Thomas Bell
@realthomasbell.bsky.social
Getting through this with everyone else.
Reposted by Thomas Bell
Again, in actual democracies, ministers resign all the time, under threat of a no confidence vote in the parliament. We have a system where legislative confirmation totally fails ex ante to screen out wildly unqualified people, & ex post accountability depends on a toothless extraordinary measure.
There must be a dozen fireable offenses listed in this piece:
*Noem firing civil servants without cause
*Her boyfriend using govt resources to boost her profile, punishing officials who would not give him a gun
*Massive waste on ads, planes, delayed contracts, pushing favored firms
*Noem firing civil servants without cause
*Her boyfriend using govt resources to boost her profile, punishing officials who would not give him a gun
*Massive waste on ads, planes, delayed contracts, pushing favored firms
The full story with a gift link (it's such a mess):
February 13, 2026 at 5:32 AM
Again, in actual democracies, ministers resign all the time, under threat of a no confidence vote in the parliament. We have a system where legislative confirmation totally fails ex ante to screen out wildly unqualified people, & ex post accountability depends on a toothless extraordinary measure.
It’s change. Change is bad.
February 13, 2026 at 8:06 AM
It’s change. Change is bad.
Are there people who specifically (ie. Not vegetarian or similar) won’t eat hot dogs?
February 13, 2026 at 4:12 AM
Are there people who specifically (ie. Not vegetarian or similar) won’t eat hot dogs?
Reposted by Thomas Bell
February 13, 2026 at 2:18 AM
He peaked in Enterprise.
February 13, 2026 at 3:42 AM
He peaked in Enterprise.
Reposted by Thomas Bell
"A 2025 Siena poll found that forty-eight percent of all [American] men aged 18-49 have an active online sports betting account" is one of those stats that reminds me my social circles are not normal. I think I could name one or two people I regularly talk to who *might* do sports betting?
I see no reason not to look at the online gambling and prediction market craze as a new opioids crisis.
It will wreak havoc on lower-income Americans and leave a trail of destruction and despair in its wake.
The companies are just Purdue Pharma 2.0
www.liberalcurrents.com/from-pill-mi...
It will wreak havoc on lower-income Americans and leave a trail of destruction and despair in its wake.
The companies are just Purdue Pharma 2.0
www.liberalcurrents.com/from-pill-mi...
From Pill Mills to Prop Bets: Prediction Markets and Mobile Sports Betting Apps Are Fueling America’s Next Addiction Crisis
Against the gamblification of the world.
www.liberalcurrents.com
February 12, 2026 at 3:45 PM
"A 2025 Siena poll found that forty-eight percent of all [American] men aged 18-49 have an active online sports betting account" is one of those stats that reminds me my social circles are not normal. I think I could name one or two people I regularly talk to who *might* do sports betting?
This man is a hero
“I’ve reviewed over 50 sticky toffee puddings” is an incredibly powerful way to begin a video
February 13, 2026 at 12:40 AM
This man is a hero
Reposted by Thomas Bell
I think something breaks in 2016 when you have 'a campaign that can be completely unburdened by having to acknowledge trade-offs and everyone else starts emulating it'.
February 12, 2026 at 12:48 PM
I think something breaks in 2016 when you have 'a campaign that can be completely unburdened by having to acknowledge trade-offs and everyone else starts emulating it'.
Reposted by Thomas Bell
If nothing else, it would probably be worth putting the fact he's just wrong about every individual detail into the headline.
February 11, 2026 at 6:41 PM
If nothing else, it would probably be worth putting the fact he's just wrong about every individual detail into the headline.
Can’t fire who did this if you’ve already fired everyone.
Correction: A previous version of this post misidentified the South Caucasus as belonging to Russia. The region, made up of territory in Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan, is not part of Russia. We deleted the previous post.
February 12, 2026 at 11:49 AM
Can’t fire who did this if you’ve already fired everyone.
Reposted by Thomas Bell
real question is why notepad needed to be a WYSIWYG markdown editor
fire the person who made that decision
fire the person who made that decision
February 11, 2026 at 11:01 PM
real question is why notepad needed to be a WYSIWYG markdown editor
fire the person who made that decision
fire the person who made that decision
Populism is a powerful force in any ideology.
February 12, 2026 at 1:55 AM
Populism is a powerful force in any ideology.
How stable are Belgian constituencies? One advantage of PR is that the constituencies don’t need to be tweaked regularly in response to population changes so I imagine it’s easier to create consistent data.
February 12, 2026 at 1:54 AM
How stable are Belgian constituencies? One advantage of PR is that the constituencies don’t need to be tweaked regularly in response to population changes so I imagine it’s easier to create consistent data.
Sexism, but leftishly. (Being a massive jerk is not limited to any part of the political spectrum, sadly! Also, is jerk also gendered?)
February 12, 2026 at 1:46 AM
Sexism, but leftishly. (Being a massive jerk is not limited to any part of the political spectrum, sadly! Also, is jerk also gendered?)
It’s one of the weirdest bugbears in the Republican Party and it’s bad legislation but also very funny.
February 12, 2026 at 1:33 AM
It’s one of the weirdest bugbears in the Republican Party and it’s bad legislation but also very funny.
He’s domestically right wing too and so probably still malding over Carney.
February 12, 2026 at 1:25 AM
He’s domestically right wing too and so probably still malding over Carney.
Recently came across this video from Canada. youtu.be/-PxtCIMeRMY?...
Waging war on the Jamaican patty: Canada’s bizarre beef with the delicious snack | Patty vs Patty
YouTube video by CBC Docs
youtu.be
February 12, 2026 at 1:23 AM
Recently came across this video from Canada. youtu.be/-PxtCIMeRMY?...
I’m crafting a view that it’s not an anything government. It’s a government that sometimes has one minister with a plan to do one thing and that happens with no relation to anyone else’s (in)action.
February 11, 2026 at 12:13 PM
I’m crafting a view that it’s not an anything government. It’s a government that sometimes has one minister with a plan to do one thing and that happens with no relation to anyone else’s (in)action.
Reposted by Thomas Bell
A good example of how strangely unpolitical this government is at times.
The Economist is fretting that trade union laws have been tilted (sharply!) back towards strengthening unions.
But is the government making an argument around this to progressive voters? No.
economist.com/britain/2026...
The Economist is fretting that trade union laws have been tilted (sharply!) back towards strengthening unions.
But is the government making an argument around this to progressive voters? No.
economist.com/britain/2026...
February 7, 2026 at 12:59 PM
A good example of how strangely unpolitical this government is at times.
The Economist is fretting that trade union laws have been tilted (sharply!) back towards strengthening unions.
But is the government making an argument around this to progressive voters? No.
economist.com/britain/2026...
The Economist is fretting that trade union laws have been tilted (sharply!) back towards strengthening unions.
But is the government making an argument around this to progressive voters? No.
economist.com/britain/2026...
They’ve discovered El Paso uses Canadian planes.
Why did the FAA just close the airspace over El Paso for the next several days?
FAA grounds all flights to and from El Paso until Feb. 20
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a temporary flight restriction halting all flights to and from El Paso, including commercial, cargo, and ge
kfoxtv.com
February 11, 2026 at 12:10 PM
They’ve discovered El Paso uses Canadian planes.
The Best of Batman | Robot Chicken | adult swim
YouTube video by Adult Swim
youtu.be
February 11, 2026 at 5:41 AM
People are being antisemitic in the replies to this skeet.
I have to say, I do not love this new trend of large liberal accounts with millions of followers identifying Jews.
February 11, 2026 at 5:29 AM
People are being antisemitic in the replies to this skeet.
Reposted by Thomas Bell
Storage unit I rented in Chicago went from $110 to $270 a month within a year, that’s more expensive than my coworking space for the smallest unit they had
"Bills allegedly spiked from $120 to $320 in a single month or rose nearly that far within the first 30 days of moving in." I had this exact experience with Public Storage: completely random rate changed and outright lying as to my rate.
www.curbed.com/article/mamd...
www.curbed.com/article/mamd...
Mamdani Takes on the Self-Storage Wild West
A new suit filed by the city alleges price hikes seem to have “no correlation to any market conditions or costs.”
www.curbed.com
February 11, 2026 at 5:22 AM
Storage unit I rented in Chicago went from $110 to $270 a month within a year, that’s more expensive than my coworking space for the smallest unit they had
Reposted by Thomas Bell
This would have been a good point for someone to have asked, is that really how things work? Or is vacuum in fact an excellent insulator? www.ft.com/content/a5cf...
February 10, 2026 at 1:24 PM
This would have been a good point for someone to have asked, is that really how things work? Or is vacuum in fact an excellent insulator? www.ft.com/content/a5cf...
One day. It’s a bizarre post because of the date. You could be fully aware of everything Israel before 2023, and from the mainstream media to boot. Discord in 2023 didn’t suddenly invent the ability to find information.
February 10, 2026 at 10:26 AM
One day. It’s a bizarre post because of the date. You could be fully aware of everything Israel before 2023, and from the mainstream media to boot. Discord in 2023 didn’t suddenly invent the ability to find information.