Stephen L Cooley
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slcool.bsky.social
Stephen L Cooley
@slcool.bsky.social
As the world goes mad, I keep myself sane by reading, hiking and doing the best I can.

I respect science, journalism, and the pursuit of knowledge, truth and justice.

Born in NY🗽🇺🇸
Live & work in HK 🧧🇭🇰
Happily married 💕
💙💙💙

No DMs unless you know me 🙏🏼
Reposted by Stephen L Cooley
Rev. Jesse Jackson's "I *am* somebody..." remains one of the all-time great pieces of 20th century rhetoric / agitprop

And he could deliver it at a Black separatist meeting, the Democratic National Convention, or on god-blessed Sesame Street (see below 🥹)

RIP to the Voice of the Voiceless
February 17, 2026 at 11:29 AM
substack.com/@psychopete1...

I found this guide very helpful. Not too many surprises. The biggest ones for me?
❌The New Yorker (Conde Nast)
❌Etsy

Do we punish the journalists and sellers? 🤔

The most difficult to give up?
❌Apple (I have an iPhone)
❌WhatsApp (I use it a lot)
❌Starbucks (I ❤️ ☕️ ) 😬
Psycho Pete's Living Guide to Boycotting the Big Orange Menace
The beast eats money. Don't feed it with yours.
substack.com
February 17, 2026 at 10:44 AM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Round 2

Day 8: W-Z

Wallace-Wells, David. American journalist known for his writings on climate change and technology; NYTimes contributor; author of “The Uninhabitable Earth”

🌏

www.nytimes.com/2026/02/04/o...
Opinion | ICE’s New Surveillance State Isn’t Tracking Only Immigrants
www.nytimes.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:20 AM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Round 2

Day 7: S-V

Stanley, Jason. Professor, philosopher and writer; Author of “How Fascism Works” and “Erasing History: How Fascists Re-write the Pastvto Control the Future”

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
State violence against Black Americans laid the groundwork for fascism | Jason Stanley
Fascism feeds on the arbitrary killings that have long plagued the US. Ending the horror starts with abolishing ICE
www.theguardian.com
February 9, 2026 at 4:08 PM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Round 2

Day 6: P-R

Passi, Bob. Journalist and writer; publisher of Perspectives on Substack; author of “Saving Democracy: From the Warnings of 2016 to the Urgency of 2025”

Power to the People

open.substack.com/pub/bobpassi...
The Challenge
Preserving Democracy Under the Threat of Authoritarian Control
open.substack.com
February 8, 2026 at 12:27 PM
Reposted by Stephen L Cooley
Black History Month is a time to recognize the lived, shared experience of all Black folks who have fundamentally shaped, challenged, and ultimately strengthened America. It’s about taking an unvarnished look at the past so that we can create a better future.
February 1, 2026 at 5:09 PM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Round 2

Day 5: M-O

Mahdawi, Arwa. Op-Ed Columnist at The Guardian; author of “Strong Female Lead”

Shedding light on how the SAVE act will disenfranchise women and minorities.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
This one weird trick could stop US women from voting | Arwa Mahdawi
The Save Act – which would do the opposite of its title – could have a huge impact on the midterm elections
www.theguardian.com
February 7, 2026 at 10:25 AM
I listened to The Storm Before the Storm by Mike Duncan as an audiobook while reading the ebook.

Duncan chronicles the years 146-78 BC of the Roman Empire, a time of turmoil I knew little about before.

Now listening to The History of Rome, the author’s podcast. Very engaging.

#BookSky 📚
February 7, 2026 at 4:33 AM
Trump’s Stifling of Dissent Reaches a New Level www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Thank you, NYTimes, for continuing to monitor America’s slide toward Autocracy, although the estimates on some measures seem low to me.

The pot of water is heating up. 🐸
Opinion | ICE and Minnesota Have Pushed the U.S. Closer to Autocracy (Gift Article)
Measuring America’s slide toward democratic erosion.
www.nytimes.com
February 7, 2026 at 2:25 AM
Day 4: J-L

Kagan, Robert. American journalist and neo-conservative scholar; Author of “Rebellion: Donald Trump and the Antiliberal Tradition in America”

His recent article in The Atlantic is a must read.

www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
America vs. the World
President Trump wants to return to the 19th century’s international order. He will leave America less prosperous—and the whole world less secure.
www.theatlantic.com
February 6, 2026 at 11:23 AM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Round 2

Day 4: J-L

Jong-Fast, Molly. American journalist, novelist, and political commentator; Host of the Fast Polititics podcast

Here is her recent NYTimes piece on the Epstein files.

www.nytimes.com/2025/12/24/o...
Opinion | The Epstein Files Should Not Have Been Released This Way
www.nytimes.com
February 6, 2026 at 11:08 AM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Round 2

Day 3: G-I

Gorman, Amanda. American poet and activist; Author of “The Hill We Climb: Poems” and “Call Us What We Carry”

Her recent poems about Renee Good and Alex Pretti are quoted here.

slantbooks.org/close-readin...
Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Amanda Gorman’s Poems - Slant Books
Five years after reading her poem at President Biden’s Inauguration, Amanda Gorman offers us two new poems addressing public affairs—but now not in a hopeful time, but in a time of grief, fear, and ou...
slantbooks.org
February 5, 2026 at 1:43 PM
Project 2028 www.nytimes.com/2026/02/03/o...

Thomas Edsall of the NYTimes has begun an important conversation about 2028. I don’t agree with everything, but it’s a good start.

#Democracy
Opinion | Project 2028
www.nytimes.com
February 5, 2026 at 11:22 AM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Round 2 for those I missed

Day 2: D-F

Diamond, Larry. Professor, writer and founding coeditor of the Journal of Democracy; author of “Ill Winds”

#Democracy

thedispatch.com/debates/rank...
The Case for Making Every Vote Count
Ranked-choice voting in presidential primaries would boost candidates with broad electoral appeal.
thedispatch.com
February 4, 2026 at 12:48 PM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

I’m going back to the beginning to cover those I missed the first time around…

Day 1: A-C

Acosta, Jim. American broadcast journalist; author of “Enemy of the People”; formerly on CNN, now on Substack

substack.com/@jimacosta?r...
Jim Acosta | Substack
Host: “The Jim Acosta Show” / Independent Journalist / former Chief WH Correspondent / author of NYT Bestseller: “The Enemy of the People: A Dangerous Time to Tell the Truth in America”
substack.com
February 3, 2026 at 10:32 AM
The New Yorker (@newyorker)
Today’s Daily Cartoon, by Matt Reuter.
substack.com
February 1, 2026 at 8:20 AM
Reposted by Stephen L Cooley
“I hope my music and music films will ease some of the unwarranted stress and threats you are experiencing from our unpopular and hopefully temporary government.” Neil Young
www.theguardian.com/music/2026/j...
Neil Young gifts Greenland free access to his music and withdraws it from Amazon over Trump
The singer-songwriter has donated access to his music archive to ‘ease the unwarranted stress and threats’ Greenlanders have experienced from the US government
www.theguardian.com
January 27, 2026 at 3:36 PM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Day 26: The Letter Z

Zakaria, Fareed. Indian-born American journalist, political commentator and author; Host of Fareed Zakaria GPS on CNN; Weekly columnist for Bezo’s WaPo (💩)

#Democracy

www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Opinion | The real ‘civilizational erasure’ is happening in America
Trump’s expansion of state power undermines the West’s core achievement: limits on authority.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 31, 2026 at 7:34 AM
Add your name to the petition NOW and show that Americans are in solidarity with the people of Greenland in opposing any attempts to buy or invade their home. sign.moveon.org/petitions/am...
Tell Trump: Hands Off Greenland!
The people of Greenland oppose a U.S. takeover, and so do everyday Americans. Add your name to the petition NOW and show that we are in solidarity with the people of Greenland in opposing any attempts...
sign.moveon.org
January 30, 2026 at 12:57 PM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Day 25: Y

Young, Cathy. Russian-Jewish-American journalist; Writer for The Bulwark; Newsday columnist; Reason contributing editor

I used to respect Niall Ferguson. Shameless Trump enabler!

open.substack.com/pub/thebulwa...
How Niall Ferguson Learned to Love Trump
… and snagged a pundit slot at CBS News in the Bari Weiss makeover.
open.substack.com
January 30, 2026 at 12:44 PM
Nation's Dogs Call for Noem to be Fired
“We knew this wouldn’t end well.”
open.substack.com
January 29, 2026 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by Stephen L Cooley
Though their usual style is humor, this time, the Marsh family deals with a serious and tragic moment in our history. Their adaptation is beautiful.
#USDemocracy #Voices4Victory
"Minnesota" - Marsh Family adaptation of "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair)"
YouTube video by Marsh Family
youtube.com
January 29, 2026 at 6:04 AM
Defending Democracy A-Z: Writers who keep us well-informed and sane

Day 24: X

I couldn’t find a single writer or organization covering democracy whose name begins with X…

X is for xenophobic
X killed Twitter
XXX is poison

X must be the least democratic letter in the alphabet

Stay tuned for Y…
January 29, 2026 at 1:31 PM
substack.com/@krassenstei...

No ambiguity in these lyrics! A powerful tribute from The Boss to Renee Good and Alex Pretti and the People of Minneapolis 💙🙏🏼💙
Krassenstein (@krassenstein)
BREAKING: Music legend Bruce Springsteen just released this incredible song that will be sure to piss Trump off beyond belief. “Streets of Minneapolis”. He wrote this song about Alex Pretti and Re...
substack.com
January 28, 2026 at 11:45 PM