Andrew Stroehlein
@andrewstroehlein.bsky.social
Worked over 2 decades with Human Rights Watch & International Crisis Group. Subscribe to my free newsletter, "International Affairs for Normal People": https://www.internationalaffairsfornormalpeople.eu/
Other links: https://linktr.ee/andrewstroehlein
Other links: https://linktr.ee/andrewstroehlein
Pinned
Why the US Collapsed
I wrote this a few years from now…
Historians, political analysts, and much of the general public around the world have long discussed why the United States of America collapsed in the mid- to late 2...
www.internationalaffairsfornormalpeople.eu
What were the main causes behind the collapse of the United States back in the mid- to late 2020s?
Here's my overview:
www.internationalaffairsfornormalpeople.eu/why-the-us-c...
Here's my overview:
www.internationalaffairsfornormalpeople.eu/why-the-us-c...
You can love your country and despise its political leadership - because of how the latter is wrecking the former.
February 8, 2026 at 7:55 PM
You can love your country and despise its political leadership - because of how the latter is wrecking the former.
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
“As people fall back on a smaller pool of like-minded friends and family, they’re also increasingly exposed to television pundits offering simplistic answers to their problems, like scapegoating immigrants, a regular far-right talking point.”
“When there is no longer any place to talk to each other, politics becomes a face-off between the isolated individual and the grand narratives of the media – and in this face-off, discourses that offer simple answers have a structural advantage,” the study adds.
f24.my/Bixk
f24.my/Bixk
The demise of the French ‘tabac’: How bar closures are fuelling Le Pen’s far right
France’s iconic bars-tabacs are closing in droves, stripping communities of a key social lifeline and influencing their politics, according to a study that links the decline of neighbourhood bars with...
f24.my
February 7, 2026 at 11:49 AM
“As people fall back on a smaller pool of like-minded friends and family, they’re also increasingly exposed to television pundits offering simplistic answers to their problems, like scapegoating immigrants, a regular far-right talking point.”
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
While this research focuses on France, the closure of the local watering holes and the correlating rise in isolation, leading to less critical media consumption and folks finding comfort in far right rhetoric vilifying the other as cause of their abandonment, is something that resonates globally
“When there is no longer any place to talk to each other, politics becomes a face-off between the isolated individual and the grand narratives of the media – and in this face-off, discourses that offer simple answers have a structural advantage,” the study adds.
f24.my/Bixk
f24.my/Bixk
The demise of the French ‘tabac’: How bar closures are fuelling Le Pen’s far right
France’s iconic bars-tabacs are closing in droves, stripping communities of a key social lifeline and influencing their politics, according to a study that links the decline of neighbourhood bars with...
f24.my
February 7, 2026 at 2:21 PM
While this research focuses on France, the closure of the local watering holes and the correlating rise in isolation, leading to less critical media consumption and folks finding comfort in far right rhetoric vilifying the other as cause of their abandonment, is something that resonates globally
“When there is no longer any place to talk to each other, politics becomes a face-off between the isolated individual and the grand narratives of the media – and in this face-off, discourses that offer simple answers have a structural advantage,” the study adds.
f24.my/Bixk
f24.my/Bixk
The demise of the French ‘tabac’: How bar closures are fuelling Le Pen’s far right
France’s iconic bars-tabacs are closing in droves, stripping communities of a key social lifeline and influencing their politics, according to a study that links the decline of neighbourhood bars with...
f24.my
February 7, 2026 at 11:19 AM
“When there is no longer any place to talk to each other, politics becomes a face-off between the isolated individual and the grand narratives of the media – and in this face-off, discourses that offer simple answers have a structural advantage,” the study adds.
f24.my/Bixk
f24.my/Bixk
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
They’ve been following all the rules. The cruelty is the point
BREAKING: The federal government has filed a motion seeking to end asylum claims for the family of Liam Conejo Ramos, according to the lawyer representing the family.
DHS has requested expedited deportation proceedings against family of Liam Conejo Ramos
The federal government has filed a motion seeking to end asylum claims for the family of Liam Conejo Ramos, according to the lawyer representing the family.
www.mprnews.org
February 6, 2026 at 4:33 AM
They’ve been following all the rules. The cruelty is the point
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
Not totally gone. The 2020 edition has been saved from the void.
The CIA just stopped publishing their World Factbook and took every page, including the archived copies of previous versions!
This sucks. It was public domain, so I recovered the 2020 edition (the last one published as a zip file) and shared it to GitHub simonwillison.net/2026/Feb/5/t...
This sucks. It was public domain, so I recovered the 2020 edition (the last one published as a zip file) and shared it to GitHub simonwillison.net/2026/Feb/5/t...
Spotlighting The World Factbook as We Bid a Fond Farewell
Somewhat devastating news today from the CIA: One of CIA’s oldest and most recognizable intelligence publications, The World Factbook, has sunset. There's not even a hint as to why they …
simonwillison.net
February 5, 2026 at 7:58 AM
Not totally gone. The 2020 edition has been saved from the void.
Probably a good thing. I'd rather see it gone than replaced by Trumpist propaganda.
February 5, 2026 at 7:55 AM
Probably a good thing. I'd rather see it gone than replaced by Trumpist propaganda.
Rough translation: "Too many powerful people are suspects - including my bosses - so, we're not going to investigate. To hell with the victims. To hell with justice."
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Todd Blanche says review of Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking case ‘is over’
Deputy US attorney general says victims ‘want to be made whole’ but that doesn’t mean ‘we can just create evidence’
www.theguardian.com
February 2, 2026 at 8:47 AM
Rough translation: "Too many powerful people are suspects - including my bosses - so, we're not going to investigate. To hell with the victims. To hell with justice."
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
Judge orders release of five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and father from ICE detention
Judge orders release of five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and father from ICE detention
Same judge previously ordered pair not removed from US, after preschooler detained with father on 20 January
A US judge has ordered the release of a five-year-old boy and his father from a Texas detention center by Tuesday after they were taken into custody by immigration agents in Minneapolis earlier this month.
Liam Conejo Ramos, an Ecuadorian boy, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Minneapolis on 20 January after returning from school with his father. Images of the Minnesota preschooler wearing a bunny hat and a plaid coat went viral online, sparking outrage across the country after claims that the child, who was on the driveway of his home during the arrest, was used as bait to try to arrest his mother inside the house. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
February 1, 2026 at 7:53 AM
Judge orders release of five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and father from ICE detention
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
You got to wonder why this obsession with the destruction of Europe when all the Russian elite sends its kids to the west to take advantage of our education system and live a Russian free lifestyle.
Russian propagandist Dmitry Rode has stated that Russia is "at war with Europe" and framed the current conflict as part of what he described as a thousand-year-long confrontation between Russia and European states.
February 1, 2026 at 7:34 AM
You got to wonder why this obsession with the destruction of Europe when all the Russian elite sends its kids to the west to take advantage of our education system and live a Russian free lifestyle.
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
ICE and Border Patrol have come to resemble militias that answer to the president and operate with seeming impunity. That is a liability for America
Immigration agents have become Donald Trump’s personal posse
That is a liability for America and, increasingly, for him
econ.st
February 1, 2026 at 4:40 AM
ICE and Border Patrol have come to resemble militias that answer to the president and operate with seeming impunity. That is a liability for America
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
On October 14, the Trump administration murdered six people when they bombed a civilian boat in the Caribbean.
We’re suing on behalf of two of the victims’ families because the government must be held accountable.
We’re suing on behalf of two of the victims’ families because the government must be held accountable.
Families of Boat Strike Victims Sue U.S. for “Manifestly Unlawful” Killings
A lawsuit aims to hold the Trump administration accountable for killing two Trinidadian men in an airstrike in the Caribbean.
theintercept.com
January 30, 2026 at 5:20 PM
On October 14, the Trump administration murdered six people when they bombed a civilian boat in the Caribbean.
We’re suing on behalf of two of the victims’ families because the government must be held accountable.
We’re suing on behalf of two of the victims’ families because the government must be held accountable.
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
Ousted from Hollywood because at least 6 young women credibly accused him of sexual assault and rape.
But i guess okay at Mar aLago
But i guess okay at Mar aLago
Brett Ratner returns from Hollywood exile with new documentary "Melania." But is it a comeback or just "a paycheck" for the once powerhouse director?
Hollywood ousted Brett Ratner. Is 'Melania' Trump movie his comeback?
Brett Ratner returns from Hollywood exile with new documentary "Melania." But is it a comeback or just "a paycheck" for the once powerhouse director?
bit.ly
January 30, 2026 at 2:39 PM
Ousted from Hollywood because at least 6 young women credibly accused him of sexual assault and rape.
But i guess okay at Mar aLago
But i guess okay at Mar aLago
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
So this administration has charged an independent Black journalist reporting in Minnesota but not two white agents who murdered two citizens
January 30, 2026 at 2:31 PM
So this administration has charged an independent Black journalist reporting in Minnesota but not two white agents who murdered two citizens
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
Don was taken into custody by federal agents last night in Los Angeles.
January 30, 2026 at 12:58 PM
Don was taken into custody by federal agents last night in Los Angeles.
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
This is a direct assault on the First Amendment by the Trump administration www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/u...
www.nytimes.com
January 30, 2026 at 1:17 PM
This is a direct assault on the First Amendment by the Trump administration www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/u...
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
I was told ice was only in minnesota to apprehend the worst of the worst
the story notes that the woman was a lawful u.s. resident, btw
the story notes that the woman was a lawful u.s. resident, btw
“We had to deliver them to a detention center,” principal Jason Kuhlman said about the second grader and fifth grader.
‘I don’t have words’: 2 more kids from Liam Ramos’ Columbia Heights school taken into ICE custody
The children were taken into ICE custody after their mother was detained at a court appointment. School leaders say the mother asked them to bring the kids to the detention center because there were n...
www.mprnews.org
January 30, 2026 at 12:35 PM
I was told ice was only in minnesota to apprehend the worst of the worst
the story notes that the woman was a lawful u.s. resident, btw
the story notes that the woman was a lawful u.s. resident, btw
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
ICE’s job is immigration enforcement so why is it using facial recognition to surveil U.S. citizens?
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/t...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/t...
How ICE Already Knows Who Minneapolis Protesters Are
www.nytimes.com
January 30, 2026 at 12:06 PM
ICE’s job is immigration enforcement so why is it using facial recognition to surveil U.S. citizens?
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/t...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/t...
By the actual president, who is also an actual insurrectionist.
The USA, where the summary execution of an unarmed man can now be justified by the actual president, because on a separate occasion he kicked the tail light of a "very expensive government vehicle."
January 30, 2026 at 8:46 AM
By the actual president, who is also an actual insurrectionist.
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
BREAKING: The Senate just blocked a bill that would have renewed ICE's budget without real, enforceable changes.
This is a direct result of hundreds of thousands of people across the nation demanding that our Senators vote no.
This is a direct result of hundreds of thousands of people across the nation demanding that our Senators vote no.
January 29, 2026 at 6:26 PM
BREAKING: The Senate just blocked a bill that would have renewed ICE's budget without real, enforceable changes.
This is a direct result of hundreds of thousands of people across the nation demanding that our Senators vote no.
This is a direct result of hundreds of thousands of people across the nation demanding that our Senators vote no.
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
Trump hasn't just insulted the troops of our allies. He's insulted the Black service members who fought bravely for a country that wasn't even giving them the full measure of equality. Great piece by Pulitzer winner Matt Desmond: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Celebrating Black military service is not “DEI shit.” It’s essential to America’s defense.
The Trump administration has sullied the legacy of soldiers our nation relies on.
www.motherjones.com
January 29, 2026 at 6:50 PM
Trump hasn't just insulted the troops of our allies. He's insulted the Black service members who fought bravely for a country that wasn't even giving them the full measure of equality. Great piece by Pulitzer winner Matt Desmond: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Reposted by Andrew Stroehlein
A legal asylum-seeker who works at Chipotle and plays music at a church in Maine went missing. His pastor searched and searched, eventually finding his abandoned car with the keys on the floor.
ICE grabbed him. No criminal record. No explanation.
ICE grabbed him. No criminal record. No explanation.
January 29, 2026 at 3:58 PM
A legal asylum-seeker who works at Chipotle and plays music at a church in Maine went missing. His pastor searched and searched, eventually finding his abandoned car with the keys on the floor.
ICE grabbed him. No criminal record. No explanation.
ICE grabbed him. No criminal record. No explanation.