John MacPherson
@johnmacpherson.bsky.social
Mostly a photographer: https://www.john-macpherson-photography.com
I sometimes write: https://www.duckrabbit.info/blog/author/j-macpherson/
Scottish Highlander, left-coast, interested in all sorts of things. I make stuff, some of it even works.
I sometimes write: https://www.duckrabbit.info/blog/author/j-macpherson/
Scottish Highlander, left-coast, interested in all sorts of things. I make stuff, some of it even works.
Pinned
I like stories. I posted this one on The Other Place and many people liked it. So I thought I'd post it here for anyone who missed it. It's about travel, but mainly it's about trust, risk & reward and a reminder that we're all strangers to others at some point. But only temporarily... 1/12
Reposted by John MacPherson
SCOOP: I have the first interview with the 36-year-old South Jersey man whose tearful protest against an ICE raid at a school bus stop has been watched more than 3 million times
How a non-political Eagles fan Everyman became the face of ICE resistance
My new column www.inquirer.com/columnists/a...
How a non-political Eagles fan Everyman became the face of ICE resistance
My new column www.inquirer.com/columnists/a...
South Jersey guy becomes the face of ICE resistance | Will Bunch Newsletter
Last Friday, Joseph Zobel, “an average Joe who grew up in Haddon Heights” saw a video that shocked him. First interview with the ICE protester whose viral video reaction has been seen 3 million times.
www.inquirer.com
February 17, 2026 at 4:55 PM
SCOOP: I have the first interview with the 36-year-old South Jersey man whose tearful protest against an ICE raid at a school bus stop has been watched more than 3 million times
How a non-political Eagles fan Everyman became the face of ICE resistance
My new column www.inquirer.com/columnists/a...
How a non-political Eagles fan Everyman became the face of ICE resistance
My new column www.inquirer.com/columnists/a...
Reposted by John MacPherson
Very little girl in Walthamstow: Did you see the cow?
Her mum: Cow?
Little girl: The cow. In the red trousers.
Mum: There is no cow, darling.
Little girl: Well no mummy, you won’t if you look with those eyes.
Her mum: Cow?
Little girl: The cow. In the red trousers.
Mum: There is no cow, darling.
Little girl: Well no mummy, you won’t if you look with those eyes.
February 17, 2026 at 5:24 PM
Very little girl in Walthamstow: Did you see the cow?
Her mum: Cow?
Little girl: The cow. In the red trousers.
Mum: There is no cow, darling.
Little girl: Well no mummy, you won’t if you look with those eyes.
Her mum: Cow?
Little girl: The cow. In the red trousers.
Mum: There is no cow, darling.
Little girl: Well no mummy, you won’t if you look with those eyes.
Reposted by John MacPherson
There’s only 1 person in Congress who doesn’t trade stocks, doesn’t take corporate PAC money, and has a public schedule. That’s me. And it should be the standard.
February 17, 2026 at 4:48 PM
There’s only 1 person in Congress who doesn’t trade stocks, doesn’t take corporate PAC money, and has a public schedule. That’s me. And it should be the standard.
Reposted by John MacPherson
Full on North Korea-Iran-Russian style censorship right here in the US. This is the Trump admin saying ‘no Democrats on TV’ & the Ellison’s & Bari Weiss saying sounds good to us. Truly terrifying times.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/17/a...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/17/a...
February 17, 2026 at 12:42 PM
Full on North Korea-Iran-Russian style censorship right here in the US. This is the Trump admin saying ‘no Democrats on TV’ & the Ellison’s & Bari Weiss saying sounds good to us. Truly terrifying times.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/17/a...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/17/a...
Reposted by John MacPherson
First genocide, now you stop the doctors trying to provide healthcare from even getting to Gaza if they speak out.
Shame on you Israel.
Hamas are butchers. What are you?
www.theguardian.com/world/2026/f...
Shame on you Israel.
Hamas are butchers. What are you?
www.theguardian.com/world/2026/f...
Medics in UK and US say they have been barred from Gaza after speaking out
Israel accused of denying doctors re-entry into territory after they gave first-hand testimony on conflict
www.theguardian.com
February 17, 2026 at 12:55 PM
First genocide, now you stop the doctors trying to provide healthcare from even getting to Gaza if they speak out.
Shame on you Israel.
Hamas are butchers. What are you?
www.theguardian.com/world/2026/f...
Shame on you Israel.
Hamas are butchers. What are you?
www.theguardian.com/world/2026/f...
Reposted by John MacPherson
Artists are hated by dictators because they get to the core of the problem. Artists expose the rot.
This is awesome. This is love.
This is awesome. This is love.
February 17, 2026 at 6:31 AM
Artists are hated by dictators because they get to the core of the problem. Artists expose the rot.
This is awesome. This is love.
This is awesome. This is love.
WOW! What Nash said, but with more capitals. WOW.
February 17, 2026 at 8:38 AM
WOW! What Nash said, but with more capitals. WOW.
Reposted by John MacPherson
Pregnancy became far more dangerous in Texas after the state banned abortion, according to ProPublica’s first-of-its-kind analysis, which found the sepsis rate for women hospitalized as they miscarried in the 2nd trimester shot up by more than 50%.
(Published Feb. 2025)
(Published Feb. 2025)
Texas Banned Abortion. Then Sepsis Rates Soared.
ProPublica’s first-of-its-kind analysis is the most detailed look yet into a rise in life-threatening complications for women experiencing pregnancy loss under Texas’ abortion ban.
www.propublica.org
February 17, 2026 at 4:00 AM
Pregnancy became far more dangerous in Texas after the state banned abortion, according to ProPublica’s first-of-its-kind analysis, which found the sepsis rate for women hospitalized as they miscarried in the 2nd trimester shot up by more than 50%.
(Published Feb. 2025)
(Published Feb. 2025)
Reposted by John MacPherson
Moonlight on Mellon Udrigle Beach, in beautiful Wester Ross, north west highlands of Scotland
#moonlight #beach #scotland #highlands #landscapes #photography
#moonlight #beach #scotland #highlands #landscapes #photography
February 17, 2026 at 7:00 AM
Moonlight on Mellon Udrigle Beach, in beautiful Wester Ross, north west highlands of Scotland
#moonlight #beach #scotland #highlands #landscapes #photography
#moonlight #beach #scotland #highlands #landscapes #photography
Reposted by John MacPherson
"Hold on, we actually allow a failsafe"
The failsafe: Having a birth certificate, ID, and being willing to sign an affidavit on penalty of perjury.
This is what gendered administrative burdens look like.
academic.oup.com/jpart/articl...
The failsafe: Having a birth certificate, ID, and being willing to sign an affidavit on penalty of perjury.
This is what gendered administrative burdens look like.
academic.oup.com/jpart/articl...
Chip Roy on Fox News tries to explain why the SAVE America Act won't actually prevent women from voting
February 16, 2026 at 10:24 PM
"Hold on, we actually allow a failsafe"
The failsafe: Having a birth certificate, ID, and being willing to sign an affidavit on penalty of perjury.
This is what gendered administrative burdens look like.
academic.oup.com/jpart/articl...
The failsafe: Having a birth certificate, ID, and being willing to sign an affidavit on penalty of perjury.
This is what gendered administrative burdens look like.
academic.oup.com/jpart/articl...
Reposted by John MacPherson
its amazing how chatgpt knows everything about subjects I know nothing about, but is wrong like 40% of the time in things im an expert on. not going to think about this any further
March 8, 2025 at 12:13 AM
its amazing how chatgpt knows everything about subjects I know nothing about, but is wrong like 40% of the time in things im an expert on. not going to think about this any further
Reposted by John MacPherson
Can confirm: I am not an expert on anything
Which means I can do everything ChatGPT can do, for cheaper and with less environmental impact
Hire me to be wrong for you!
Which means I can do everything ChatGPT can do, for cheaper and with less environmental impact
Hire me to be wrong for you!
March 8, 2025 at 4:35 AM
Can confirm: I am not an expert on anything
Which means I can do everything ChatGPT can do, for cheaper and with less environmental impact
Hire me to be wrong for you!
Which means I can do everything ChatGPT can do, for cheaper and with less environmental impact
Hire me to be wrong for you!
Reposted by John MacPherson
This is totally non-standard for any publication. Every pub everywhere pretty much cleans up uhms, uhm, and vocal tics like that, which EVERYONE DOES.
This is extremely intentional.
If I was writing this I’d probably do the quote “this is of course a very longstanding policy of the United States”
This is extremely intentional.
If I was writing this I’d probably do the quote “this is of course a very longstanding policy of the United States”
Have you ever once seen the New York Times quote Trump like this?
February 16, 2026 at 8:15 PM
This is totally non-standard for any publication. Every pub everywhere pretty much cleans up uhms, uhm, and vocal tics like that, which EVERYONE DOES.
This is extremely intentional.
If I was writing this I’d probably do the quote “this is of course a very longstanding policy of the United States”
This is extremely intentional.
If I was writing this I’d probably do the quote “this is of course a very longstanding policy of the United States”
Reposted by John MacPherson
So when thousands of women (and children) were being duplicated--including in non-consensual AI porn--it was no big deal. But it took "only a 15-sec clip" of these two famous white men to draw outrage and fear. Gotcha. Cool cool.
It took only a 15-second clip of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt duking it out on a crumbling rooftop — made by A.I. with a two-sentence prompt and the click of a button — to draw swift outrage, and sizable fear, from Hollywood.
"It’s nothing short of terrifying," one scriptwriter said.
"It’s nothing short of terrifying," one scriptwriter said.
Why an A.I. Video of Tom Cruise Battling Brad Pitt Spooked Hollywood
A 15-second clip created by an artificial intelligence tool owned by the Chinese technology company ByteDance appears more cinematic than anything so far.
nyti.ms
February 16, 2026 at 8:36 PM
So when thousands of women (and children) were being duplicated--including in non-consensual AI porn--it was no big deal. But it took "only a 15-sec clip" of these two famous white men to draw outrage and fear. Gotcha. Cool cool.
Reposted by John MacPherson
BREAKING: federal judge orders the Trump admin to restore slavery exhibits to the President’s House.
The opinion opens with “As if the Ministry of Truth in George Orwell’s 1984 now existed…”
With @fallonroth.bsky.social
The opinion opens with “As if the Ministry of Truth in George Orwell’s 1984 now existed…”
With @fallonroth.bsky.social
Federal judge orders Trump admin to restore slavery exhibits to the President’s House
The order does not give the federal government a deadline for restoring the President's House site.
www.inquirer.com
February 16, 2026 at 6:55 PM
BREAKING: federal judge orders the Trump admin to restore slavery exhibits to the President’s House.
The opinion opens with “As if the Ministry of Truth in George Orwell’s 1984 now existed…”
With @fallonroth.bsky.social
The opinion opens with “As if the Ministry of Truth in George Orwell’s 1984 now existed…”
With @fallonroth.bsky.social
Reposted by John MacPherson
February 16, 2026 at 11:00 AM
Reposted by John MacPherson
pretty stunning chart
February 15, 2026 at 7:58 PM
pretty stunning chart
Reposted by John MacPherson
Reposted by John MacPherson
Deeply ashamed to live in a country where tweeting this isn’t instant career suicide
February 16, 2026 at 5:47 PM
Deeply ashamed to live in a country where tweeting this isn’t instant career suicide
Reposted by John MacPherson
Book club scams are now threatening authors who don't fall for their BS. In December, I received an email from Herry Sharp, so-called CEO of "Super Book Lover Curator" praising my novella We Who Hunt Alexanders.
Totally AI-generated and a scam so I didn't respond.
Now Herry is threatening me. 1/
Totally AI-generated and a scam so I didn't respond.
Now Herry is threatening me. 1/
February 16, 2026 at 4:22 PM
Book club scams are now threatening authors who don't fall for their BS. In December, I received an email from Herry Sharp, so-called CEO of "Super Book Lover Curator" praising my novella We Who Hunt Alexanders.
Totally AI-generated and a scam so I didn't respond.
Now Herry is threatening me. 1/
Totally AI-generated and a scam so I didn't respond.
Now Herry is threatening me. 1/
Reposted by John MacPherson
BBC headline utterly failing. ‘The saga of a £165m rail line that keeps causing travel chaos’
It’s not the rail line that “keeps causing travel chaos” its the shifting climate with more prolonged and intense rainfall and more frequent storms leading to landslips and the sea wall being washed out.
It’s not the rail line that “keeps causing travel chaos” its the shifting climate with more prolonged and intense rainfall and more frequent storms leading to landslips and the sea wall being washed out.
February 15, 2026 at 11:49 PM
BBC headline utterly failing. ‘The saga of a £165m rail line that keeps causing travel chaos’
It’s not the rail line that “keeps causing travel chaos” its the shifting climate with more prolonged and intense rainfall and more frequent storms leading to landslips and the sea wall being washed out.
It’s not the rail line that “keeps causing travel chaos” its the shifting climate with more prolonged and intense rainfall and more frequent storms leading to landslips and the sea wall being washed out.
February 16, 2026 at 3:15 PM
Reposted by John MacPherson
blood banks
My god do we need UBI
“Researchers have found that when a new plasma center opens in a neighborhood, foot traffic at local grocery stores increases, interest in payday loans declines and crime goes down, an indication of the way money from plasma props up households’ finances for necessities.“
“Researchers have found that when a new plasma center opens in a neighborhood, foot traffic at local grocery stores increases, interest in payday loans declines and crime goes down, an indication of the way money from plasma props up households’ finances for necessities.“
Middle-class Americans are selling their plasma to make ends meet
Last year, people in the U.S. made an estimated $4.7 billion selling their plasma. Donation centers are popping up in middle-class neighborhoods, including suburban strip malls and college towns.
www.nbcnews.com
February 16, 2026 at 2:41 PM
blood banks
Reposted by John MacPherson
![[12-frame cartoon strip by Stephen Collins about Liz Truss talking to her publisher about her upcoming book]
Liz we are so excited to be publishing your book
Now all we need is a really punchy title. I was thinking-
LT: 'I Didn't Kill The Queen'.
Sorry?
LT: 'I Didn't Kill The Queen'.
Why would you call it that
LT: 'Because it's true, I didn't.
I didn't say you did.
LT: 'Well of course you wouldn't cos I didn't.
I mocked it up, look.
[holds up book with cover that says
"LIZ TRUSS
Didn't Kill The Queen"]
Don't you think if you call your book 'I Didn't kill The Queen' it sounds a bit like... you killed the Queen?
LT: 'No look there's a 'didn't'.
LT: 'OK, OK. How about: 'I Just Met The Queen and Then Two Days Later She Died'.
Let's drop the Queen bit.
LT: 'I Didn't Kill The Economy'?
No.
LT: 'I Didn't Kill The Conservative Party!
No. Look, Liz-
All we need is a forward-looking title that an American will see in a bookshop and think:
"She looks unhinged, let's put her on Fox News".
LT: 'The Wokes Are Coming To Kill You
We're so nearly there.
(Stephen Collins https://linktr.ee/stephencollinsart)](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:2kf2qj56o2vq7jfaq4x4ogp6/bafkreieu57lwrx2x362h76fddihf6ltk3pvxhwzvimf3vtvrpfyd2ipcoi@jpeg)
February 15, 2026 at 10:23 PM