Russell Brandom
@russellbrandom.bsky.social
I want to speak very plainly to you, so that we are both comforted by the honesty.
russell.brandom@gmail.com
russell.brandom@gmail.com
Not sure AI is going to be able to fix this one
January 3, 2026 at 12:45 PM
Not sure AI is going to be able to fix this one
Reposted by Russell Brandom
Plausible pathway (from a month ago)
Plausible worst case scenario with Venezuela in four steps:
1. Rubio and Venezuelan exiles sell the idea of decapitation strikes against Maduro to Trump as the one big thing that solves Venezuela, cartels and Cuba for the US.
1. Rubio and Venezuelan exiles sell the idea of decapitation strikes against Maduro to Trump as the one big thing that solves Venezuela, cartels and Cuba for the US.
January 3, 2026 at 10:35 AM
Plausible pathway (from a month ago)
"Humorous character replacement is common in both ancient and modern memes." (from Sheirer's A History of Fake Things on the Internet)
January 1, 2026 at 10:59 PM
"Humorous character replacement is common in both ancient and modern memes." (from Sheirer's A History of Fake Things on the Internet)
Cat Le Bon is one the few false nepo babies
December 30, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Cat Le Bon is one the few false nepo babies
An absolutely unhinged font choice from the FBI FOIA office here
December 24, 2025 at 1:39 PM
An absolutely unhinged font choice from the FBI FOIA office here
My niece weighs in on the new Stereolab album (via @ebrandom.bsky.social): "This sounds like how NFTs look"
December 23, 2025 at 5:40 PM
My niece weighs in on the new Stereolab album (via @ebrandom.bsky.social): "This sounds like how NFTs look"
I defy you to look at the masthead of an actual publication and tell me that it is an inhospitable place for white men between the ages of 30 and 45
December 17, 2025 at 11:11 AM
I defy you to look at the masthead of an actual publication and tell me that it is an inhospitable place for white men between the ages of 30 and 45
Mamdani should invite Geese to Gracie Mansion, like a Tony Blair-Oasis kind of thing.
December 15, 2025 at 10:15 AM
Mamdani should invite Geese to Gracie Mansion, like a Tony Blair-Oasis kind of thing.
A very good Trollope sentence: "Who could lie basking in the cloisters of Salisbury, and gaze on Jewel's library, and that unequalled spire, without feeling that bishops should sometimes be rich!"
en.wikisource.org/wiki/Page%3A...
en.wikisource.org/wiki/Page%3A...
Page:The Warden.djvu/53 - Wikisource, the free online library
en.wikisource.org
December 12, 2025 at 9:40 AM
A very good Trollope sentence: "Who could lie basking in the cloisters of Salisbury, and gaze on Jewel's library, and that unequalled spire, without feeling that bishops should sometimes be rich!"
en.wikisource.org/wiki/Page%3A...
en.wikisource.org/wiki/Page%3A...
Reposted by Russell Brandom
Some people have asked what I mean when I talk about the need for anti-corruption reforms. Here are some ideas.
December 10, 2025 at 12:57 PM
Some people have asked what I mean when I talk about the need for anti-corruption reforms. Here are some ideas.
Twiggy is unusually interested in A Brighter Summer Day, possibly because of the long wide shots and clear visual language
December 10, 2025 at 1:38 PM
Twiggy is unusually interested in A Brighter Summer Day, possibly because of the long wide shots and clear visual language
Reposted by Russell Brandom
I am tired of South Africans who don't understand the values or traditions of this country moving here and wrecking the place.
December 8, 2025 at 6:07 PM
I am tired of South Africans who don't understand the values or traditions of this country moving here and wrecking the place.
Walt Whitman, that horniest of poets
It is in his walk .. the carriage of his neck .. the flex of his waist and knees .... dress does not hide him,
December 6, 2025 at 10:36 AM
Walt Whitman, that horniest of poets
The yearly onset of Christmas music in public places feels very different now that I know about the Christmas Adventurers
December 4, 2025 at 4:31 PM
The yearly onset of Christmas music in public places feels very different now that I know about the Christmas Adventurers
Babies’ most remarkable skill is the ability to go from directionless rage immediately to sleep, then wake up five minutes later and still be mad. There’s a lot to learn from there.
November 29, 2025 at 9:27 AM
Babies’ most remarkable skill is the ability to go from directionless rage immediately to sleep, then wake up five minutes later and still be mad. There’s a lot to learn from there.
Having a child has really made me appreciate the part in Hard Boiled when Chow Yun Fat tucks a baby into his jacket then shoots a bunch of ppl and jumps out a window
November 27, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Having a child has really made me appreciate the part in Hard Boiled when Chow Yun Fat tucks a baby into his jacket then shoots a bunch of ppl and jumps out a window
I liked the HBO show Task, but it would have been better if Ruffalo’s character were named John Task and if, before the main confrontation, he said something like, “lets take them to task”
November 27, 2025 at 3:28 AM
I liked the HBO show Task, but it would have been better if Ruffalo’s character were named John Task and if, before the main confrontation, he said something like, “lets take them to task”
Reposted by Russell Brandom
I wrote about the double-triple punishment given to an immigrant who had served his sentence for a serious crime, who was deported to a country where he was likely to be persecuted, and then quickly ejected from that country & rendered stateless.
nymag.com/intelligence...
nymag.com/intelligence...
What Happens When You Don’t Belong Anywhere?
More than 50 Bhutanese men with criminal records have been deported back to the country they fled — and swiftly deported out of it.
nymag.com
November 26, 2025 at 2:10 PM
I wrote about the double-triple punishment given to an immigrant who had served his sentence for a serious crime, who was deported to a country where he was likely to be persecuted, and then quickly ejected from that country & rendered stateless.
nymag.com/intelligence...
nymag.com/intelligence...
Bojack Horseman is really the neigh plus ultra of animal puns
November 24, 2025 at 12:09 PM
Bojack Horseman is really the neigh plus ultra of animal puns
Saw a Cybertruck in consular parking outside the Iraqi embassy
November 22, 2025 at 8:11 PM
Saw a Cybertruck in consular parking outside the Iraqi embassy
You need to be Howl-maxing. If you're not reading Allen Ginsberg's Howl at least twice a week, you're going to lose out to the people who are.
November 21, 2025 at 5:28 PM
You need to be Howl-maxing. If you're not reading Allen Ginsberg's Howl at least twice a week, you're going to lose out to the people who are.
Identifying AI-generated writing is not as hard as it looks techcrunch.com/2025/11/20/t...
The best guide to spotting AI writing comes from Wikipedia | TechCrunch
Wikipedia's guide to “Signs of AI writing” is a great resource for learning to spot LLM-generated prose.
techcrunch.com
November 20, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Identifying AI-generated writing is not as hard as it looks techcrunch.com/2025/11/20/t...
This whole Nuzzi situation is making me appreciate what a good writer Emily Gould is.
November 18, 2025 at 5:41 PM
This whole Nuzzi situation is making me appreciate what a good writer Emily Gould is.
Reposted by Russell Brandom
NEW: I tried to explain why there are so many victims of spyware, despite the fact that its makers have been telling us for years that the tech is only intended to be used in limited cases.
There are several reasons, including how the spyware systems are designed, and how powerful they are.
There are several reasons, including how the spyware systems are designed, and how powerful they are.
Why a lot of people are getting hacked with government spyware | TechCrunch
Government surveillance vendors want us to believe their spyware products are only used in limited and targeted operations against terrorists and serious criminals. That claim is increasingly difficul...
techcrunch.com
November 10, 2025 at 2:16 PM
NEW: I tried to explain why there are so many victims of spyware, despite the fact that its makers have been telling us for years that the tech is only intended to be used in limited cases.
There are several reasons, including how the spyware systems are designed, and how powerful they are.
There are several reasons, including how the spyware systems are designed, and how powerful they are.