JL
@jlwastooshort.bsky.social
Doggo. He/him. Religious, but not the sort you're probably thinking of. Not the other sort either. On the side of non-evil people everywhere.
Alt where fewer of my posts will be angry about politics and society: @jlwastoopolitical.bsky.social
Alt where fewer of my posts will be angry about politics and society: @jlwastoopolitical.bsky.social
Ruby Bridges is younger than my parents and not just by a year or two
It's ONLY been 65 years since six year old Ruby Bridges walked through the halls of William Frantz Elementary as the first Black child to attend an all white school. Met with mobs and hate, her bravery and courage helped change the course of history for this nation.
(1/3)
(1/3)
November 14, 2025 at 2:14 PM
Ruby Bridges is younger than my parents and not just by a year or two
this, on the other hand, I will give Leo his flowers for, even if I'm sure it hasn't yet been accompanied by the sort of durable change in his thinking that is ultimately necessary.
presumably it was in the works for a while now but it's pretty well timed on the heels of the US bishops' shit
presumably it was in the works for a while now but it's pretty well timed on the heels of the US bishops' shit
NEW: Pope Leo XIV will share a meal this Sunday with Alessia Nobile and four fellow transgender Catholic activists, during the Vatican’s Jubilee of the Poor — marking the most significant public encounter shared between a pope and the trans community.
NEW: Transgender Activists to Dine with Pope Leo XIV during Sunday's Jubilee for the Poor
Papal luncheon with trans advocate Alessia Nobile set for Sunday at Vatican’s Jubilee of the Poor, highlighting a legacy of outreach and hopes for continued inclusion.
open.substack.com
November 14, 2025 at 10:19 AM
this, on the other hand, I will give Leo his flowers for, even if I'm sure it hasn't yet been accompanied by the sort of durable change in his thinking that is ultimately necessary.
presumably it was in the works for a while now but it's pretty well timed on the heels of the US bishops' shit
presumably it was in the works for a while now but it's pretty well timed on the heels of the US bishops' shit
want to add onto this: I do realize that they have done a very good, & very currently necessary thing. it's just that, simultaneously, actually affirming an evil thing on the other hand (not merely maintaining a mediocre status quo, which is a sin we all have) is something I can't look past
I am primed to be understanding of religious folks walking a slow road to wokeness, but who give other signals that they are basically good people.
this is worse-- this is them running in the other direction. I decline to say much in the way of good things about them at this time.
this is worse-- this is them running in the other direction. I decline to say much in the way of good things about them at this time.
November 14, 2025 at 9:42 AM
want to add onto this: I do realize that they have done a very good, & very currently necessary thing. it's just that, simultaneously, actually affirming an evil thing on the other hand (not merely maintaining a mediocre status quo, which is a sin we all have) is something I can't look past
the thing about every "people were happier X years ago" is it's never really implausible that people were happier, because happiness is a subjective thing, but very few of the headlines ever manage to land on the credible reasons for that happiness
Ah the 1970s.
Stagflation, three day weeks, collapsing infrastructure. Civil War in Northern Ireland. In yer face racism and bigotry everywhere. Bin strikes. Strikes in general. Blackouts. Industrial decline. Wage inequality. Dog crap everywhere. And households spent 25% of their income on food.
Stagflation, three day weeks, collapsing infrastructure. Civil War in Northern Ireland. In yer face racism and bigotry everywhere. Bin strikes. Strikes in general. Blackouts. Industrial decline. Wage inequality. Dog crap everywhere. And households spent 25% of their income on food.
November 14, 2025 at 9:37 AM
the thing about every "people were happier X years ago" is it's never really implausible that people were happier, because happiness is a subjective thing, but very few of the headlines ever manage to land on the credible reasons for that happiness
in re: whether you should hand it to the Catholic bishops who are saying a few good things about immigrants while denying care to trans people
if they had just done the Francis/Leo thing where they hit cruise control on the moderately LGBTQ-phobic theological teachings, while continuing to provide care, that'd be one thing. but actively tearing care away from trans people? I can't give the person who does that any approbation.
November 14, 2025 at 7:27 AM
in re: whether you should hand it to the Catholic bishops who are saying a few good things about immigrants while denying care to trans people
I cannot think of anything that would be less indicative of "we learned our lesson" than elevating CCM to Senate leader
"Several Democrats clued into party dynamics suggested that centrist Sen. Cortez Masto could be a potential challenger to Schatz [for the Senate Democratic Leader position]" puck.news/democrats-tu...
Tick, Tick… Schumer
The embattled Senate minority leader once again faces calls to step down.
puck.news
November 14, 2025 at 6:57 AM
I cannot think of anything that would be less indicative of "we learned our lesson" than elevating CCM to Senate leader
Reposted by JL
“As a science communicator, you have to build an audience by building trust and respect” Nope. Absolutely untrue. Every big account has a follower base who are no more organized or valuable than a crowd of raccoons swarming a porch. You have to spray them with a squirt bottle at every opportunity
November 13, 2025 at 11:05 PM
“As a science communicator, you have to build an audience by building trust and respect” Nope. Absolutely untrue. Every big account has a follower base who are no more organized or valuable than a crowd of raccoons swarming a porch. You have to spray them with a squirt bottle at every opportunity
Tbh if anything would make me stop showing up to vote in the longer term (some hypothetical future where the other party is no longer an existential threat) it would be shit like this
It’s not enough to rebuild someone else’s broken government. We need to innovate.
This partnership will speed up our efforts to fight poverty, help renters become homeowners, and make sure Marylanders can quickly get basic services like food assistance and financial support.
This partnership will speed up our efforts to fight poverty, help renters become homeowners, and make sure Marylanders can quickly get basic services like food assistance and financial support.
November 13, 2025 at 8:14 PM
Tbh if anything would make me stop showing up to vote in the longer term (some hypothetical future where the other party is no longer an existential threat) it would be shit like this
Reposted by JL
For the love of God it seems like half of the population of IL-09 is running for the Democratic nomination there. Is it too much to ask for another candidate for ME-Senate?
November 13, 2025 at 3:00 AM
For the love of God it seems like half of the population of IL-09 is running for the Democratic nomination there. Is it too much to ask for another candidate for ME-Senate?
okay I'm going to admit it: this picture made me double take several times before I looked closer
I had the honor of making this painting for Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein.
November 13, 2025 at 6:24 PM
okay I'm going to admit it: this picture made me double take several times before I looked closer
Reposted by JL
i now believe that jeffrey epstein killed himself because if i wrote like that i would kill myself
November 13, 2025 at 6:02 PM
i now believe that jeffrey epstein killed himself because if i wrote like that i would kill myself
Reposted by JL
I broadly agree with all of this, but don't feel quite the same shame about it I guess. I'm like "you say 'moralized contempt' like it's a BAD thing..."
With genuine shame, recent years in politics have given me my first taste for what it is to have moralised contempt for my opponents. Not hatred, not fear; contempt. There's some core element of the right wing coalition at the moment which seems to me best described as a revolt of the loser men...
November 13, 2025 at 1:48 PM
I broadly agree with all of this, but don't feel quite the same shame about it I guess. I'm like "you say 'moralized contempt' like it's a BAD thing..."
this (click through for context, it's a good thread) speaks to my belief that a morally correct resolution to this entire era will involve (inter many other alia) people who bent to trump, including governments abroad, being made to deeply regret their abdication of moral responsibility.
there was no prime minister of covid to give him a face saving out, no covid majority leader that he could browbeat, no covid media reporter he could schmooze with. its a virus. it spreads and adapt to spread better
November 13, 2025 at 12:40 PM
this (click through for context, it's a good thread) speaks to my belief that a morally correct resolution to this entire era will involve (inter many other alia) people who bent to trump, including governments abroad, being made to deeply regret their abdication of moral responsibility.
dunno if I've missed any substantial part of the argument by not being arsed to click through, but on the face of it, it seems like the mistake here is assuming that "getting voters your party otherwise wouldn't get" is laudatory regardless of who those voters are/what you have to do to get them
I don’t know what’s really in Jared Golden’s heart as he steps away from congress but you have to think he’d have more zest for the job of his accomplishments were properly acknowledged.
www.slowboring.com/p/the-candid...
www.slowboring.com/p/the-candid...
November 13, 2025 at 12:34 PM
dunno if I've missed any substantial part of the argument by not being arsed to click through, but on the face of it, it seems like the mistake here is assuming that "getting voters your party otherwise wouldn't get" is laudatory regardless of who those voters are/what you have to do to get them
former grad student here, making the mistake of responding in earnest to what is probably a joke: the fact that people succeed despite being horrible just reinforces my awareness that I don't have whatever the je ne sais quoi is for success
Grad Students: The Larry Summers news should shed any shred of imposter syndrome you've felt in academia. Clearly, academics* can be far from perfect (at everything from spelling to relationships to human decency) and still make it all the way to the top of ivory tower.
November 13, 2025 at 12:09 PM
former grad student here, making the mistake of responding in earnest to what is probably a joke: the fact that people succeed despite being horrible just reinforces my awareness that I don't have whatever the je ne sais quoi is for success
I once said this same sort of thing &was informed (in pretty rude words) that Biden's DOJ couldn't dig into the files because Maxwell's case was still working its way through the system, which, okay, that may have been true (idk!) but there is a level of necessity where one begins to leak stuff, imo
so uh, what was Merrick Garland doing
November 12, 2025 at 3:16 PM
I once said this same sort of thing &was informed (in pretty rude words) that Biden's DOJ couldn't dig into the files because Maxwell's case was still working its way through the system, which, okay, that may have been true (idk!) but there is a level of necessity where one begins to leak stuff, imo
gotta hand it to the writers, "pete hegseth insulting probably the most stereotypically white supremacist faith tradition" was not a twist I saw coming
Hegseth: "We don't need to be a military of beardos anymore. Do you know how many troops claim to be Nordic Pagan? No, suddenly it's become this real fake religious affiliation inside the Pentagon where troops came to be Nordic Pagan so they can grow a beard and nobody challenges them on it."
November 12, 2025 at 3:02 PM
gotta hand it to the writers, "pete hegseth insulting probably the most stereotypically white supremacist faith tradition" was not a twist I saw coming
I for one heartily encourage the administration to make Trump travel and give public speeches as much as possible
Saying “I don’t want to hear about the affordability” didn’t work?
@cnn.com
www.cnn.com/2025/11/12/p...
@cnn.com
www.cnn.com/2025/11/12/p...
November 12, 2025 at 1:11 PM
I for one heartily encourage the administration to make Trump travel and give public speeches as much as possible
additional thought: it has literally never, in the entirety of human history, been easier to look up a word in a reliable dictionary. I can learn the meaning of unknown words so much faster now.
if someone (at least someone who already has an internet-connected device) doesn't, they don't want to.
if someone (at least someone who already has an internet-connected device) doesn't, they don't want to.
ever since I learned about three-cueing I've developed infinitely more patience for replies on social media. mfers literally do not know how to read. people are walking around conjuring random meanings into words they don't know, and they don't know a lot of words. it's crazy
November 12, 2025 at 12:15 PM
additional thought: it has literally never, in the entirety of human history, been easier to look up a word in a reliable dictionary. I can learn the meaning of unknown words so much faster now.
if someone (at least someone who already has an internet-connected device) doesn't, they don't want to.
if someone (at least someone who already has an internet-connected device) doesn't, they don't want to.
you know, being a voracious consumer and user of language, and having a sincere desire/impetus to do it correctly (which I sometimes fall short of), is correlated, in me, with being hard of hearing since birth and almost *needing* to learn correct reading in order to absorb knowledge effectively.
ever since I learned about three-cueing I've developed infinitely more patience for replies on social media. mfers literally do not know how to read. people are walking around conjuring random meanings into words they don't know, and they don't know a lot of words. it's crazy
November 12, 2025 at 11:50 AM
you know, being a voracious consumer and user of language, and having a sincere desire/impetus to do it correctly (which I sometimes fall short of), is correlated, in me, with being hard of hearing since birth and almost *needing* to learn correct reading in order to absorb knowledge effectively.
I also dislike suicide and Nazis in the general cases but there are certain intersections of the two that I am not opposed to
Looks like Pope Leo dislikes suicide and nazis. Nice. www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/267725/...
‘The Sound of Music’ and ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ among pope’s favorite films
The Vatican has revealed the names of Pope Leo XIV’s favorite films upon announcing the Holy Father’s upcoming meeting with the world of cinema on Nov. 15.
www.catholicnewsagency.com
November 11, 2025 at 3:18 PM
I also dislike suicide and Nazis in the general cases but there are certain intersections of the two that I am not opposed to
It is absolutely crazy-making to think how many people just do not get certain things, like what the point of "standards" is or why having social trust is good, actually. (And ironically it's one of the things that erodes social trust.)
“I’ve been hearing that standards will be eliminated or severely cut back. Bari has told people that she wants to get rid of standards and is shocked that they have so much power. She also asked openly, ‘What’s the point of standards?’” one CBS source said.
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...
Bari Weiss wants to take down ‘too much power’ CBS News Standards unit: sources
EXCLUSIVE: Internal rumblings within the newsroom come after the S&P head resigned and the network disbanded its vaunted Race and Culture unit.
www.independent.co.uk
November 11, 2025 at 2:40 PM
It is absolutely crazy-making to think how many people just do not get certain things, like what the point of "standards" is or why having social trust is good, actually. (And ironically it's one of the things that erodes social trust.)
yeah, this is the thing: I should and do have more contempt for R's than for the surrender caucus, but the surrender caucus is still on a trajectory straight through the contempt event horizon
We can be upset with fascists *and* fascist collaborators, actually.
November 11, 2025 at 2:31 AM
yeah, this is the thing: I should and do have more contempt for R's than for the surrender caucus, but the surrender caucus is still on a trajectory straight through the contempt event horizon
I for one am here for the steadily escalating series of experiments re: whether there are any humiliations that Senate dems will not endure
he's going to ask Vought to nuke SNAP even after the government reopens, isn't he
Trump claims that food stamps "puts the country in jeopardy. People that are able-bodied can do a job, they leave their job because they figure they can pick this up, it's easier."
November 11, 2025 at 1:41 AM
I for one am here for the steadily escalating series of experiments re: whether there are any humiliations that Senate dems will not endure
Supposing for the sake of argument that this were happening, how would the takeaway not be "perhaps employment should be a better value proposition than fucking food stamps"
Trump claims that food stamps "puts the country in jeopardy. People that are able-bodied can do a job, they leave their job because they figure they can pick this up, it's easier."
November 11, 2025 at 12:45 AM
Supposing for the sake of argument that this were happening, how would the takeaway not be "perhaps employment should be a better value proposition than fucking food stamps"