Basel Musharbash
@basel.bsky.social
Lawyer helping small towns build community wealth & fight monopoly power | Principal @ Antimonopoly Counsel | Hannah Arendt & John Dewey stan | views mine, no legal advice
Pinned
Basel Musharbash
@basel.bsky.social
· Jan 25
This was one of the most appalling stories I’ve ever looked into: A private equity termite rolled up the fire-truck manufacturing industry between 2016 and 2020, and has spent the last 5 years cashing in—contributing to a crisis of preparedness at fire departments around the country.
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
Please share your theory: Why did Trump announce beef 🥩and tomato🍅tariff cuts when 99% of US🍅imports and 42% of🥩are from Mexico or Canada and ALREADY DUTY FREE under USMCA? Argentine beef is another 25% import share and ALREADY HAD TARIFFS CUT. So why cut PHANTOM TARIFFS? 1/
November 19, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Please share your theory: Why did Trump announce beef 🥩and tomato🍅tariff cuts when 99% of US🍅imports and 42% of🥩are from Mexico or Canada and ALREADY DUTY FREE under USMCA? Argentine beef is another 25% import share and ALREADY HAD TARIFFS CUT. So why cut PHANTOM TARIFFS? 1/
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
When:
-4 multinationals dominate the development and production of seeds and pesticides.
-Single firms monopolize each of the domestic markets for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium fertilizers.
-5 companies control the nation’s meat and poultry industries.
-4 multinationals dominate the development and production of seeds and pesticides.
-Single firms monopolize each of the domestic markets for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium fertilizers.
-5 companies control the nation’s meat and poultry industries.
October 28, 2025 at 5:41 PM
When:
-4 multinationals dominate the development and production of seeds and pesticides.
-Single firms monopolize each of the domestic markets for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium fertilizers.
-5 companies control the nation’s meat and poultry industries.
-4 multinationals dominate the development and production of seeds and pesticides.
-Single firms monopolize each of the domestic markets for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium fertilizers.
-5 companies control the nation’s meat and poultry industries.
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
“If #zohran wins..."The Menace of Prosperity" — a tremendous urban history and storehouse of inspiring precedents and ideas — is going to be required reading in the coming years”-
@petedavis.bsky.social, founder of the @Democracy Policy Network
Order today.
press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
@petedavis.bsky.social, founder of the @Democracy Policy Network
Order today.
press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
The Menace of Prosperity
Upends entrenched thinking about cities, demonstrating how urban economies are defined—or constrained—by the fiscal imagination of policymakers, activists, and residents. Many local policymakers mak...
press.uchicago.edu
October 24, 2025 at 6:54 PM
“If #zohran wins..."The Menace of Prosperity" — a tremendous urban history and storehouse of inspiring precedents and ideas — is going to be required reading in the coming years”-
@petedavis.bsky.social, founder of the @Democracy Policy Network
Order today.
press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
@petedavis.bsky.social, founder of the @Democracy Policy Network
Order today.
press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
"We have an economy where a handful of modern-day robber barons wield extraordinary power. They hold enormous control over our paychecks, our bills, our time, and our futures.
...But the good news is that nothing about any of this is inevitable." - Lina Khan
...But the good news is that nothing about any of this is inevitable." - Lina Khan
October 14, 2025 at 12:26 AM
"We have an economy where a handful of modern-day robber barons wield extraordinary power. They hold enormous control over our paychecks, our bills, our time, and our futures.
...But the good news is that nothing about any of this is inevitable." - Lina Khan
...But the good news is that nothing about any of this is inevitable." - Lina Khan
Did I just see Lina Khan walk out to Warren G's "Regualte" at the Zohran rally?? the greatest of all time
October 14, 2025 at 1:07 AM
Did I just see Lina Khan walk out to Warren G's "Regualte" at the Zohran rally?? the greatest of all time
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
Just learned a lot about the egg cartel. Big egg is worth the read.
An extremely good deep dive into egg price gouging by Basel Musharbash! @basel.bsky.social
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/hatching-a...
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/hatching-a...
Hatching a Conspiracy: A BIG Investigation into Egg Prices
'More hens, less income!' So said the United Egg Producers' economist Donald Bell in 1994. The industry has gotten more consolidated ever since. And avian flu is just the latest excuse to hike prices.
www.thebignewsletter.com
March 18, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Just learned a lot about the egg cartel. Big egg is worth the read.
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
Zuckerberg built a hot-or-not "Facemash" the year before Facebook, he's still in charge of Meta and being a multibillionaire certainly doesn't increase the chances of any sort of growing up. He was always a creep, he just has more platforms now.
via @proptermalone.bsky.social @basel.bsky.social
via @proptermalone.bsky.social @basel.bsky.social
“Meta has used back-to-school pictures of schoolgirls to advertise one of its social media platforms to a 37-year-old man, in a move parents described as “outrageous” and “upsetting.”
Meta has 100% stopped even *pretending* not to be astoundingly evil.
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Meta has 100% stopped even *pretending* not to be astoundingly evil.
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Parents outraged as Meta uses photos of schoolgirls in ads targeting man
Exclusive: Instagram pictures of girls as young as 13 were posted to promote Threads site ‘as bait’, campaigner says
www.theguardian.com
September 21, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Zuckerberg built a hot-or-not "Facemash" the year before Facebook, he's still in charge of Meta and being a multibillionaire certainly doesn't increase the chances of any sort of growing up. He was always a creep, he just has more platforms now.
via @proptermalone.bsky.social @basel.bsky.social
via @proptermalone.bsky.social @basel.bsky.social
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
“Meta has used back-to-school pictures of schoolgirls to advertise one of its social media platforms to a 37-year-old man, in a move parents described as “outrageous” and “upsetting.”
Meta has 100% stopped even *pretending* not to be astoundingly evil.
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Meta has 100% stopped even *pretending* not to be astoundingly evil.
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Parents outraged as Meta uses photos of schoolgirls in ads targeting man
Exclusive: Instagram pictures of girls as young as 13 were posted to promote Threads site ‘as bait’, campaigner says
www.theguardian.com
September 20, 2025 at 12:46 PM
“Meta has used back-to-school pictures of schoolgirls to advertise one of its social media platforms to a 37-year-old man, in a move parents described as “outrageous” and “upsetting.”
Meta has 100% stopped even *pretending* not to be astoundingly evil.
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Meta has 100% stopped even *pretending* not to be astoundingly evil.
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
had to read the article to understand wtf was going on here which is that Meta is literally feeding Instagram pictures parents took of their teenage daughters to middle aged men as ads for Threads
“Meta has used back-to-school pictures of schoolgirls to advertise one of its social media platforms to a 37-year-old man, in a move parents described as “outrageous” and “upsetting.”
Meta has 100% stopped even *pretending* not to be astoundingly evil.
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Meta has 100% stopped even *pretending* not to be astoundingly evil.
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Parents outraged as Meta uses photos of schoolgirls in ads targeting man
Exclusive: Instagram pictures of girls as young as 13 were posted to promote Threads site ‘as bait’, campaigner says
www.theguardian.com
September 20, 2025 at 1:19 PM
had to read the article to understand wtf was going on here which is that Meta is literally feeding Instagram pictures parents took of their teenage daughters to middle aged men as ads for Threads
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
The senate hearings were spurred by Basel’s reporting earlier this year.
This was one of the most appalling stories I’ve ever looked into: A private equity termite rolled up the fire-truck manufacturing industry between 2016 and 2020, and has spent the last 5 years cashing in—contributing to a crisis of preparedness at fire departments around the country.
September 13, 2025 at 1:34 AM
The senate hearings were spurred by Basel’s reporting earlier this year.
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
Abundance Bros were big mad at @basel.bsky.social a few weeks ago.
Can’t help but note that while they’ve been busy carrying water for kleptocracy, Basel is literally testifying against the monopolization & enshittification of firetrucks.
You read that right.
www.hsgac.senate.gov/wp-content/u...
Can’t help but note that while they’ve been busy carrying water for kleptocracy, Basel is literally testifying against the monopolization & enshittification of firetrucks.
You read that right.
www.hsgac.senate.gov/wp-content/u...
September 13, 2025 at 1:31 AM
Abundance Bros were big mad at @basel.bsky.social a few weeks ago.
Can’t help but note that while they’ve been busy carrying water for kleptocracy, Basel is literally testifying against the monopolization & enshittification of firetrucks.
You read that right.
www.hsgac.senate.gov/wp-content/u...
Can’t help but note that while they’ve been busy carrying water for kleptocracy, Basel is literally testifying against the monopolization & enshittification of firetrucks.
You read that right.
www.hsgac.senate.gov/wp-content/u...
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
Today, during a subcommittee hearing overseeing disaster management, I addressed the manufacturers of fire equipment and trucks.
Big manufacturers must answer for why fire departments are waiting too long and paying too much for the trucks they need. 1/2
Big manufacturers must answer for why fire departments are waiting too long and paying too much for the trucks they need. 1/2
September 11, 2025 at 12:46 AM
Today, during a subcommittee hearing overseeing disaster management, I addressed the manufacturers of fire equipment and trucks.
Big manufacturers must answer for why fire departments are waiting too long and paying too much for the trucks they need. 1/2
Big manufacturers must answer for why fire departments are waiting too long and paying too much for the trucks they need. 1/2
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
The collusion seems to include providing the Russian authorities with materials (from their confidential asylum applications!) used to send forcibly repatriated dissidents to prison. The depth of betrayal here is beyond words.
BREAKING: ICE is sending Russian dissidents back to Russia. When the dissidents arrived in Russia, the Russian authorities were given documents relating to their asylum applications in the US which under US law are confidential. This seems to be part of a secret agreement between Trump and Putin.
‘I escaped a Russian prison — only to end up in an American jail’
Dozens of Russian dissidents have been expelled from the US and forcibly returned to Russia with the co-operation of immigration authorities
www.thetimes.com
September 7, 2025 at 2:22 AM
The collusion seems to include providing the Russian authorities with materials (from their confidential asylum applications!) used to send forcibly repatriated dissidents to prison. The depth of betrayal here is beyond words.
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
At NatCon, there were two topics dominating everyone’s discussions: the imminent end of the right’s support of Israel — and the existential threat that technology posed to Western civilization.
I wrote about the second discussion.
www.theverge.com/politics/773...
I wrote about the second discussion.
www.theverge.com/politics/773...
MAGA populists call for holy war against Big Tech
Butlerian jihad from an unlikely quarter.
www.theverge.com
September 6, 2025 at 3:30 PM
At NatCon, there were two topics dominating everyone’s discussions: the imminent end of the right’s support of Israel — and the existential threat that technology posed to Western civilization.
I wrote about the second discussion.
www.theverge.com/politics/773...
I wrote about the second discussion.
www.theverge.com/politics/773...
Oh hey! Look who’s testifying at their first congressional hearing next week! 😄
September 6, 2025 at 3:35 AM
Oh hey! Look who’s testifying at their first congressional hearing next week! 😄
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
Elon Musk's SpaceX "has received billions of dollars in federal contracts over its more than two-decade existence. But SpaceX has most likely paid little to no federal income taxes since its founding in 2002 and has privately told investors that it may never have to."
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/15/t...
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/15/t...
SpaceX Gets Billions From the Government. It Gives Little to Nothing Back in Taxes.
www.nytimes.com
August 15, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Elon Musk's SpaceX "has received billions of dollars in federal contracts over its more than two-decade existence. But SpaceX has most likely paid little to no federal income taxes since its founding in 2002 and has privately told investors that it may never have to."
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/15/t...
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/15/t...
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
The Abundance/Effective Altruist crowd doesnt care about the role of finance in housing. In fact, they don’t even want to examine the role of finance within…the Federal Reserve! www.thebignewsletter.com/p/an-abundan...
An Abundance of Sleaze: How a Beltway Brain Trust Sells Oligarchy to Liberals
How did a debate over housing become a call to end the anti-monopoly movement? Abundance co-author Derek Thompson used slimy tactics to protect wealth and power in America. It's worth examining how.
www.thebignewsletter.com
August 8, 2025 at 10:56 PM
The Abundance/Effective Altruist crowd doesnt care about the role of finance in housing. In fact, they don’t even want to examine the role of finance within…the Federal Reserve! www.thebignewsletter.com/p/an-abundan...
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
When the Federal Reserve jacks up mortgage rates, credit card rates, and auto loan rates on millions of Americans, the federal government literally does not count that crushing inflation as inflation.
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/strikes-an...
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/strikes-an...
July 27, 2025 at 2:23 PM
When the Federal Reserve jacks up mortgage rates, credit card rates, and auto loan rates on millions of Americans, the federal government literally does not count that crushing inflation as inflation.
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/strikes-an...
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/strikes-an...
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
This piece from Matt Stoller on the shape of the new Oligarchy in the US is interesting - the basic claim is that you have the general post-Reagan scam artistry associated with the GOP tied to a populist personality cult and the result is just bizarre.
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/into-the-a...
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/into-the-a...
July 30, 2025 at 7:05 AM
This piece from Matt Stoller on the shape of the new Oligarchy in the US is interesting - the basic claim is that you have the general post-Reagan scam artistry associated with the GOP tied to a populist personality cult and the result is just bizarre.
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/into-the-a...
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/into-the-a...
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
Quite the broadside from Stoller against the Abundance crowd, and I had a bit of a jumpscare to see effective altruism return to the Discourse too. There's an underlying point about to be made, like, what sort of things fool what sort of people.
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/an-abundan...
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/an-abundan...
An Abundance of Sleaze: How a Beltway Brain Trust Sells Oligarchy to Liberals
How did a debate over housing become a call to end the anti-monopoly movement? Abundance co-author Derek Thompson used slimy tactics to protect wealth and power in America. It's worth examining how.
www.thebignewsletter.com
August 9, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Quite the broadside from Stoller against the Abundance crowd, and I had a bit of a jumpscare to see effective altruism return to the Discourse too. There's an underlying point about to be made, like, what sort of things fool what sort of people.
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/an-abundan...
www.thebignewsletter.com/p/an-abundan...
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
Put legislative vetoes on the list of post-Trump reforms (bullying the Court into accepting those reforms is also part of the reforms)
And here's the abstract. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
July 22, 2025 at 4:36 PM
Put legislative vetoes on the list of post-Trump reforms (bullying the Court into accepting those reforms is also part of the reforms)
“There is no such thing as a canon of donut holes” is officially my new favorite phrase (real statutory interpretation heads know what I’m talking about)
July 22, 2025 at 3:39 PM
“There is no such thing as a canon of donut holes” is officially my new favorite phrase (real statutory interpretation heads know what I’m talking about)
Reposted by Basel Musharbash
FYI Bookshop.org has anti-prime free shipping rn!
July 8, 2025 at 5:17 PM
FYI Bookshop.org has anti-prime free shipping rn!