Simian Silverback
@simiansilverback.bsky.social
I don't like tooting my own horn, but I am a great ape. I have written two books. The first was a novel. The second analyzed litigation challenging the 2020 election. Both were written using a pseudonym because of pervasive bias against gorillas.
Here's an objectively true fact: If you kill enough people based upon confidential information, some of them will be innocent of any wrongdoing.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/13/w...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/13/w...
Family of Fisherman Killed in U.S. Military Strike Says It Wants Justice
www.nytimes.com
November 14, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Here's an objectively true fact: If you kill enough people based upon confidential information, some of them will be innocent of any wrongdoing.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/13/w...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/13/w...
Dems should support those who felt they had to save hungry Americans held hostage by Trump and Johnson. THEY are the villains.
Dems disagree about the shutdown. But is it so hard to agree on how to spin the event? On TV I see Dem leaders talk about things other than the GOP hostages. That's dumb.
Dems disagree about the shutdown. But is it so hard to agree on how to spin the event? On TV I see Dem leaders talk about things other than the GOP hostages. That's dumb.
November 11, 2025 at 8:45 AM
Dems should support those who felt they had to save hungry Americans held hostage by Trump and Johnson. THEY are the villains.
Dems disagree about the shutdown. But is it so hard to agree on how to spin the event? On TV I see Dem leaders talk about things other than the GOP hostages. That's dumb.
Dems disagree about the shutdown. But is it so hard to agree on how to spin the event? On TV I see Dem leaders talk about things other than the GOP hostages. That's dumb.
Two stories pain a picture. In the first, Trump argues that a Walmart ad proves he has conquered inflation. In the second, Walmart prices have risen 5.3%.
The thing is, people don't need that second story.
They know.
stocks.apple.com/AUw1TMHdYSDq...
stocks.apple.com/AN7wsCGSHSgS...
The thing is, people don't need that second story.
They know.
stocks.apple.com/AUw1TMHdYSDq...
stocks.apple.com/AN7wsCGSHSgS...
November 8, 2025 at 7:12 AM
Two stories pain a picture. In the first, Trump argues that a Walmart ad proves he has conquered inflation. In the second, Walmart prices have risen 5.3%.
The thing is, people don't need that second story.
They know.
stocks.apple.com/AUw1TMHdYSDq...
stocks.apple.com/AN7wsCGSHSgS...
The thing is, people don't need that second story.
They know.
stocks.apple.com/AUw1TMHdYSDq...
stocks.apple.com/AN7wsCGSHSgS...
RFKjr sometimes speaks about the obesity epidemic in the US. Good for him.
Unfortunately, he spends most of his time curating evidence to support debunked claims about autism.
This article explores what can be done when a gov't is serious about health.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/o...
Unfortunately, he spends most of his time curating evidence to support debunked claims about autism.
This article explores what can be done when a gov't is serious about health.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/o...
Opinion | The French Secret to Healthier Eating
www.nytimes.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:32 AM
RFKjr sometimes speaks about the obesity epidemic in the US. Good for him.
Unfortunately, he spends most of his time curating evidence to support debunked claims about autism.
This article explores what can be done when a gov't is serious about health.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/o...
Unfortunately, he spends most of his time curating evidence to support debunked claims about autism.
This article explores what can be done when a gov't is serious about health.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/o...
Bret Stephens makes some great points, but he also complains that Britain’s NHS "gobbles up roughly one third of government spending." But in the US, Americans spend $4.9T on health care, which would be 72% of the US $6.75T budget.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/04/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/04/o...
Opinion | Do Dumb Ideas Ever Die?
www.nytimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 8:32 AM
Bret Stephens makes some great points, but he also complains that Britain’s NHS "gobbles up roughly one third of government spending." But in the US, Americans spend $4.9T on health care, which would be 72% of the US $6.75T budget.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/04/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/04/o...
This good Atlantic article would have been better had Nichols explained that toddlers are in gov't because Trump prizes loyalty (to him) above competence. Incompetence leads to bad governance. Thus, Trump's corruption leads a flailing economy and jeopardizes nat'l security, not just crass optics.
A Confederacy of Toddlers
The Trump administration is a regime of troubled children.
www.theatlantic.com
November 4, 2025 at 8:50 AM
This good Atlantic article would have been better had Nichols explained that toddlers are in gov't because Trump prizes loyalty (to him) above competence. Incompetence leads to bad governance. Thus, Trump's corruption leads a flailing economy and jeopardizes nat'l security, not just crass optics.
Maybe economic literacy for the masses is unrealistic. Even elite journalists still inaccurately refer to tariffs as "taxes on major U.S. trading partners," rather than "taxes on American importers."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/u...
Trump’s Power Faces Pressure Test in Court and at Ballot Box
www.nytimes.com
November 4, 2025 at 5:21 AM
Maybe economic literacy for the masses is unrealistic. Even elite journalists still inaccurately refer to tariffs as "taxes on major U.S. trading partners," rather than "taxes on American importers."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/u...
Watch Maher treat a "documentary" about UFOs as though it proves something.
Maher mocks anyone who, confronted with the inexplicable, invokes God. But, he sees video that hasn't been explained and he thinks it reasonable to invoke "aliens."
It's the same thing.
Maher mocks anyone who, confronted with the inexplicable, invokes God. But, he sees video that hasn't been explained and he thinks it reasonable to invoke "aliens."
It's the same thing.
#StartTheClock: Tonight's episode of Real Time with Bill Maher feat. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Michael Moynihan and #TheAgeOfDisclosure Director Dan Farah is now on @hbomax.bsky.social!
Watch the conversation continue after the show on #RTOvertime: youtu.be/-gkc495pzts?...
Watch the conversation continue after the show on #RTOvertime: youtu.be/-gkc495pzts?...
November 1, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Watch Maher treat a "documentary" about UFOs as though it proves something.
Maher mocks anyone who, confronted with the inexplicable, invokes God. But, he sees video that hasn't been explained and he thinks it reasonable to invoke "aliens."
It's the same thing.
Maher mocks anyone who, confronted with the inexplicable, invokes God. But, he sees video that hasn't been explained and he thinks it reasonable to invoke "aliens."
It's the same thing.
The US economy depends upon population growth. Growth in the US (and Europe) will depend on immigration. Trump is doing everything he can to make the US unattractive to bright, hard-working, foreigners.
You can do the math.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
You can do the math.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
America’s Impending Population Collapse
This year, for the first time in nearly a century, more foreign-born people will likely leave the United States than will enter.
www.theatlantic.com
October 30, 2025 at 4:22 PM
The US economy depends upon population growth. Growth in the US (and Europe) will depend on immigration. Trump is doing everything he can to make the US unattractive to bright, hard-working, foreigners.
You can do the math.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
You can do the math.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
Every time I hear Mike Johnson talk about protestors I think about this scene.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=crrp...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=crrp...
bananas
YouTube video by dstageman
www.youtube.com
October 27, 2025 at 5:42 AM
Every time I hear Mike Johnson talk about protestors I think about this scene.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=crrp...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=crrp...
Trump describes his meeting with Putin. Putin lavishes praise on Trump and says he wants to do business with the USA. From this Trump concludes "great progress" was made toward ending the war with Ukraine.
Could it possibly be more clear that Trump is being played for a fool, and likes it?
Could it possibly be more clear that Trump is being played for a fool, and likes it?
“Trump is gonna give Ukraine tomahawks!”
Nope. Just another TACOOOOO
Nope. Just another TACOOOOO
October 16, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Trump describes his meeting with Putin. Putin lavishes praise on Trump and says he wants to do business with the USA. From this Trump concludes "great progress" was made toward ending the war with Ukraine.
Could it possibly be more clear that Trump is being played for a fool, and likes it?
Could it possibly be more clear that Trump is being played for a fool, and likes it?
This editorial selectively pulls facts out of context. E.g., it says Goldman's prediction was way off. But what it said was, "high tariffs don’t normally cause recessions, but unpredictable tariffs . . . might." And the claim that tariffs have gov't awash in money? The deficit is UP.
Opinion | Economists were wrong about tariffs. They need to figure out why.
They’re becoming as useless as political pollsters.
wapo.st
October 11, 2025 at 3:36 PM
This editorial selectively pulls facts out of context. E.g., it says Goldman's prediction was way off. But what it said was, "high tariffs don’t normally cause recessions, but unpredictable tariffs . . . might." And the claim that tariffs have gov't awash in money? The deficit is UP.
It's a tough balance. Crack down on fraud and abuse and invariably some with legit claims will be caught in the crossfire. But the VA seems to be the one place where politicians would rather tolerate fraud (and abuse) than institute reasonable checks and balances.
wapo.st/4qaMv0Q
wapo.st/4qaMv0Q
VA’s disability program is an ‘honor system.’ These veterans are defrauding it.
Post investigation finds VA’s $193 billion disability program has turned into a rich target for fraudsters. Some fake blindness or paralysis to get as much as $1 million.
wapo.st
October 11, 2025 at 2:34 PM
It's a tough balance. Crack down on fraud and abuse and invariably some with legit claims will be caught in the crossfire. But the VA seems to be the one place where politicians would rather tolerate fraud (and abuse) than institute reasonable checks and balances.
wapo.st/4qaMv0Q
wapo.st/4qaMv0Q
The Cato Institute was founded by, among others, Charles Koch.
New from me at Cato: I go through the numerous and massive First Amendment and academic-freedom violations of Trump's proffered "compact" with universities and then talk about the mechanism by which it would be enforced, by way of what I describe as a "retroactive push-button guillotine."
Universities Must Defend Their Independence by Rejecting Trump's "Compact"
The Trump administration has proffered a “compact” to universities that would require them to surrender their independence and academic freedom. How many First Amendment violations can we identify in ...
www.cato.org
October 11, 2025 at 1:17 PM
The Cato Institute was founded by, among others, Charles Koch.
Even the Wall Street Journal warns that Trump's economic policies are not sustainable.
www.wsj.com/economy/fede...
www.wsj.com/economy/fede...
Tariffs Are Way Up. Interest on Debt Tops $1 Trillion. And DOGE Didn’t Do Much.
The books have closed on the U.S. government’s fiscal 2025. Here’s what has changed about the federal budget—and what hasn’t.
www.wsj.com
October 9, 2025 at 6:43 PM
Even the Wall Street Journal warns that Trump's economic policies are not sustainable.
www.wsj.com/economy/fede...
www.wsj.com/economy/fede...
Noble Gas
I previously promised to write about Arundel Castle. I have been bombarded with cards and letters, hounding me for that report. Obviously, I am lying. People want to hear a tourist describe his castle trip about as much as Bluto welcomed a 1960s beatnik to a toga party.
I previously promised to write about Arundel Castle. I have been bombarded with cards and letters, hounding me for that report. Obviously, I am lying. People want to hear a tourist describe his castle trip about as much as Bluto welcomed a 1960s beatnik to a toga party.
Noble Gas
I previously promised to write about Arundel Castle. I have been bombarded with cards and letters, hounding me for that report. Obviously, I am lying. People want to hear a tourist describe his castle trip about as much as Bluto welcomed a 1960s beatnik to a toga party.
letsmoseyon.com
October 9, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Noble Gas
I previously promised to write about Arundel Castle. I have been bombarded with cards and letters, hounding me for that report. Obviously, I am lying. People want to hear a tourist describe his castle trip about as much as Bluto welcomed a 1960s beatnik to a toga party.
I previously promised to write about Arundel Castle. I have been bombarded with cards and letters, hounding me for that report. Obviously, I am lying. People want to hear a tourist describe his castle trip about as much as Bluto welcomed a 1960s beatnik to a toga party.
About 90 million people have immigrated to the US since the Civil War.
Apparently they and their descendants are less "American" than the people who got here before them.
I still do not understand the explanation for that.
www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
Apparently they and their descendants are less "American" than the people who got here before them.
I still do not understand the explanation for that.
www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
Are You a ‘Heritage American’?
Why some on the right want to know if your ancestors were here during the Civil War
www.theatlantic.com
October 8, 2025 at 4:51 PM
About 90 million people have immigrated to the US since the Civil War.
Apparently they and their descendants are less "American" than the people who got here before them.
I still do not understand the explanation for that.
www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
Apparently they and their descendants are less "American" than the people who got here before them.
I still do not understand the explanation for that.
www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
I posted on social media an article about Trump saying on Truth Social that henceforth anyone who burns a flag will be sentenced to a year in prison. I noted that Trump must be delusional to think he can legislate.
MAGA response: "But flag burning is very bad."
The don't get it. They never will.
MAGA response: "But flag burning is very bad."
The don't get it. They never will.
October 7, 2025 at 10:46 AM
I posted on social media an article about Trump saying on Truth Social that henceforth anyone who burns a flag will be sentenced to a year in prison. I noted that Trump must be delusional to think he can legislate.
MAGA response: "But flag burning is very bad."
The don't get it. They never will.
MAGA response: "But flag burning is very bad."
The don't get it. They never will.
Dems (correctly) object that these are not normal times. This, they say, justifies a gov't shutdown. But their stated aim, to save health care subsidies, concerns a normal policy disagreement.
It does not address the problem that makes these times abnormal, and dangerous.
Political malpractice.
It does not address the problem that makes these times abnormal, and dangerous.
Political malpractice.
Here’s How Trump Loses the Shutdown
God help us but Gavin Newsom is the only Democrat who understands power.
www.thebulwark.com
October 5, 2025 at 11:47 AM
Dems (correctly) object that these are not normal times. This, they say, justifies a gov't shutdown. But their stated aim, to save health care subsidies, concerns a normal policy disagreement.
It does not address the problem that makes these times abnormal, and dangerous.
Political malpractice.
It does not address the problem that makes these times abnormal, and dangerous.
Political malpractice.
The cost to sit in the nose bleed section of the Super Bowl is about $1,000. Kristi Noem thinks it will be populated by undocumented aliens -- you know, folks who take poor-paying jobs so they can live under the radar.
The country is being run by morons.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/04/a...
The country is being run by morons.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/04/a...
Kristi Noem Says ICE Will Be ‘All Over’ the Super Bowl
www.nytimes.com
October 5, 2025 at 10:52 AM
The cost to sit in the nose bleed section of the Super Bowl is about $1,000. Kristi Noem thinks it will be populated by undocumented aliens -- you know, folks who take poor-paying jobs so they can live under the radar.
The country is being run by morons.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/04/a...
The country is being run by morons.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/04/a...
The president apparently believes he can create criminal statutes by executive order.
I would love one of his supporters to explain why this is not persuasive evidence that Trump has completely lost his mind.
www.foxnews.com/politics/tru...
I would love one of his supporters to explain why this is not persuasive evidence that Trump has completely lost his mind.
www.foxnews.com/politics/tru...
Trump says American flag burners will be ‘immediately arrested’ under executive order
President Donald Trump said American flag burners would be arrested and face a year in prison in a Truth Social post citing his August executive order on flag desecration.
www.foxnews.com
October 4, 2025 at 12:37 PM
The president apparently believes he can create criminal statutes by executive order.
I would love one of his supporters to explain why this is not persuasive evidence that Trump has completely lost his mind.
www.foxnews.com/politics/tru...
I would love one of his supporters to explain why this is not persuasive evidence that Trump has completely lost his mind.
www.foxnews.com/politics/tru...