Angst for Beginners
@angst4beginners.bsky.social
Nerd, singer, writer, cat mom and human mom. Chronically ill since ... it's been a while.
Pinned
Until further notice, I will be listening to cookery books on audio instead of political podcasts. I need a break if there's any chance of my brain coming up with anything useful in this political moment.
Coming soon to an autocracy near you.
November 11, 2025 at 1:18 PM
Coming soon to an autocracy near you.
Attention please for a very important announcement! This is Apollo, and he's having none of your pessimistic takes (<under my breath> even if they might be accurate).
October 16, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Attention please for a very important announcement! This is Apollo, and he's having none of your pessimistic takes (<under my breath> even if they might be accurate).
Saw a sign in my neighborhood today saying, in so many words, someday all of you will be claiming to have been against everything happening now all along.
October 15, 2025 at 5:00 PM
Saw a sign in my neighborhood today saying, in so many words, someday all of you will be claiming to have been against everything happening now all along.
Despite my leftish policy preferences, I'm constitutionally somewhat conservative because I'm pessimistic about human nature. But I'm simultaneously in awe of our better angels and firmly believe we can persuade most people to embrace progressive ideals. If you can relate at all, read this piece.
The politics of drawing a moral line: When we need to call out racism for what it is open.substack.com/pub/iandunt/...
The politics of drawing a moral line
The politics of drawing a moral line.
open.substack.com
October 3, 2025 at 11:26 AM
Despite my leftish policy preferences, I'm constitutionally somewhat conservative because I'm pessimistic about human nature. But I'm simultaneously in awe of our better angels and firmly believe we can persuade most people to embrace progressive ideals. If you can relate at all, read this piece.
I have October 1 saved in my calendar as "poor Charles Darwin" in honor of this very relatable diary entry from this day in 1861:
"But I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything."
"But I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything."
October 1, 2025 at 12:26 PM
I have October 1 saved in my calendar as "poor Charles Darwin" in honor of this very relatable diary entry from this day in 1861:
"But I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything."
"But I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything."
Folks in a privileged majority rarely realize that the state can un-person them, too. They assume it can't happen because they're not part of a marginalized group. But a bureaucratic apparatus can come for anyone. In-groups & out-groups can change. Which is why rights only exist if everyone has them
I want to explain a few things and then it might be clearer why UK trans people are upset.
In 2001 I married my wife, Sylvia.
In 2005 I started medical transition. (1/13)
In 2001 I married my wife, Sylvia.
In 2005 I started medical transition. (1/13)
August 30, 2025 at 10:50 AM
Folks in a privileged majority rarely realize that the state can un-person them, too. They assume it can't happen because they're not part of a marginalized group. But a bureaucratic apparatus can come for anyone. In-groups & out-groups can change. Which is why rights only exist if everyone has them
SHOUT THIS FROM THE ROOFTOPS. Seriously, I wish news outlets would publish as many commentaries like this that reference the medical science as they do anti-trans motivated reasoning.
open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...
open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...
The Transgender “Issue” Is Not a Distraction for Democrats
It’s an opportunity to speak clearly about human rights and morality. Follow the facts and the Golden Rule.
open.substack.com
July 1, 2025 at 3:56 PM
SHOUT THIS FROM THE ROOFTOPS. Seriously, I wish news outlets would publish as many commentaries like this that reference the medical science as they do anti-trans motivated reasoning.
open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...
open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...
Reposted by Angst for Beginners
"Es gibt nur 2 biologische Geschlechter"
Nein, eben nicht.
XX / XY stimmt für ca. 98 - 99 %
Es gibt auch:
- XXY (Klinefelter-Syndrom)
- XO (Turner-Syndrom)
- Androgenresistenz
Deutschland hat ca 84,1 Mio Einwohner. Also haben ca. 841.000 bis 1.682.000 Personen ein anderes Geschlecht.
Nein, eben nicht.
XX / XY stimmt für ca. 98 - 99 %
Es gibt auch:
- XXY (Klinefelter-Syndrom)
- XO (Turner-Syndrom)
- Androgenresistenz
Deutschland hat ca 84,1 Mio Einwohner. Also haben ca. 841.000 bis 1.682.000 Personen ein anderes Geschlecht.
June 15, 2025 at 9:46 PM
"Es gibt nur 2 biologische Geschlechter"
Nein, eben nicht.
XX / XY stimmt für ca. 98 - 99 %
Es gibt auch:
- XXY (Klinefelter-Syndrom)
- XO (Turner-Syndrom)
- Androgenresistenz
Deutschland hat ca 84,1 Mio Einwohner. Also haben ca. 841.000 bis 1.682.000 Personen ein anderes Geschlecht.
Nein, eben nicht.
XX / XY stimmt für ca. 98 - 99 %
Es gibt auch:
- XXY (Klinefelter-Syndrom)
- XO (Turner-Syndrom)
- Androgenresistenz
Deutschland hat ca 84,1 Mio Einwohner. Also haben ca. 841.000 bis 1.682.000 Personen ein anderes Geschlecht.
Reposted by Angst for Beginners
I just like to post these data from time to time to puncture the mythological aura of mid 20th c protests. They were less popular than pretty much any 21st c mass action & people criticizing them used the same lines. Protest is about people coming together, shaping narratives, & building power.
June 14, 2025 at 7:02 PM
I just like to post these data from time to time to puncture the mythological aura of mid 20th c protests. They were less popular than pretty much any 21st c mass action & people criticizing them used the same lines. Protest is about people coming together, shaping narratives, & building power.
I love poetry.
June 14, 2025 at 9:05 PM
I love poetry.
Reposted by Angst for Beginners
Protesters Urged Not To Give Trump Administration Pretext For What It Already Doing
theonion.com/protest...
theonion.com/protest...
Protesters Urged Not To Give Trump Administration Pretext For What It Already Doing
LOS ANGELES—Responding to escalating clashes between civilian activists and militarized immigration authorities, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass publicly urged protesters Monday not to give the Trump administration any pretext for what they’re already doing and will keep doing no matter what. “Angelenos—don’t engage in violence and give the administration an excuse to inflict all the […]
theonion.com
June 14, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Protesters Urged Not To Give Trump Administration Pretext For What It Already Doing
theonion.com/protest...
theonion.com/protest...
Nothing prepares you, as a feminist parent of girls, for the moment you’re on the phone with your teenage daughter and you hear the entire conversation she has with a grown ass man who is trying to ask her out on a date. #choosethebear
May 15, 2025 at 6:54 PM
Nothing prepares you, as a feminist parent of girls, for the moment you’re on the phone with your teenage daughter and you hear the entire conversation she has with a grown ass man who is trying to ask her out on a date. #choosethebear
Liebe* es, wenn das rauchfreie Zeitfenster zwischen der Holzofenjahreszeit und der Feuerschalenjahreszeit vollständig verschwindet. Lüften ade.
* [derogatory]
* [derogatory]
May 10, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Liebe* es, wenn das rauchfreie Zeitfenster zwischen der Holzofenjahreszeit und der Feuerschalenjahreszeit vollständig verschwindet. Lüften ade.
* [derogatory]
* [derogatory]
Watching things unfold as an American abroad has such a surreality to it right now. It feels like I'm reading about things in a history book, but it's all happening now, and I'm like some helpless time traveler screaming "STOP! This is how all those unimaginable horrors began!"
April 24, 2025 at 8:19 PM
Watching things unfold as an American abroad has such a surreality to it right now. It feels like I'm reading about things in a history book, but it's all happening now, and I'm like some helpless time traveler screaming "STOP! This is how all those unimaginable horrors began!"
Just pulled these off the shelf and put them on my bedside table: one to raise my blood pressure and one to lower it. Gonna need both, I think.
April 21, 2025 at 12:48 PM
Just pulled these off the shelf and put them on my bedside table: one to raise my blood pressure and one to lower it. Gonna need both, I think.
I worked as a volunteer for Head Start when I was in high school in the 1990s. The idea that this is some kind of recent, woke program is absurd. This is monstrous.
This isn’t a war on “children”—a term that, in dominant racial narratives, typically defaults to white children. It’s the calculated marginalization of those deemed “undesirable.” This is eugenics by design.
Eliminating Head Start. Laying off all the CDC employs who work on lead poisoning. Discrediting childhood vaccines during a measles outbreak. Cutting funds for school lunches.
A look at some of the under-the-radar ways the Trump administration is waging war on America's children: wapo.st/4jcUg2f
A look at some of the under-the-radar ways the Trump administration is waging war on America's children: wapo.st/4jcUg2f
April 18, 2025 at 9:39 PM
I worked as a volunteer for Head Start when I was in high school in the 1990s. The idea that this is some kind of recent, woke program is absurd. This is monstrous.
What a stupid, stupid timeline this is.
April 18, 2025 at 9:20 PM
What a stupid, stupid timeline this is.
Ihre Papiere, bitte!
“They walked the full length of the train and questioned every single passenger about their citizenship status. According to the conductor, who has worked nearly 40 years on that route, this was a first. In all his decades of service, federal agents have never boarded his train like this.”
A co-worker of mine (who is a judge), traveled by train from Montana to North Dakota for work this week. The train made a stop in Havre, MT, where ICE agents—armed and dressed in full military-style tactical gear—boarded the train.
April 18, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Ihre Papiere, bitte!
Reposted by Angst for Beginners
let’s look back at what has happened so far
Cory Booker giving a 25 hour speech: everyone loved it, raised his profile
Van Hollen flies to El Salvador and meets Abrego Garcia: everyone loved it, raised his profile
Schumer publicly caved: everyone hated that
just a general note to Dems
Cory Booker giving a 25 hour speech: everyone loved it, raised his profile
Van Hollen flies to El Salvador and meets Abrego Garcia: everyone loved it, raised his profile
Schumer publicly caved: everyone hated that
just a general note to Dems
i have no doubt that senator van hollen was genuinely concerned for the safety and welfare of abrego garcia BUT ALSO this is what i'm talking about when i say POLITICAL AMBITION. van hollen may well make himself a household name and nationally recognized political figure with this move
April 18, 2025 at 2:23 AM
let’s look back at what has happened so far
Cory Booker giving a 25 hour speech: everyone loved it, raised his profile
Van Hollen flies to El Salvador and meets Abrego Garcia: everyone loved it, raised his profile
Schumer publicly caved: everyone hated that
just a general note to Dems
Cory Booker giving a 25 hour speech: everyone loved it, raised his profile
Van Hollen flies to El Salvador and meets Abrego Garcia: everyone loved it, raised his profile
Schumer publicly caved: everyone hated that
just a general note to Dems
Does @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social know his posts on trump's various fiascos are on German television? I'd say it's quite an honor.
April 18, 2025 at 7:45 PM
Does @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social know his posts on trump's various fiascos are on German television? I'd say it's quite an honor.
A country where people have to carry proof of citizenship at all times is not free.
A co-worker of mine (who is a judge), traveled by train from Montana to North Dakota for work this week. The train made a stop in Havre, MT, where ICE agents—armed and dressed in full military-style tactical gear—boarded the train.
The New America: Federal (ICE) Agents Boarding Trains?
By Judith Roberts * As an attorney I’m deeply alarmed by an incident that occurred just this week and feel compelled to share it—to raise aw...
weknowwhatsup.blogspot.com
April 18, 2025 at 6:36 PM
A country where people have to carry proof of citizenship at all times is not free.
Abschiebung heißt, man wird zurück in sein Herkunftsland gebracht und muss dort leben. Es heißt nicht, ohne Prozess, ohne Verurteilung in einem dystopischen Gefängnis auf unbestimmte Zeit festgehalten zu werden. Und das nachdem die Regierung sogar zugegeben hat, es war ein Versehen. Es ist gruselig.
Kilmar Ábrego García wurde nicht "abgeschoben". Er wurde gekidnapped und in einen für Folter und Menschenrechtsverletzungen bekannten Gulag in ein Drittland verschleppt, wo er widerrechtlich gefangen gehalten wird.
April 18, 2025 at 11:19 AM
Abschiebung heißt, man wird zurück in sein Herkunftsland gebracht und muss dort leben. Es heißt nicht, ohne Prozess, ohne Verurteilung in einem dystopischen Gefängnis auf unbestimmte Zeit festgehalten zu werden. Und das nachdem die Regierung sogar zugegeben hat, es war ein Versehen. Es ist gruselig.
Reposted by Angst for Beginners
The USA is running out of patience with Ukraine for being bombed by Russia.
April 18, 2025 at 10:40 AM
The USA is running out of patience with Ukraine for being bombed by Russia.
Happy #tanzverbot to all who celebrate!
a close up of a dog 's face in a circle on a white background .
Alt: a close up of a raccoon's face spinning in a circle on a white background
media.tenor.com
April 18, 2025 at 9:11 AM
Happy #tanzverbot to all who celebrate!
Reposted by Angst for Beginners
I'm really sorry, but we just need to stop doing this. Your wood-burning hygge leads directly to people's deaths - other people's and perhaps your own.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Map reveals residential wood-burning hotspots in England and Wales
Researchers analyse energy performance certificate data to identify areas with potentially high particle pollution
www.theguardian.com
April 18, 2025 at 8:16 AM
I'm really sorry, but we just need to stop doing this. Your wood-burning hygge leads directly to people's deaths - other people's and perhaps your own.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...