted to become 5 years ago, and it’s because nobody treated trying as a crime.
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Lindsay Graham said it out loud on Air Force One this morning. This is a two birds with one stone situation. Get rid of Meduro and the communist government in Cuba in one fell swoop. At least, that's the plan. Expect more talk about Cuba in the coming weeks.
January 5, 2026 at 8:28 PM
Lindsay Graham said it out loud on Air Force One this morning. This is a two birds with one stone situation. Get rid of Meduro and the communist government in Cuba in one fell swoop. At least, that's the plan. Expect more talk about Cuba in the coming weeks.
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It's not about Venezuela; it's about Cuba. The two are partners with a talent for oil swap program, the oil going to Cuba and being the only thing propping up the communist economy. Destabilizing Cuba and crashing its economy has be Rubio's goal for a decade, and halting their oil supply will do it.
January 5, 2026 at 8:26 PM
It's not about Venezuela; it's about Cuba. The two are partners with a talent for oil swap program, the oil going to Cuba and being the only thing propping up the communist economy. Destabilizing Cuba and crashing its economy has be Rubio's goal for a decade, and halting their oil supply will do it.
Well, well, well…look who made it into Spain's El Pais! @gabino.bsky.social!
La novela de horror más atroz junta brujería, narcos, cocodrilos y un zombi
El portorriqueño Gabino Iglesias aborda el racismo, la inmigración y lo sobrenatural en la escalofriante ‘El diablo te lleva a casa’, ganadora de los premios Bram Stoker y Shirley Jackson
elpais.com
January 5, 2026 at 8:33 PM
Well, well, well…look who made it into Spain's El Pais! @gabino.bsky.social!
A major loss to this country's cultural and informational wellbeing. A loss driven by hatred, ignorance and fanatism:
Corporation for Public Broadcasting Formally Dissolves After Loss of Federal Funding
The CPB’s board voted to end operations rather than leave it unfunded and “vulnerable to additional attacks,” president and CEO Patricia Harrison says.
www.hollywoodreporter.com
January 5, 2026 at 7:52 PM
A major loss to this country's cultural and informational wellbeing. A loss driven by hatred, ignorance and fanatism:
The ILCC'S first Reel Film Club of the year has been announced & it's a doozy. One of my favorite Latin American films out of last year's Reeling & one of my favorite Latin American films of 2025. My review: thirdcoastreview.com/film-tv/2025...
For tickets: reelfilmclub.eventive.org/schedule/695...
For tickets: reelfilmclub.eventive.org/schedule/695...
January 5, 2026 at 7:22 PM
The ILCC'S first Reel Film Club of the year has been announced & it's a doozy. One of my favorite Latin American films out of last year's Reeling & one of my favorite Latin American films of 2025. My review: thirdcoastreview.com/film-tv/2025...
For tickets: reelfilmclub.eventive.org/schedule/695...
For tickets: reelfilmclub.eventive.org/schedule/695...
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What in the Gestapo is going on in Grand Rapids?
Watch this activist get arrested *mid-interview* for speaking out against U.S. action in Venezuela.
Watch this activist get arrested *mid-interview* for speaking out against U.S. action in Venezuela.
January 5, 2026 at 4:12 PM
What in the Gestapo is going on in Grand Rapids?
Watch this activist get arrested *mid-interview* for speaking out against U.S. action in Venezuela.
Watch this activist get arrested *mid-interview* for speaking out against U.S. action in Venezuela.
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Every time we say "Congress" instead of "the MAJORITY GOP CONGRESS," we're doing the right wing's work for them. Just FYI.
January 5, 2026 at 3:34 PM
Every time we say "Congress" instead of "the MAJORITY GOP CONGRESS," we're doing the right wing's work for them. Just FYI.
Not a good look for the Critics Choice not its membership (which includes a good number of Chicago critics).
This makes the Golden Globes look credible. Hand out the International Film award with all the others or don’t give it at all; don’t shove a trinket at an unsuspecting director on the red carpet with a condescending chirp and then cut away before they can say a word.
Thrilled that THE SECRET AGENT won the Critics Choice award for Best International Film but so disheartened and angry at how it happened. Mendonça Filho and producer Emilie Lesclaux were ambushed on the red carpet, no briefing, no chance of giving a speech, the whole thing an insulting disaster.
January 5, 2026 at 1:53 PM
Not a good look for the Critics Choice not its membership (which includes a good number of Chicago critics).
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Every time you white people ask "Where's Congress?" without acknowledging that white people voted for Republicans to control congress it tells me that yall don't want to admit certain parts to people.
Trump: “We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security, and the European Union needs us to have it. And they know it.”
Where’s Congress?
Where’s Congress?
January 5, 2026 at 5:44 AM
Every time you white people ask "Where's Congress?" without acknowledging that white people voted for Republicans to control congress it tells me that yall don't want to admit certain parts to people.
I hated MARTY SUPREME, I hated Chalamet in it. Deal with it, people. #criticschoice.
January 5, 2026 at 2:48 AM
I hated MARTY SUPREME, I hated Chalamet in it. Deal with it, people. #criticschoice.
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What if this is some kind of horrible bucket list scenario where Trump has been living with knowledge of a terminal diagnosis for a while now and has decided to spend whatever time he has left nihilistically wrecking shit and stealing more and more wealth for his extended family.
January 5, 2026 at 2:09 AM
What if this is some kind of horrible bucket list scenario where Trump has been living with knowledge of a terminal diagnosis for a while now and has decided to spend whatever time he has left nihilistically wrecking shit and stealing more and more wealth for his extended family.
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yep. i can identify any number of structural issues but at the end of the day the basic problem is the republican party. this has been apparent for at least 20 years. it is also an incredibly unpopular observation to make among “serious” people.
Right.
If you want a good explanation of why the American system of government worked well enough for 200 years and then suddenly stopped, it's because Republicans in Congress suddenly started letting their partisan interests COMPLETELY override their institutional interests
If you want a good explanation of why the American system of government worked well enough for 200 years and then suddenly stopped, it's because Republicans in Congress suddenly started letting their partisan interests COMPLETELY override their institutional interests
a lot of problems wouldn't exist if we had a congress with even an ounce of self interest
January 4, 2026 at 11:52 PM
yep. i can identify any number of structural issues but at the end of the day the basic problem is the republican party. this has been apparent for at least 20 years. it is also an incredibly unpopular observation to make among “serious” people.
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Dumping both Cinematography (Train Dreams) and International (The Secret Agent) into a commercial bumper was so unserious.
More Brazilian wins at the @criticschoice.bsky.social Awards! Adolpho Veloso wins Best Cinematography for TRAIN DREAMS!! 🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🎥🎥🎥
January 5, 2026 at 12:49 AM
Dumping both Cinematography (Train Dreams) and International (The Secret Agent) into a commercial bumper was so unserious.
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The seizure of Maduro changed nothing in Venezuela. We are possibly jn a weakened position, because the regime and allies like Cuba are now on alert. No democracy, no oil for Trump's buddies, no resolution. Maduro is a bad guy, no doubt, but this whole exercise amounts to bloody content creation.
January 4, 2026 at 8:55 PM
The seizure of Maduro changed nothing in Venezuela. We are possibly jn a weakened position, because the regime and allies like Cuba are now on alert. No democracy, no oil for Trump's buddies, no resolution. Maduro is a bad guy, no doubt, but this whole exercise amounts to bloody content creation.
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Rubio admitted Trump no more runs Venezuela than the FBI runs Philadelphia after making an arrest there. To be clear, occupying the country would be a huge mistake. Making wild claims was egomaniacal idiocy. Reporters should ask Trump at every opportunity, "So when will you get Venezuela's oil?"
January 4, 2026 at 6:12 PM
Rubio admitted Trump no more runs Venezuela than the FBI runs Philadelphia after making an arrest there. To be clear, occupying the country would be a huge mistake. Making wild claims was egomaniacal idiocy. Reporters should ask Trump at every opportunity, "So when will you get Venezuela's oil?"
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This is the moment I've been waiting for: The administration is retreating from Trump's wild claims rather than deploy troops to assert actual control. Look for Trump to claim he never said he'd run Venezuela or was being sarcastic.
BREAKING: The U.S. won’t govern Venezuela, but will press changes through an oil blockade, Rubio says, after Trump claims of running the country.
Venezuela live updates: Uncertainty and legal questions remain after US captures Maduro
The Trump administration’s capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and claims that it will “run” the country are raising stark new questions about the legality of the U.S. actions and its future operations in the South American nation.
bit.ly
January 4, 2026 at 6:03 PM
This is the moment I've been waiting for: The administration is retreating from Trump's wild claims rather than deploy troops to assert actual control. Look for Trump to claim he never said he'd run Venezuela or was being sarcastic.
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Okay. This is driving me crazy but because I'm a pedant I need to point this out. The ONLY mention of Fritz Lang's METROPOLIS being set in 2026 is in a title card from the Giorgio Moroder version of the film. That is neither in the original nor in the novel.
And I don't even like METROPOLIS.
And I don't even like METROPOLIS.
January 4, 2026 at 4:50 PM
Okay. This is driving me crazy but because I'm a pedant I need to point this out. The ONLY mention of Fritz Lang's METROPOLIS being set in 2026 is in a title card from the Giorgio Moroder version of the film. That is neither in the original nor in the novel.
And I don't even like METROPOLIS.
And I don't even like METROPOLIS.
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I don’t have a problem with management making good money but have some respect for the people and institution you lead, especially during hard times. This is an old-fashioned principle that too often falls by the wayside.
Matt Moog was already making great money as CEO over WBEZ and the Sun-Times. But as the organization’s financial problems worsened and he slashed jobs, the board jacked up his compensation. Bad management and greed are not sustainable. Story by Dave Roeder
chicago.suntimes.com/work/2025/12...
chicago.suntimes.com/work/2025/12...
Ex-CEO of Chicago Public Media saw $900,000 payout in 2024, IRS filings show
Compensation for Matt Moog rose as the company slashed jobs at the Chicago Sun-Times and at WBEZ.
chicago.suntimes.com
January 4, 2026 at 3:22 PM
I don’t have a problem with management making good money but have some respect for the people and institution you lead, especially during hard times. This is an old-fashioned principle that too often falls by the wayside.
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Let's not forget, millions of Americans voted for Trump. They are our fellow citizens. So regardless of where we stand politically, it is imperative to reach out and tell each and every one of them that they are stupid fucking assholes.
January 4, 2026 at 12:25 AM
Let's not forget, millions of Americans voted for Trump. They are our fellow citizens. So regardless of where we stand politically, it is imperative to reach out and tell each and every one of them that they are stupid fucking assholes.
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President Zelensky reacts to Maduro’s capture, suggesting Putin should be next:
If it is possible to deal with dictators like that, just like that, then the United States of America knows what to do next.
If it is possible to deal with dictators like that, just like that, then the United States of America knows what to do next.
January 3, 2026 at 9:48 PM
President Zelensky reacts to Maduro’s capture, suggesting Putin should be next:
If it is possible to deal with dictators like that, just like that, then the United States of America knows what to do next.
If it is possible to deal with dictators like that, just like that, then the United States of America knows what to do next.
Jesus Fucking Christ indeed. Time to vote the likes of Schumer and Jeffries out. They've been useless.
JFC 🤦♂️
Asked about the possibility of impeachment, Schumer says "we hope that we can have support from our Republican colleagues to put a brake on this long before it gets that far"
January 3, 2026 at 9:49 PM
Jesus Fucking Christ indeed. Time to vote the likes of Schumer and Jeffries out. They've been useless.
Can somebody confirm for me whether any of the major international news networks (BBC and Al-Jazeera included) made any mention or covered the role Puerto Rico played as a staging ground for this invasion? The island's airports were declared no fly zones for 24 hours disrupting air travel.
January 3, 2026 at 9:44 PM
Can somebody confirm for me whether any of the major international news networks (BBC and Al-Jazeera included) made any mention or covered the role Puerto Rico played as a staging ground for this invasion? The island's airports were declared no fly zones for 24 hours disrupting air travel.