MarkMan
@madmanmark84.bsky.social
Just another older white guy, 1st-gen college in a purple state & family
Reposted by MarkMan
Invoking the legacy of Walter Cronkite, Acosta said the late journalist would be “spinning in his grave” over CBS’s recent Trump coverage, before adding that he wished Cronkite could rise from the dead and “choke the living sh*t” out of Dokoupil ...
open.substack.com/pub/beinglib...
open.substack.com/pub/beinglib...
Jim Acosta Torches CBS Anchor for Normalizing Trump on National News: 'Cronkite Would Choke the Living Sh*t Out of Him!'
For years, corporate news executives have insisted that what looks like capitulation is actually “balance,” that what feels like propaganda is really just “tone,” and that bending over backward for authoritarian politics is simply “meeting viewers where they are.”
open.substack.com
January 18, 2026 at 11:18 PM
Invoking the legacy of Walter Cronkite, Acosta said the late journalist would be “spinning in his grave” over CBS’s recent Trump coverage, before adding that he wished Cronkite could rise from the dead and “choke the living sh*t” out of Dokoupil ...
open.substack.com/pub/beinglib...
open.substack.com/pub/beinglib...
Worth reading through to the end of this (paywall-free) link. But if you just want the biggest takeaways, I've excerpted mine below.
I know Minnesota, very well. What I know makes me see that Trump, Noem, and Stephen Miller really, REALLY don't.
I know Minnesota, very well. What I know makes me see that Trump, Noem, and Stephen Miller really, REALLY don't.
January 19, 2026 at 2:41 PM
Worth reading through to the end of this (paywall-free) link. But if you just want the biggest takeaways, I've excerpted mine below.
I know Minnesota, very well. What I know makes me see that Trump, Noem, and Stephen Miller really, REALLY don't.
I know Minnesota, very well. What I know makes me see that Trump, Noem, and Stephen Miller really, REALLY don't.
It's gross diplomatic incompetence, how Trump is pushing our longstanding natural allies & economic partners into closer ties with our biggest rival.
But these chickens will take years to come home to roost, and I sincerely don't think Trump cares much what happens to the USA after he's gone.
But these chickens will take years to come home to roost, and I sincerely don't think Trump cares much what happens to the USA after he's gone.
Xi Welcomes Stream of Leaders Shaken by Trump’s New World Order
Donald Trump’s tariff war occupied US allies for much of last year. Now, President Xi Jinping is welcoming a procession of leaders looking to mend fences with the world’s other major economy.
www.bloomberg.com
January 14, 2026 at 1:20 PM
It's gross diplomatic incompetence, how Trump is pushing our longstanding natural allies & economic partners into closer ties with our biggest rival.
But these chickens will take years to come home to roost, and I sincerely don't think Trump cares much what happens to the USA after he's gone.
But these chickens will take years to come home to roost, and I sincerely don't think Trump cares much what happens to the USA after he's gone.
Reposted by MarkMan
ICE has recently bought the capability of monitoring the location histories of entire neighborhoods worth of phones. The data is likely harvested from apps that sell your data, which filters up through data brokers and eventually to companies that sell to ICE:
www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
Inside ICE’s Tool to Monitor Phones in Entire Neighborhoods
404 Media has obtained material that explains how Tangles and Webloc, two surveillance systems ICE recently purchased, work. Webloc can track phones without a warrant and follow their owners home or t...
www.404media.co
January 8, 2026 at 4:12 PM
ICE has recently bought the capability of monitoring the location histories of entire neighborhoods worth of phones. The data is likely harvested from apps that sell your data, which filters up through data brokers and eventually to companies that sell to ICE:
www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
Interesting US housing statistic: As anxiety about housing affordability mount, the share of unmortgaged homes has increased 20% over the last 15 years, from ~32% to ~40%
Suggests the true root problem may be inequality, not "affordability?"
Suggests the true root problem may be inequality, not "affordability?"
January 6, 2026 at 3:53 PM
Interesting US housing statistic: As anxiety about housing affordability mount, the share of unmortgaged homes has increased 20% over the last 15 years, from ~32% to ~40%
Suggests the true root problem may be inequality, not "affordability?"
Suggests the true root problem may be inequality, not "affordability?"
@nytimes.com article on something that could stoke further US economic "malaise" over coming months. Article states energy assistance directors group "expects four million accounts to be shut off this year."
Heating Costs Expected to Rise 9.2% This Winter
www.nytimes.com
December 17, 2025 at 11:42 AM
@nytimes.com article on something that could stoke further US economic "malaise" over coming months. Article states energy assistance directors group "expects four million accounts to be shut off this year."
From @torstenslok.bsky.social: "... the US economy remains incredibly resilient ... the upside risks to growth and inflation are significant ... a data-dependent Fed would come to the conclusion that it should not cut interest rates next week."
www.apolloacademy.com
December 5, 2025 at 3:47 PM
From @torstenslok.bsky.social: "... the US economy remains incredibly resilient ... the upside risks to growth and inflation are significant ... a data-dependent Fed would come to the conclusion that it should not cut interest rates next week."
Reposted by MarkMan
Trump national security strategy: Make Europe White Again.
"Over the long term, it is more than plausible that within a few decades ...certain NATO members will become majority non-European"
"the real and more stark prospect of civilizational erasure"
www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
"Over the long term, it is more than plausible that within a few decades ...certain NATO members will become majority non-European"
"the real and more stark prospect of civilizational erasure"
www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
www.whitehouse.gov
December 5, 2025 at 7:35 AM
Trump national security strategy: Make Europe White Again.
"Over the long term, it is more than plausible that within a few decades ...certain NATO members will become majority non-European"
"the real and more stark prospect of civilizational erasure"
www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
"Over the long term, it is more than plausible that within a few decades ...certain NATO members will become majority non-European"
"the real and more stark prospect of civilizational erasure"
www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
WSJ article today on potential investment opportunities in commercial real estate
"... if the AI rally slows, or slumps, property could eventually go from being unpopular to a place where investors want to shelter."
"... if the AI rally slows, or slumps, property could eventually go from being unpopular to a place where investors want to shelter."
December 2, 2025 at 11:48 AM
WSJ article today on potential investment opportunities in commercial real estate
"... if the AI rally slows, or slumps, property could eventually go from being unpopular to a place where investors want to shelter."
"... if the AI rally slows, or slumps, property could eventually go from being unpopular to a place where investors want to shelter."
*Please* take advantage of gift link, then READ ALL of it!
Title is clever & engaging, but it does not capture the essence of the article: the discussion of churlish behavior of Trump admin figures is only an appetizer to serve the main course, about how WE collectively need to act to counter this.
Title is clever & engaging, but it does not capture the essence of the article: the discussion of churlish behavior of Trump admin figures is only an appetizer to serve the main course, about how WE collectively need to act to counter this.
Now that Pete Hegseth is making cartoon jokes about the accusations that he gave illegal "no quarter" orders, good time to reup this:
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
A Confederacy of Toddlers
The Trump administration is a regime of troubled children.
www.theatlantic.com
December 1, 2025 at 2:18 PM
*Please* take advantage of gift link, then READ ALL of it!
Title is clever & engaging, but it does not capture the essence of the article: the discussion of churlish behavior of Trump admin figures is only an appetizer to serve the main course, about how WE collectively need to act to counter this.
Title is clever & engaging, but it does not capture the essence of the article: the discussion of churlish behavior of Trump admin figures is only an appetizer to serve the main course, about how WE collectively need to act to counter this.
Reposted by MarkMan
It's only a matter of time before this geodata gathering to formulate theories of "pattern of life and movement" is integrated with the extensive secret NSA data gathering about US citizens that Edward Snowden exposed 15 years ago.
I'm willing to bet its already happened.
I'm willing to bet its already happened.
"The U.S. Border Patrol is monitoring millions of American drivers nationwide in a secretive program to identify and detain people whose travel patterns it deems suspicious, The Associated Press has found."
apnews.com/article/immi...
apnews.com/article/immi...
Border Patrol is monitoring US drivers and detaining those with 'suspicious' travel patterns
The U.S. Border Patrol is monitoring millions of American drivers nationwide in a secretive program to identify and detain people whose travel patterns it deems suspicious.
apnews.com
November 20, 2025 at 5:37 PM
It's only a matter of time before this geodata gathering to formulate theories of "pattern of life and movement" is integrated with the extensive secret NSA data gathering about US citizens that Edward Snowden exposed 15 years ago.
I'm willing to bet its already happened.
I'm willing to bet its already happened.
I'm an American who has pride about the "idea" at the foundation of my country, even if it's always been an "imperfect Union" (Lincoln). Why I was literally crying by the 9-minute mark of this.
I hope non-subscribers can view this? There was no option for "gift link" as there is for text articles.
I hope non-subscribers can view this? There was no option for "gift link" as there is for text articles.
Video: Opinion | We Came Here Legally. ICE Locked Us Up Anyway.
The brutal detention of three people who came to the United States reveals a cruel system that operates with impunity.
www.nytimes.com
November 17, 2025 at 3:40 PM
I'm an American who has pride about the "idea" at the foundation of my country, even if it's always been an "imperfect Union" (Lincoln). Why I was literally crying by the 9-minute mark of this.
I hope non-subscribers can view this? There was no option for "gift link" as there is for text articles.
I hope non-subscribers can view this? There was no option for "gift link" as there is for text articles.
Reposted by MarkMan
A terrific AFP fact check uses reverse image searches to expose how a White House video took scenes from Florida, Texas, South Carolina and Nebraska and lied that they showed "Chicago is in chaos."
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
October 16, 2025 at 2:07 PM
A terrific AFP fact check uses reverse image searches to expose how a White House video took scenes from Florida, Texas, South Carolina and Nebraska and lied that they showed "Chicago is in chaos."
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com....
Reposted by MarkMan
Reposted by MarkMan
The ICE Officer, Greg Bovino, who got a US Attorney in California fired with a phone call to the WH, is now leading his troops through downtown Chicago, looking for people who look illegal.
chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...
chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...
September 29, 2025 at 12:58 PM
The ICE Officer, Greg Bovino, who got a US Attorney in California fired with a phone call to the WH, is now leading his troops through downtown Chicago, looking for people who look illegal.
chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...
chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...
55 years of data supports that "summertime" temperatures in US are persisting later into the year, and how this is upsetting established patterns for schools, farming, etc.
Even those who won't admit that climate change is man made should be able to at least acknowledge it exists & is a problem?
Even those who won't admit that climate change is man made should be able to at least acknowledge it exists & is a problem?
It's not just you: Summer is sticking around longer
Summer temps are sticking around for 30 days or longer compared to historical norms in some places.
www.axios.com
September 16, 2025 at 3:33 PM
55 years of data supports that "summertime" temperatures in US are persisting later into the year, and how this is upsetting established patterns for schools, farming, etc.
Even those who won't admit that climate change is man made should be able to at least acknowledge it exists & is a problem?
Even those who won't admit that climate change is man made should be able to at least acknowledge it exists & is a problem?
Reposted by MarkMan
𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝙿𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚗𝚜 𝚒𝚝𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚠𝚊𝚛, 𝙼𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚃𝚛𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚕𝚒𝚎𝚜, 𝙼𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝙻𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 & 𝙼𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝙿𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚢 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚟𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗. 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚜𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚕, 𝚗𝚘𝚛 𝚍𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚞𝚕𝚝 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝚑𝚢𝚙𝚘𝚌𝚛𝚒𝚜𝚢: 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚍𝚎𝚕𝚒𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚎𝚡𝚎𝚛𝚌𝚒𝚜𝚎𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚍𝚘𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔
𝙶𝚎𝚘𝚛𝚐𝚎 𝙾𝚛𝚠𝚎𝚕𝚕, 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟺
𝙶𝚎𝚘𝚛𝚐𝚎 𝙾𝚛𝚠𝚎𝚕𝚕, 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟺
August 6, 2025 at 7:52 PM
𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝙿𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚗𝚜 𝚒𝚝𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚠𝚊𝚛, 𝙼𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚃𝚛𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚕𝚒𝚎𝚜, 𝙼𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝙻𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 & 𝙼𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝙿𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚢 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚟𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗. 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚜𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚕, 𝚗𝚘𝚛 𝚍𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚞𝚕𝚝 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝚑𝚢𝚙𝚘𝚌𝚛𝚒𝚜𝚢: 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚍𝚎𝚕𝚒𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚎𝚡𝚎𝚛𝚌𝚒𝚜𝚎𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚍𝚘𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔
𝙶𝚎𝚘𝚛𝚐𝚎 𝙾𝚛𝚠𝚎𝚕𝚕, 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟺
𝙶𝚎𝚘𝚛𝚐𝚎 𝙾𝚛𝚠𝚎𝚕𝚕, 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟺
Oops, link:
(... and aside: why doesn't bluesky let you post an image AND a link?)
(... and aside: why doesn't bluesky let you post an image AND a link?)
August 12, 2025 at 1:09 PM
Oops, link:
(... and aside: why doesn't bluesky let you post an image AND a link?)
(... and aside: why doesn't bluesky let you post an image AND a link?)
IMO the only way this country escapes MAGA/Project 2025 fever is if enough voters who chose him because they're too myopic to look beyond their own perceived personal circumstances, start to question their choice.
From that POV perhaps there are "silver linings" to this looming economic hit
From that POV perhaps there are "silver linings" to this looming economic hit
August 12, 2025 at 1:07 PM
IMO the only way this country escapes MAGA/Project 2025 fever is if enough voters who chose him because they're too myopic to look beyond their own perceived personal circumstances, start to question their choice.
From that POV perhaps there are "silver linings" to this looming economic hit
From that POV perhaps there are "silver linings" to this looming economic hit
Long article challenging an "established" American story/myth, ignored by historians for > century.
If I were a high school/undergrad history teacher I'd consider using this to instill idea that one must always be open-minded to at least question "facts" presented to us as "settled."
[gift link]
If I were a high school/undergrad history teacher I'd consider using this to instill idea that one must always be open-minded to at least question "facts" presented to us as "settled."
[gift link]
What if Everything We Know About Sacagawea Is Wrong?
www.nytimes.com
July 25, 2025 at 12:42 PM
Long article challenging an "established" American story/myth, ignored by historians for > century.
If I were a high school/undergrad history teacher I'd consider using this to instill idea that one must always be open-minded to at least question "facts" presented to us as "settled."
[gift link]
If I were a high school/undergrad history teacher I'd consider using this to instill idea that one must always be open-minded to at least question "facts" presented to us as "settled."
[gift link]
Cutting to the chase of significance of this slide from Torsten Slok:
Accelerating US debt levels should lead to a permanent 0.6% increase in 10yr interest rates over the next decade (new "baseline"). So mortgages etc. should increase even more, along w/ deficits. 10 year T-Notes are 4.39% right now
Accelerating US debt levels should lead to a permanent 0.6% increase in 10yr interest rates over the next decade (new "baseline"). So mortgages etc. should increase even more, along w/ deficits. 10 year T-Notes are 4.39% right now
July 24, 2025 at 12:12 PM
Cutting to the chase of significance of this slide from Torsten Slok:
Accelerating US debt levels should lead to a permanent 0.6% increase in 10yr interest rates over the next decade (new "baseline"). So mortgages etc. should increase even more, along w/ deficits. 10 year T-Notes are 4.39% right now
Accelerating US debt levels should lead to a permanent 0.6% increase in 10yr interest rates over the next decade (new "baseline"). So mortgages etc. should increase even more, along w/ deficits. 10 year T-Notes are 4.39% right now
The US industries expected to see the most worker supply declines (and wage & cost increases) as ICE detentions & deportations continue.
If immigration is totally shut down, US population will start to decline in 8 years.
From Torsten Slok, Apollo Academy
If immigration is totally shut down, US population will start to decline in 8 years.
From Torsten Slok, Apollo Academy
July 23, 2025 at 12:23 PM
The US industries expected to see the most worker supply declines (and wage & cost increases) as ICE detentions & deportations continue.
If immigration is totally shut down, US population will start to decline in 8 years.
From Torsten Slok, Apollo Academy
If immigration is totally shut down, US population will start to decline in 8 years.
From Torsten Slok, Apollo Academy
Interesting stat: Almost 75% of US restaurant orders are for delivery or takeout.
I wish they'd included stats from the past to understand the trend. I suspect if you go back 10-20 years it was quite a bit lower
I wish they'd included stats from the past to understand the trend. I suspect if you go back 10-20 years it was quite a bit lower
From Trend to Transformation: Off-Premises Dining Now Essential for Restaurant Consumers, Operators
/PRNewswire/ -- Nearly 75% of all restaurant traffic now happens off-premises—meaning that almost 3 out of 4 restaurant orders are taken to go. New data from...
www.prnewswire.com
July 15, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Interesting stat: Almost 75% of US restaurant orders are for delivery or takeout.
I wish they'd included stats from the past to understand the trend. I suspect if you go back 10-20 years it was quite a bit lower
I wish they'd included stats from the past to understand the trend. I suspect if you go back 10-20 years it was quite a bit lower