Guy Gavriel Kay
@guygavrielkay.bsky.social
Author, punster, baseball fan, whisky lover, cocktail maker. Limericks happen here. Written on the Dark now released, Canada, U.S., U.K. Print, ebook, audiobook.
There is much in this speech that is agonizingly cringe, but ‘they mutilized’ from a man elected President of the United States, and currently destroying it, has flattened me.
Trump at the National Prayer Breakfast: "I stopped the mutilation of children. The mutilation. The word is mutilation. They mutilized, you know, mutilation of children."
February 5, 2026 at 3:24 PM
There is much in this speech that is agonizingly cringe, but ‘they mutilized’ from a man elected President of the United States, and currently destroying it, has flattened me.
Youngest bro often quotes a prof of his from long ago:
‘Shakespeare. Every time I re-read him it’s like he knows everything that’s happened to me since I read him last.’
‘Shakespeare. Every time I re-read him it’s like he knows everything that’s happened to me since I read him last.’
Sir Ian McKellen performing a monologue from Shakespeare’s Sir Thomas More on the Stephen Colbert show. Never have I heard this monologue performed with such a keen sense of prescience. Nor have I ever been in this exact historical moment.TY Sir Ian, for reaching us once again.
#Pinks #ProudBlue
#Pinks #ProudBlue
February 5, 2026 at 1:52 PM
Youngest bro often quotes a prof of his from long ago:
‘Shakespeare. Every time I re-read him it’s like he knows everything that’s happened to me since I read him last.’
‘Shakespeare. Every time I re-read him it’s like he knows everything that’s happened to me since I read him last.’
Allowed a sports note, amid all?
The last several minutes of the Raptors game last night were as clunky, sloppy, and unfocused as I can remember seeing the team. They are, in fact, a decent-to-good basketball team. Didn’t look it, late.
The last several minutes of the Raptors game last night were as clunky, sloppy, and unfocused as I can remember seeing the team. They are, in fact, a decent-to-good basketball team. Didn’t look it, late.
February 5, 2026 at 1:03 PM
Allowed a sports note, amid all?
The last several minutes of the Raptors game last night were as clunky, sloppy, and unfocused as I can remember seeing the team. They are, in fact, a decent-to-good basketball team. Didn’t look it, late.
The last several minutes of the Raptors game last night were as clunky, sloppy, and unfocused as I can remember seeing the team. They are, in fact, a decent-to-good basketball team. Didn’t look it, late.
Reposted by Guy Gavriel Kay
This is what leadership looks like.
February 5, 2026 at 10:49 AM
This is what leadership looks like.
Part of what is ‘unfathomable’ in this, and horrific, is that the (non-white) AUSA speaking *on behalf of* Bondi, Noem, and the US Government also says that she’s aware HER family are at risk in this surge.
What has Trump done to America and the world? What have his cohort done?
What has Trump done to America and the world? What have his cohort done?
From Judge Blackwell: "If the Government undertakes an enforcement operation of this scale, one that results in the detention of large numbers of people, including individuals who are lawfully present in the United States, then the Government assumes a corresponding obligation to ensure that....
February 5, 2026 at 12:50 PM
Part of what is ‘unfathomable’ in this, and horrific, is that the (non-white) AUSA speaking *on behalf of* Bondi, Noem, and the US Government also says that she’s aware HER family are at risk in this surge.
What has Trump done to America and the world? What have his cohort done?
What has Trump done to America and the world? What have his cohort done?
Reposted by Guy Gavriel Kay
Thread:
So on this day when one of the oligarchs of our digitized and dystopic world is emptying one of America's greatest newsrooms of trained and committed journalists, I thought I would regale you all with a wonderful little anecdote about our world to come. It involves two of the finest...
So on this day when one of the oligarchs of our digitized and dystopic world is emptying one of America's greatest newsrooms of trained and committed journalists, I thought I would regale you all with a wonderful little anecdote about our world to come. It involves two of the finest...
February 5, 2026 at 2:28 AM
Thread:
So on this day when one of the oligarchs of our digitized and dystopic world is emptying one of America's greatest newsrooms of trained and committed journalists, I thought I would regale you all with a wonderful little anecdote about our world to come. It involves two of the finest...
So on this day when one of the oligarchs of our digitized and dystopic world is emptying one of America's greatest newsrooms of trained and committed journalists, I thought I would regale you all with a wonderful little anecdote about our world to come. It involves two of the finest...
Oh?
Moscow’s girlfriend (as declared by state media there)? Surely not so!
Moscow’s girlfriend (as declared by state media there)? Surely not so!
When a whistleblower’s lawyer gives you a deadline and cites the statute, that is not posturing. That is the last stop before Congress. And they just pulled the trigger.
February 4, 2026 at 11:29 PM
Oh?
Moscow’s girlfriend (as declared by state media there)? Surely not so!
Moscow’s girlfriend (as declared by state media there)? Surely not so!
Soros is in the House!
Schmitt: "Your words that don’t mean anything aren't going to stop what’s coming, and I want you to take that back to Soros and all these ridiculous funders you have. Because justice is coming. And by the way, if I have it my way, we will be denaturalize all these fraudsters and send them home."
February 4, 2026 at 9:40 PM
Soros is in the House!
Reposted by Guy Gavriel Kay
INBOX: Robert McCartney, who worked for 39 years at The Washington Post, including as a Metro columnist and editor, before retiring in 2021, claims on X that he has heard the Post has laid off *all* its photojournalists.
February 4, 2026 at 9:05 PM
INBOX: Robert McCartney, who worked for 39 years at The Washington Post, including as a Metro columnist and editor, before retiring in 2021, claims on X that he has heard the Post has laid off *all* its photojournalists.
Thread. If the lawyer(s) involved don’t know what to make of it, the rest of us can’t. Yet. But this looks very bad, on the face of it.
I'm not sure what to make of it, but every Somali I represent in immigration court currently (8 of them) have today had their hearings cancelled and their judges reassigned. They're now all assigned to a video judge from Louisiana and scheduled for court hearing in one month. 🧵
February 4, 2026 at 9:16 PM
Thread. If the lawyer(s) involved don’t know what to make of it, the rest of us can’t. Yet. But this looks very bad, on the face of it.
The phase ‘impact-evidence starter’, besides being rubbish about coercion, is also so ugly it can move martini hour forward all by itself.
Meta now forcing all employees to use AI tools and tying it to employee performance, according to @theinformation.com.
HR said "this is not an activity tracker—it’s an impact-evidence starter"
That's a fun way to rebrand workplace surveillance.
HR said "this is not an activity tracker—it’s an impact-evidence starter"
That's a fun way to rebrand workplace surveillance.
February 4, 2026 at 7:26 PM
The phase ‘impact-evidence starter’, besides being rubbish about coercion, is also so ugly it can move martini hour forward all by itself.
‘Bars in Toronto could start serving booze as early as 6 a.m. for the Olympics’
I’m entered in the Negroni-making Freestyle event, starts next Tuesday. Hope for your support!
I’m entered in the Negroni-making Freestyle event, starts next Tuesday. Hope for your support!
February 4, 2026 at 5:57 PM
‘Bars in Toronto could start serving booze as early as 6 a.m. for the Olympics’
I’m entered in the Negroni-making Freestyle event, starts next Tuesday. Hope for your support!
I’m entered in the Negroni-making Freestyle event, starts next Tuesday. Hope for your support!
I have made an executive decision and will continue to not read sports articles or posts that begin ‘Prediction for…’ This is *especially* true of trade predictions.
I predict support and understanding for this stance, even in a divided world.
I predict support and understanding for this stance, even in a divided world.
February 4, 2026 at 5:20 PM
I have made an executive decision and will continue to not read sports articles or posts that begin ‘Prediction for…’ This is *especially* true of trade predictions.
I predict support and understanding for this stance, even in a divided world.
I predict support and understanding for this stance, even in a divided world.
Reposted by Guy Gavriel Kay
Part of the joy of books is sharing them. It’s not just a personal treat. It’s shared culture. You might read a book and, decades later, bond with someone because you both loved the same cultural artifact.
Coverage of books in national media fuels that cultural conversation.
Coverage of books in national media fuels that cultural conversation.
February 4, 2026 at 2:53 PM
Part of the joy of books is sharing them. It’s not just a personal treat. It’s shared culture. You might read a book and, decades later, bond with someone because you both loved the same cultural artifact.
Coverage of books in national media fuels that cultural conversation.
Coverage of books in national media fuels that cultural conversation.
Democracy dies in Bezos’s darkness.
The Books pages were hugely generous to my work over the years, and I even reviewed (H Is For Hawk) for them at one point. The Sports pages had some of the best writers around.
Oh, well, there’s always TikTok. That’s a secure space for serious critical writing.
The Books pages were hugely generous to my work over the years, and I even reviewed (H Is For Hawk) for them at one point. The Sports pages had some of the best writers around.
Oh, well, there’s always TikTok. That’s a secure space for serious critical writing.
WaPo's Matt Murray told staff the paper is shuttering sports, moving remaining staff to features, shrinking foreign coverage, restructuring metro, closing books coverage, suspending Post Reports podcast
“Whole company now waiting for a live or die email” one staffer said
More in tonight’s Status
“Whole company now waiting for a live or die email” one staffer said
More in tonight’s Status
February 4, 2026 at 2:39 PM
Democracy dies in Bezos’s darkness.
The Books pages were hugely generous to my work over the years, and I even reviewed (H Is For Hawk) for them at one point. The Sports pages had some of the best writers around.
Oh, well, there’s always TikTok. That’s a secure space for serious critical writing.
The Books pages were hugely generous to my work over the years, and I even reviewed (H Is For Hawk) for them at one point. The Sports pages had some of the best writers around.
Oh, well, there’s always TikTok. That’s a secure space for serious critical writing.
From 7 years ago. Damn, but this bites today, as it was meant to, yes.
Seven years ago yesterday, this ad ran during the Super Bowl.
'Democracy Dies in Darkness': Super Bowl commercial (2019)
YouTube video by Washington Post
www.youtube.com
February 4, 2026 at 2:33 PM
From 7 years ago. Damn, but this bites today, as it was meant to, yes.
34!!
I just rewatched William Wyler's Detective Story--it's based on a 1949 Sidney Kingsley play that ran for 15 months on Broadway with, insanely, a cast of 34. NY really needs an Encores series devoted to unrevivable plays, which this is, even though it basically invented the police-precinct TV drama.
February 4, 2026 at 1:24 PM
34!!
And this without any clearly voiced agreement from senior Dems (or GOP, frankly) in Congress or Senate against a criminal, utterly toxic WH. They’ll likely tiptoe that way, their advisers can read polls too, but this is hypercautious following not focused, clear-eyed leadership.
Vast camps are central to Trumpism. Stephen Miller has long been very excited about them. Backlash is another sign that opposition to Trump/Miller runs deeper than revulsion at ICE. There's real resistance to the whole ideological project of mass deportations. 4/
newrepublic.com/article/2060...
newrepublic.com/article/2060...
February 4, 2026 at 1:11 PM
And this without any clearly voiced agreement from senior Dems (or GOP, frankly) in Congress or Senate against a criminal, utterly toxic WH. They’ll likely tiptoe that way, their advisers can read polls too, but this is hypercautious following not focused, clear-eyed leadership.
Might one posit that Gianni Infantino has been … worse thatn fruitless? He is rotting fruit.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino said he supports reinstating Russia and ending its four year ban from international competitions, Reuters reported. Russia was barred after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Infantino said the ban has been fruitless and backed returning youth teams first. #Sports
February 4, 2026 at 1:26 AM
Might one posit that Gianni Infantino has been … worse thatn fruitless? He is rotting fruit.
Trump and his admin are breaking their lawyers.
This is unreal. An AUSA talking like that in open court is about as close as you can come to a total breakdown. Never heard of anything like it.
February 3, 2026 at 9:53 PM
Trump and his admin are breaking their lawyers.
Trump: KILL KILL KILL
GOP leaders: What the President means is we need a more focused and stringent control of immigration at the border, and elsewhere.
GOP leaders: What the President means is we need a more focused and stringent control of immigration at the border, and elsewhere.
Q: Do you agree with Trump saying we should 'nationalize' elections?
THUNE: I think the president has clarified what he meant by that, and that is that he supports the SAVE Act
(That is not what he meant)
THUNE: I think the president has clarified what he meant by that, and that is that he supports the SAVE Act
(That is not what he meant)
February 3, 2026 at 7:59 PM
Trump: KILL KILL KILL
GOP leaders: What the President means is we need a more focused and stringent control of immigration at the border, and elsewhere.
GOP leaders: What the President means is we need a more focused and stringent control of immigration at the border, and elsewhere.
So is Johnson A: the idiot we know him to be or B: the liar we know him to be.
I’ll allow C: both.
I’ll allow C: both.
WRONG. I-205 administrative warrants are not issued by immigration judges. They’re signed by ICE officers. And EVEN IF THEY WERE issued by an immigration judge - they are executive branch employees, NOT judicial branch. JUDICIAL warrants are needed to enter a home without consent.
Q: You're a constitutional lawyer. Can you detail the 4th Amendment protections someone has if ICE approaches their home w/an administrative warrant?
MIKE JOHNSON: When ICE goes to execute a warrant, it's issued by an immigration judge, & that is a sufficient legal authority to go apprehend someone
MIKE JOHNSON: When ICE goes to execute a warrant, it's issued by an immigration judge, & that is a sufficient legal authority to go apprehend someone
February 3, 2026 at 7:26 PM
So is Johnson A: the idiot we know him to be or B: the liar we know him to be.
I’ll allow C: both.
I’ll allow C: both.
Reposted by Guy Gavriel Kay
February 3, 2026 at 1:21 PM
This is the paradox embedded in literary readings and panels. I have seen many who were engaging and funny on stage and mediocre writers, and many who were awkward and shy and genuinely impressive writers.
Separate skillsets. No formal overlap.
Separate skillsets. No formal overlap.
Being well spoken has never been either the distinctive feature or the concern of great writers.
February 3, 2026 at 1:53 PM
This is the paradox embedded in literary readings and panels. I have seen many who were engaging and funny on stage and mediocre writers, and many who were awkward and shy and genuinely impressive writers.
Separate skillsets. No formal overlap.
Separate skillsets. No formal overlap.
Reposted by Guy Gavriel Kay
I was a White House staffer. When having a lunch with anyone who worked at law firm, corp, embassy, *newspaper* I had to document that I'd paid exactly my share of the bill. ("No free lunch" policy.)
At some formal event dinners, had to calculate fair-market cost of my serving, and reimburse it
At some formal event dinners, had to calculate fair-market cost of my serving, and reimburse it
I was a White House ethics lawyer.
I used to advise people not to even accept a free cup of coffee from someone who had interests before them. And staff followed those rules.
I can’t even find the words to describe the scale of Trump’s corruption here.
I used to advise people not to even accept a free cup of coffee from someone who had interests before them. And staff followed those rules.
I can’t even find the words to describe the scale of Trump’s corruption here.
Foreign countries are bribing our president to sell out the American people.
Trump family businesses made $187 MILLION from this deal, and just months later he gave the UAE some of our most top-secret AI tech.
They are selling our national security to the highest bidder.
Trump family businesses made $187 MILLION from this deal, and just months later he gave the UAE some of our most top-secret AI tech.
They are selling our national security to the highest bidder.
February 2, 2026 at 2:11 PM
I was a White House staffer. When having a lunch with anyone who worked at law firm, corp, embassy, *newspaper* I had to document that I'd paid exactly my share of the bill. ("No free lunch" policy.)
At some formal event dinners, had to calculate fair-market cost of my serving, and reimburse it
At some formal event dinners, had to calculate fair-market cost of my serving, and reimburse it