Bob Shephard
@rpshephard.bsky.social
Retired History professor, but I'm also interested in lots of things that are going on right now (human rights, sports, literature, you name it)
Wtf, SCOTUS? Some legal provisions are obscure or ambiguous, but birthright citizenship is not one of them. Its meaning and application have been clear and consistent from the adoption of the Fourteenth Amendment in 1868 right up to the present
December 5, 2025 at 11:01 PM
Wtf, SCOTUS? Some legal provisions are obscure or ambiguous, but birthright citizenship is not one of them. Its meaning and application have been clear and consistent from the adoption of the Fourteenth Amendment in 1868 right up to the present
Trump's "peace plan" for the Russia-Ukraine war rewards the instigator, punishes the innocent victim, and prepares the way for further Russian aggression toward its neighbors in the future
November 21, 2025 at 10:03 PM
Trump's "peace plan" for the Russia-Ukraine war rewards the instigator, punishes the innocent victim, and prepares the way for further Russian aggression toward its neighbors in the future
It shouldn't be surprising in the slightest that when idealists become billionaires, their ideals tend to get swamped by anxieties about preserving their wealth and power
November 19, 2025 at 6:46 PM
It shouldn't be surprising in the slightest that when idealists become billionaires, their ideals tend to get swamped by anxieties about preserving their wealth and power
I hate to break it to you, moderate Dem senators, but the deal you just made with the Republicans is a meaningless gesture--now that the pressure to end the government shutdown is gone, no Republican is going to vote to continue the ACA subsidies
November 10, 2025 at 5:35 PM
I hate to break it to you, moderate Dem senators, but the deal you just made with the Republicans is a meaningless gesture--now that the pressure to end the government shutdown is gone, no Republican is going to vote to continue the ACA subsidies
When Dem candidates respond to their base good things happen
November 5, 2025 at 6:18 PM
When Dem candidates respond to their base good things happen
A "Let Them Eat Cake" moment for our times: Trump hosts a lavish "Great Gatsby"-themed party at Mar-a-Lago hours before tens of millions of Americans are going to have their SNAP benefits terminated
November 3, 2025 at 5:19 PM
A "Let Them Eat Cake" moment for our times: Trump hosts a lavish "Great Gatsby"-themed party at Mar-a-Lago hours before tens of millions of Americans are going to have their SNAP benefits terminated
So for 2026, the US will allow only 7,500 international refugees to enter the country, most or all of them white South Africans. Stephen Miller's dirty hands are all over this policy. Suck it, Afghan translators and associates who risked your lives helping the US troops in your country
November 1, 2025 at 8:50 PM
So for 2026, the US will allow only 7,500 international refugees to enter the country, most or all of them white South Africans. Stephen Miller's dirty hands are all over this policy. Suck it, Afghan translators and associates who risked your lives helping the US troops in your country
In a democracy, government programs need to be enacted and funded by duly elected representatives of the people. When wealthy private citizens start bankrolling public programs with their "donations," there will always be strings attached, explicit or implicit
October 27, 2025 at 1:04 AM
In a democracy, government programs need to be enacted and funded by duly elected representatives of the people. When wealthy private citizens start bankrolling public programs with their "donations," there will always be strings attached, explicit or implicit
For this administration, the views of democratically elected officials count for nothing next to the opinions of a couple of billionaire oligarch cronies
October 25, 2025 at 11:53 PM
For this administration, the views of democratically elected officials count for nothing next to the opinions of a couple of billionaire oligarch cronies
Nothing could be more fundamentally and quintessentially American than to say that we don't want to be ruled by a king or dictator, that we aspire to be a nation of laws and not of men, and that all citizens should have a voice in creating the laws we all live under
October 19, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Nothing could be more fundamentally and quintessentially American than to say that we don't want to be ruled by a king or dictator, that we aspire to be a nation of laws and not of men, and that all citizens should have a voice in creating the laws we all live under
There's absolutely no need to be laying off federal employees during the shutdown. They're already suffering enough because the politicians haven't been doing their job. But the layoffs are entirely on Trump, Vought, and the Republicans
October 10, 2025 at 6:33 PM
There's absolutely no need to be laying off federal employees during the shutdown. They're already suffering enough because the politicians haven't been doing their job. But the layoffs are entirely on Trump, Vought, and the Republicans
Ideally, every state should have an independent redistricting commission. But that's obviously not the world we live in, and the aim of the one-sided middle-of-the-decade redistricting currently under way in red states is to create permanently rigged elections and minority rule
September 29, 2025 at 5:34 PM
Ideally, every state should have an independent redistricting commission. But that's obviously not the world we live in, and the aim of the one-sided middle-of-the-decade redistricting currently under way in red states is to create permanently rigged elections and minority rule
Somehow ending the intelligence reports on future threats to the US doesn't make me feel more secure
September 26, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Somehow ending the intelligence reports on future threats to the US doesn't make me feel more secure
Another addition to the list of products it never occurred to me we needed: hard ice cream
September 23, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Another addition to the list of products it never occurred to me we needed: hard ice cream
Recent events have provided a crash course in who really believes in freedom of speech, and who is a poser who supports it only for themselves, but not for people who don't share their opinions
September 18, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Recent events have provided a crash course in who really believes in freedom of speech, and who is a poser who supports it only for themselves, but not for people who don't share their opinions
Heading at breakneck speed toward a broadcast universe in which Jimmy Fallon and the talking heads on Fox News are the only shows allowed on late night TV
September 17, 2025 at 11:40 PM
Heading at breakneck speed toward a broadcast universe in which Jimmy Fallon and the talking heads on Fox News are the only shows allowed on late night TV
The only ways to vanquish repellent ideas are through reasoned argument, or through mockery. Using violence just gives them the added strength of martyrdom.
September 11, 2025 at 10:27 PM
The only ways to vanquish repellent ideas are through reasoned argument, or through mockery. Using violence just gives them the added strength of martyrdom.
It has been mind-boggling to watch the Republican majorities in Congress and on the Supreme Court willingly collaborating in their own institutional suicide and their replacement by an all-powerful executive. All for the sake of a few crumbs from the oligarchs' table
September 10, 2025 at 4:57 PM
It has been mind-boggling to watch the Republican majorities in Congress and on the Supreme Court willingly collaborating in their own institutional suicide and their replacement by an all-powerful executive. All for the sake of a few crumbs from the oligarchs' table
It's divisive and even insulting to claim that race and gender have played no role in American society. Their impact is so obvious that no amount of whitewashing can cover it up
September 8, 2025 at 5:54 PM
It's divisive and even insulting to claim that race and gender have played no role in American society. Their impact is so obvious that no amount of whitewashing can cover it up
Start getting ready for frequent measles epidemics emanating from Florida and spreading across the nation
September 4, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Start getting ready for frequent measles epidemics emanating from Florida and spreading across the nation
As far as my tastes are concerned, McCabe and Mrs. Miller is about as perfect a piece of moviemaking as there has ever been
August 31, 2025 at 7:55 PM
As far as my tastes are concerned, McCabe and Mrs. Miller is about as perfect a piece of moviemaking as there has ever been
That's what I've always been missing at the Smithsonian--not enough displays about how great slavery was
August 20, 2025 at 11:33 PM
That's what I've always been missing at the Smithsonian--not enough displays about how great slavery was
Nobody's talking about the major staffing crisis that's going to hit local police forces when ICE starts hiring away tons of their officers by offering lavish salaries, $50,000 signing bonuses, etc.
August 13, 2025 at 5:57 PM
Nobody's talking about the major staffing crisis that's going to hit local police forces when ICE starts hiring away tons of their officers by offering lavish salaries, $50,000 signing bonuses, etc.
One violent crime in DC impacts a MAGA partisan: Send in the National Guard! Federalize the police!
Large violent mob overruns the US Capitol: Sits around for hours and watches it on TV; pardons for everybody
Large violent mob overruns the US Capitol: Sits around for hours and watches it on TV; pardons for everybody
August 11, 2025 at 4:31 PM
One violent crime in DC impacts a MAGA partisan: Send in the National Guard! Federalize the police!
Large violent mob overruns the US Capitol: Sits around for hours and watches it on TV; pardons for everybody
Large violent mob overruns the US Capitol: Sits around for hours and watches it on TV; pardons for everybody
It's a nice ego boost when I get a Tournament of Champions Final Jeopardy question that none of the finalists answered correctly (and say what you will about the French revolutionaries, they sure knew how to diss the French royals in a subtle but scathing way)
August 9, 2025 at 4:33 PM
It's a nice ego boost when I get a Tournament of Champions Final Jeopardy question that none of the finalists answered correctly (and say what you will about the French revolutionaries, they sure knew how to diss the French royals in a subtle but scathing way)