Michael Hobbes
@michaelhobbes.bsky.social
Solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
This estate tax cut just passed 38-11.
You can't call every step of creeping fascism a distraction from kitchen-table issues and then punt whenever you have a chance to address the kitchen-table issues.
WA Democrats consider retreat on estate tax, fearing wealth exodus
Democrats in the state Legislature are moving to roll back a big increase in the estate tax rate, acknowledging it may be causing some very wealthy people to move.
www.seattletimes.com
February 17, 2026 at 1:52 AM
This estate tax cut just passed 38-11.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
Well now, would you look at that?
A massive study of NEARLY 300,000 people in the United States found that receiving an updated 2024-2025 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine REDUCED people’s risk of SEVERE disease AND death in ALL age groups, REGARDLESS of immunity from prior infection or vaccination.
A massive study of NEARLY 300,000 people in the United States found that receiving an updated 2024-2025 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine REDUCED people’s risk of SEVERE disease AND death in ALL age groups, REGARDLESS of immunity from prior infection or vaccination.
February 16, 2026 at 5:00 PM
Well now, would you look at that?
A massive study of NEARLY 300,000 people in the United States found that receiving an updated 2024-2025 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine REDUCED people’s risk of SEVERE disease AND death in ALL age groups, REGARDLESS of immunity from prior infection or vaccination.
A massive study of NEARLY 300,000 people in the United States found that receiving an updated 2024-2025 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine REDUCED people’s risk of SEVERE disease AND death in ALL age groups, REGARDLESS of immunity from prior infection or vaccination.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
v funny to me how many of the news talking heads blame trump on dems being out-of-touch elitists and yet also react like this. having a universal antipathy towards people who show their ass in the epstein files is probably the most popular opinion you can have in america right now
Noah Rothman on the Epstein files: "It is a witch hunt. It‘s a moral panic."
February 17, 2026 at 12:25 AM
v funny to me how many of the news talking heads blame trump on dems being out-of-touch elitists and yet also react like this. having a universal antipathy towards people who show their ass in the epstein files is probably the most popular opinion you can have in america right now
You can't call every step of creeping fascism a distraction from kitchen-table issues and then punt whenever you have a chance to address the kitchen-table issues.
WA Democrats consider retreat on estate tax, fearing wealth exodus
Democrats in the state Legislature are moving to roll back a big increase in the estate tax rate, acknowledging it may be causing some very wealthy people to move.
www.seattletimes.com
February 16, 2026 at 6:06 PM
You can't call every step of creeping fascism a distraction from kitchen-table issues and then punt whenever you have a chance to address the kitchen-table issues.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
pretty stunning chart
February 15, 2026 at 7:58 PM
pretty stunning chart
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
how does someone mow down a family of four, blame the car (no issue was found), transfer real estate to Nevada LLCs to avoid compensating the victims' families, and then walk away with nothing more than probation?
Do YOU have an aging friend/relative who should stop driving? Tell them this story from San Francisco. Ask how they will feel if they kill an entire family.
But don't tell them that even then, they'll be forgiven and be able to drive again.
This verdict is obscene.
www.ktvu.com/news/woman-a...
But don't tell them that even then, they'll be forgiven and be able to drive again.
This verdict is obscene.
www.ktvu.com/news/woman-a...
Woman accused of wiping out entire family in San Francisco crash likely won't get prison time
An 80-year-old woman accused of driving at a high rate of speed and crashing into a family of four, killing them, at a San Francisco bus stop nearly two years ago, appeared in court on Friday. Mary Fo...
www.ktvu.com
February 16, 2026 at 5:32 PM
how does someone mow down a family of four, blame the car (no issue was found), transfer real estate to Nevada LLCs to avoid compensating the victims' families, and then walk away with nothing more than probation?
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
It's also just not evident based. For all the evidence Cass had tried to amass, this speculation that kids who might have ceased being trans are being frozen in time rather than helped to develop their growing minds, identity and agency by exploring and expressing it actively has zero evidence.
Pure moral panic. How, precisely, would a child who experiments with a different haircut or pronouns get “locked in” to a trans identity?
The parents who had no problem letting her identify as trans suddenly restrict her from identifying as cis? It makes no sense.
The parents who had no problem letting her identify as trans suddenly restrict her from identifying as cis? It makes no sense.
"if they socially transition too early we think they can get locked onto a trajectory that may not have been the correct natural trajectory for them"
Direct quote.
Direct quote.
February 16, 2026 at 5:01 PM
It's also just not evident based. For all the evidence Cass had tried to amass, this speculation that kids who might have ceased being trans are being frozen in time rather than helped to develop their growing minds, identity and agency by exploring and expressing it actively has zero evidence.
Pure moral panic. How, precisely, would a child who experiments with a different haircut or pronouns get “locked in” to a trans identity?
The parents who had no problem letting her identify as trans suddenly restrict her from identifying as cis? It makes no sense.
The parents who had no problem letting her identify as trans suddenly restrict her from identifying as cis? It makes no sense.
"if they socially transition too early we think they can get locked onto a trajectory that may not have been the correct natural trajectory for them"
Direct quote.
Direct quote.
February 16, 2026 at 4:59 PM
Pure moral panic. How, precisely, would a child who experiments with a different haircut or pronouns get “locked in” to a trans identity?
The parents who had no problem letting her identify as trans suddenly restrict her from identifying as cis? It makes no sense.
The parents who had no problem letting her identify as trans suddenly restrict her from identifying as cis? It makes no sense.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
Hilary Cass here arguing for children to be prevented from being known by a preferred name or getting a haircut in case it encourages them to continue later in life to transition.
Hilary Cass acts like gender variant children should have the transness hazed out of them.
Hilary Cass acts like gender variant children should have the transness hazed out of them.
February 16, 2026 at 1:49 PM
Hilary Cass here arguing for children to be prevented from being known by a preferred name or getting a haircut in case it encourages them to continue later in life to transition.
Hilary Cass acts like gender variant children should have the transness hazed out of them.
Hilary Cass acts like gender variant children should have the transness hazed out of them.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
He can't speak without being disingenuous.
Next time you see this 400 vs 10k citation, understand:
The EU figure refers to its approved food additives.
The US figure refers to all substances that can legally contact food, including packaging materials and processing aids.
/1
Next time you see this 400 vs 10k citation, understand:
The EU figure refers to its approved food additives.
The US figure refers to all substances that can legally contact food, including packaging materials and processing aids.
/1
February 16, 2026 at 4:53 PM
He can't speak without being disingenuous.
Next time you see this 400 vs 10k citation, understand:
The EU figure refers to its approved food additives.
The US figure refers to all substances that can legally contact food, including packaging materials and processing aids.
/1
Next time you see this 400 vs 10k citation, understand:
The EU figure refers to its approved food additives.
The US figure refers to all substances that can legally contact food, including packaging materials and processing aids.
/1
Everyone seems to hate these things but aren’t they better for the climate and urban traffic than getting stuff delivered by car?
We all gathered around to bully a delivery robot on the sidewalk
February 16, 2026 at 4:50 PM
Everyone seems to hate these things but aren’t they better for the climate and urban traffic than getting stuff delivered by car?
This one might be the rare double-You're Wrong About.
Initial reporting was that the face-chewing guy was on bath salts.
But then the toxicology report showed he only had weed in his system.
But then it turns out they can't actually test for bath salts.
www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/o...
Initial reporting was that the face-chewing guy was on bath salts.
But then the toxicology report showed he only had weed in his system.
But then it turns out they can't actually test for bath salts.
www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/o...
February 16, 2026 at 4:10 PM
This one might be the rare double-You're Wrong About.
Initial reporting was that the face-chewing guy was on bath salts.
But then the toxicology report showed he only had weed in his system.
But then it turns out they can't actually test for bath salts.
www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/o...
Initial reporting was that the face-chewing guy was on bath salts.
But then the toxicology report showed he only had weed in his system.
But then it turns out they can't actually test for bath salts.
www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/o...
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
This is a popular bit of wishcasting, you see it in both left and centrist-y versions, and it is absolutely not true. Populism is about identity and exclusion, it is not people lashing out because they secretly yearn for whatever your preferred economic policy is.
"The Ascent of populist movements is telling us that governments have have strayed too far from being responsive to the working class"
This is probably the only area where AOC agrees with JD Vance and Josh Hawley.
This is probably the only area where AOC agrees with JD Vance and Josh Hawley.
February 15, 2026 at 7:05 PM
This is a popular bit of wishcasting, you see it in both left and centrist-y versions, and it is absolutely not true. Populism is about identity and exclusion, it is not people lashing out because they secretly yearn for whatever your preferred economic policy is.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
This is a deeply confused justification that is basically incoherent. “I care about truth, not persuasion, but if I persuaded one person to do what I think is correct then my packaging of fiction as truth was justified” is not a good argument.
Bruenig gave an interview defending the choice and says what's already clear from the text.
I have a feeling, though, that presenting these medical facts as part of a fictional scenario vastly dilutes its impact. If it's made up, would anyone change their minds?
www.niemanlab.org/2026/02/the-...
I have a feeling, though, that presenting these medical facts as part of a fictional scenario vastly dilutes its impact. If it's made up, would anyone change their minds?
www.niemanlab.org/2026/02/the-...
February 15, 2026 at 5:59 PM
This is a deeply confused justification that is basically incoherent. “I care about truth, not persuasion, but if I persuaded one person to do what I think is correct then my packaging of fiction as truth was justified” is not a good argument.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
Fiction moves people more than facts; if it gets parents to vaccinate their kids against measles then it works. THIS is fact, and it is just as devastating
fs.blog/roald-dahl-l...
fs.blog/roald-dahl-l...
February 15, 2026 at 5:30 PM
Fiction moves people more than facts; if it gets parents to vaccinate their kids against measles then it works. THIS is fact, and it is just as devastating
fs.blog/roald-dahl-l...
fs.blog/roald-dahl-l...
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
New York Magazine did this about COVID in March 2020, but it says, right in the headline (that appears on the website, not here), that it's what COULD happen nymag.com/intelligence...
February 15, 2026 at 5:08 PM
New York Magazine did this about COVID in March 2020, but it says, right in the headline (that appears on the website, not here), that it's what COULD happen nymag.com/intelligence...
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
That this is the nonsense that Thomas Chatterton-Williams comes up with is not surprising.
What's surprising is that mainstream media continues to platform it and praise him as some insightful writer.
What's surprising is that mainstream media continues to platform it and praise him as some insightful writer.
Physically incapable of analyzing politics outside of this insipid frame.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
February 15, 2026 at 5:07 PM
That this is the nonsense that Thomas Chatterton-Williams comes up with is not surprising.
What's surprising is that mainstream media continues to platform it and praise him as some insightful writer.
What's surprising is that mainstream media continues to platform it and praise him as some insightful writer.
Did other people know this is fiction? It's an incredibly bizarre choice and something I haven't seen magazines do before.
This Is How a Child Dies of Measles
When your family becomes a data point in an outbreak
www.theatlantic.com
February 15, 2026 at 4:43 PM
Did other people know this is fiction? It's an incredibly bizarre choice and something I haven't seen magazines do before.
Cass had the data and government resources to investigate whether this moral panic was true but instead of looking at it critically she just reinforced the panic.
and then cass has the absolute nerve to go on the bbc and say shit like this
February 15, 2026 at 4:21 PM
Cass had the data and government resources to investigate whether this moral panic was true but instead of looking at it critically she just reinforced the panic.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
The false equivalence is beyond irritating and this particular false equivalence is ludicrous.
It is the political right that tries to oversimplify history, ESPECIALLY slavery & anything to do w/ America's history on race.
It is the political right that tries to oversimplify history, ESPECIALLY slavery & anything to do w/ America's history on race.
Physically incapable of analyzing politics outside of this insipid frame.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
February 15, 2026 at 4:32 AM
The false equivalence is beyond irritating and this particular false equivalence is ludicrous.
It is the political right that tries to oversimplify history, ESPECIALLY slavery & anything to do w/ America's history on race.
It is the political right that tries to oversimplify history, ESPECIALLY slavery & anything to do w/ America's history on race.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
For the record I did not buy these but I did get this absolutely demented tank top for $6
February 15, 2026 at 3:53 PM
Just spent two hours updating the contact photos for everyone I've texted in the last month and I don't know if that means the adderall is working or not working.
February 15, 2026 at 3:45 PM
Just spent two hours updating the contact photos for everyone I've texted in the last month and I don't know if that means the adderall is working or not working.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
this quoted post is uninformed nonsense. policy changes towards trans people have been profound at both the state and federal level.
the EEOC won’t even process charges of trans discrimination right now for fucks sake.
the EEOC won’t even process charges of trans discrimination right now for fucks sake.
now, personally, I don’t care about making fun of streamers but I simply wouldn’t pretend to give a shit about trans people while minimizing their oppression and doing this in support of vote shaming for a transphobe like Newsom 2 years early
February 15, 2026 at 12:17 PM
this quoted post is uninformed nonsense. policy changes towards trans people have been profound at both the state and federal level.
the EEOC won’t even process charges of trans discrimination right now for fucks sake.
the EEOC won’t even process charges of trans discrimination right now for fucks sake.
Reposted by Michael Hobbes
I think one of the real challenges in discussing anything to do with trans people is that the media simply cannot accept that the anti-position is entirely eliminationist. There is no way to "exist in public whilst trans" that they will accept, right down to celebrating a doctor quitting.
Susan Smith of For Women Scotland is quoted in this piece saying that Dr Upton leaving the NHS will be "a relief to female patients."
The employment tribunal found that Upton had done nothing wrong! She was completely innocent of any kind of harassment!
www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/1592555...
The employment tribunal found that Upton had done nothing wrong! She was completely innocent of any kind of harassment!
www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/1592555...
Trans doc at centre of landmark Sandi Peggie court battle quits NHS
THE trans medic at the heart of a changing room war that cost taxpayers a staggering £400,000 has walked out on the NHS. NHS Fife bosses racked up the eye-watering bill in a failed bid to hush up n…
www.thescottishsun.co.uk
February 15, 2026 at 11:00 AM
I think one of the real challenges in discussing anything to do with trans people is that the media simply cannot accept that the anti-position is entirely eliminationist. There is no way to "exist in public whilst trans" that they will accept, right down to celebrating a doctor quitting.