@benfranklinsaid.bsky.social
The Founders are appalled.
Loves checks and balances, functional markets, boring banks, anticorruption and Lina Khan.
Loves checks and balances, functional markets, boring banks, anticorruption and Lina Khan.
Pinned
‘Let us take away American’s healthcare or we will starve them’ is not the negotiating position Republicans think it is
Reposted
Dolores Umbridge and Cornelius Fudge have summoned Bellatrix Lestrange to the Ministry of Magic.
November 13, 2025 at 12:16 AM
Dolores Umbridge and Cornelius Fudge have summoned Bellatrix Lestrange to the Ministry of Magic.
Reposted
turns out the emails we should have been reading in 2016 were from the NYT
November 12, 2025 at 10:34 PM
turns out the emails we should have been reading in 2016 were from the NYT
Reposted
Important to understand the Epstein stuff and the fascism and the corruption are, in a lot of ways, really all the same story from different angles: powerful men who can and do abuse vulnerable people around them because they can, and because systems of elite accountability catastrophically failed
November 12, 2025 at 9:14 PM
Important to understand the Epstein stuff and the fascism and the corruption are, in a lot of ways, really all the same story from different angles: powerful men who can and do abuse vulnerable people around them because they can, and because systems of elite accountability catastrophically failed
Reposted
The Trump regime is declaring that funding for the CFPB is illegal.
Remember: This is the agency that protects Americans from financial predators.
Anti-CFPB oligarchs, who spent millions to re-elect Trump, will now have an easier time padding their pockets by ripping you off.
Remember: This is the agency that protects Americans from financial predators.
Anti-CFPB oligarchs, who spent millions to re-elect Trump, will now have an easier time padding their pockets by ripping you off.
November 12, 2025 at 9:15 PM
The Trump regime is declaring that funding for the CFPB is illegal.
Remember: This is the agency that protects Americans from financial predators.
Anti-CFPB oligarchs, who spent millions to re-elect Trump, will now have an easier time padding their pockets by ripping you off.
Remember: This is the agency that protects Americans from financial predators.
Anti-CFPB oligarchs, who spent millions to re-elect Trump, will now have an easier time padding their pockets by ripping you off.
Gemini says that on June 3, 2019, Prince Andrew was accompanying Donald Trump and Melania Trump during their state visit to the United Kingdom…
So many people involved with the Trump administration had direct connections to Epstein for whatever reason.
So many people involved with the Trump administration had direct connections to Epstein for whatever reason.
November 12, 2025 at 10:03 PM
Gemini says that on June 3, 2019, Prince Andrew was accompanying Donald Trump and Melania Trump during their state visit to the United Kingdom…
So many people involved with the Trump administration had direct connections to Epstein for whatever reason.
So many people involved with the Trump administration had direct connections to Epstein for whatever reason.
Reposted
just opening up the new Epstein docs at random:
November 12, 2025 at 9:42 PM
just opening up the new Epstein docs at random:
Reposted
New from me: “working the refs” has come for Wikipedia. The same type of attacks alleging anti-conservative bias that right wing politicians have make about social media are coming for the encyclopedia — because of its critical role in shaping AI answer engines.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
The Right-Wing Attack on Wikipedia
The free internet encyclopedia is widely used to train AI. That’s why conservatives are trying to dethrone it.
www.theatlantic.com
November 12, 2025 at 9:41 PM
New from me: “working the refs” has come for Wikipedia. The same type of attacks alleging anti-conservative bias that right wing politicians have make about social media are coming for the encyclopedia — because of its critical role in shaping AI answer engines.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
Reposted
Apropos of nothing in particular:
Have any of you guys ever seen the movie "Wag the Dog"?
Have any of you guys ever seen the movie "Wag the Dog"?
The U.S. Navy’s largest aircraft carrier arrived in waters near Latin America on Tuesday, expanding the American military’s buildup as the Trump administration seeks to ratchet up the pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Arrival of U.S.’s Largest Warship Ratchets Up Pressure on Venezuela
The USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group is in waters off Latin America, as the buildup of U.S. forces continues in the Caribbean.
on.wsj.com
November 12, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Apropos of nothing in particular:
Have any of you guys ever seen the movie "Wag the Dog"?
Have any of you guys ever seen the movie "Wag the Dog"?
Reposted
Amazing kicker on @robwdavis.bsky.social’s story about Fox News’ misleading coverage of Portland before Trump sent in troops.
www.propublica.org/article/port...
www.propublica.org/article/port...
November 12, 2025 at 4:51 PM
Amazing kicker on @robwdavis.bsky.social’s story about Fox News’ misleading coverage of Portland before Trump sent in troops.
www.propublica.org/article/port...
www.propublica.org/article/port...
Reposted
the decision to really just abandon moderation and let it rip suggests that this is what meta wants for its platform. this is the final, idealized form of the product
The most horrifying AI slop of ICE raids you can possibly imagine is wildly viral on Facebook, collectively totaling tens of millions of views from a single account. First spotted by @chadloder.bsky.social
www.404media.co/ai-generated...
www.404media.co/ai-generated...
AI-Generated Videos of ICE Raids Are Wildly Viral on Facebook
An account is spamming horrific, dehumanizing videos of immigration enforcement because the Facebook algorithm is rewarding them for it.
www.404media.co
November 12, 2025 at 5:57 PM
the decision to really just abandon moderation and let it rip suggests that this is what meta wants for its platform. this is the final, idealized form of the product
Reposted
Trump's Pentagon name change could cost up to $2 billion www.nbcnews.com/politics/nat...
Trump's Pentagon name change could cost up to $2 billion
Officially changing the Department of Defense to the Department of War can only be done by Congress and would require updating thousands of signs, rewriting digital code and creating new letterheads,...
www.nbcnews.com
November 12, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Trump's Pentagon name change could cost up to $2 billion www.nbcnews.com/politics/nat...
Reposted
November 12, 2025 at 6:06 PM
Reposted
The Neo-Nazi Groyper War to capture the Republican Party is a good example of "network war." A group existing mostly online ("in the cloud) takes power in the real world. When it becomes powerful enough to also take land, the victor of a network war can become a network state. That's the 101 theory.
In 2022, Peter Thiel protégé Balaji Srinivasan—formerly of Andreessen Horowitz and Coinbase—envisioned a Second American Civil War.
He predicted it would be triggered by Bitcoin.
This is how it would work:
He predicted it would be triggered by Bitcoin.
This is how it would work:
November 11, 2025 at 8:38 PM
The Neo-Nazi Groyper War to capture the Republican Party is a good example of "network war." A group existing mostly online ("in the cloud) takes power in the real world. When it becomes powerful enough to also take land, the victor of a network war can become a network state. That's the 101 theory.
Reposted
Said Trump-supporting billionaire (Ellison) used his massive wealth to buy Paramount, turn CBS from a news org into right-wing propaganda, and get a big stake in TikTok USA. Plus bid for Warner Brothers - Discovery, which owns a lot of media properties (eg CNN), presumably to make it propaganda too.
Kind of wild that while food assistance was withheld from millions of families, one Trump-supporting billionaire (Ellison) saw his net worth grow more this year than the entire SNAP budget. And the YTD gains of the other four richest men would’ve fully covered salaries for all 2M federal employees.
November 12, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Said Trump-supporting billionaire (Ellison) used his massive wealth to buy Paramount, turn CBS from a news org into right-wing propaganda, and get a big stake in TikTok USA. Plus bid for Warner Brothers - Discovery, which owns a lot of media properties (eg CNN), presumably to make it propaganda too.
Reposted
NEW: 2020 footage said to be in 2025. A neighbor who keeps reappearing in the same clip, said to be on different days & months. A broadcast from elsewhere suggested as Portland.
How Fox News misled its viewership -- which may have included the president.
www.propublica.org/article/port...
How Fox News misled its viewership -- which may have included the president.
www.propublica.org/article/port...
“Riots Raging”: The Misleading Story Fox News Told About Portland Before Trump Sent Troops
After reviewing coverage from the network and hours of social media videos that preceded Trump’s decision, ProPublica found that Fox’s portrayal of “Portland rioters” routinely instigating violence wa...
www.propublica.org
November 12, 2025 at 3:44 PM
NEW: 2020 footage said to be in 2025. A neighbor who keeps reappearing in the same clip, said to be on different days & months. A broadcast from elsewhere suggested as Portland.
How Fox News misled its viewership -- which may have included the president.
www.propublica.org/article/port...
How Fox News misled its viewership -- which may have included the president.
www.propublica.org/article/port...
Reposted
Trump’s military takeover of US cities has already cost taxpayers nearly $500M
Trump’s military takeover of US cities has already cost taxpayers nearly $500M
www.independent.co.uk
November 12, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Trump’s military takeover of US cities has already cost taxpayers nearly $500M
Reposted
A judiciary afraid to state plain facts can’t safeguard the Constitution. That silence is evidence of judicial capture. Our assessment identifies this as a core indicator of authoritarian consolidation.
Every one of Trump’s 27 judicial nominees refused to say Trump lost in 2020. They all dodged with the same line: "President Biden was certified."
Josh Orton: "These were political loyalty tests. If they told the truth, Trump would pull their nominations."
19 now have federal lifetime seats.
Josh Orton: "These were political loyalty tests. If they told the truth, Trump would pull their nominations."
19 now have federal lifetime seats.
November 12, 2025 at 12:38 PM
A judiciary afraid to state plain facts can’t safeguard the Constitution. That silence is evidence of judicial capture. Our assessment identifies this as a core indicator of authoritarian consolidation.
Reposted
I think normal people may not know how totally unmoored Bartiromo has been during the Trump era. A brief thread.
‘We Don’t Know They Were Wrong’: Fox’s Maria Bartiromo Defends Trump Pardons by Re-Upping Stolen Election Conspiracy
‘We Don’t Know They Were Wrong’: Fox’s Maria Bartiromo Defends Trump Pardons by Re-Upping Stolen Election Conspiracy
Bartiromo argued that because of 2020 election mail-in voting “we don’t know” if those pardoned were “wrong” and there was “more investigation” to be done.
The post ‘We Don’t Know They Were Wrong’: Fox’s Maria Bartiromo Defends Trump Pardons by Re-Upping Stolen Election Conspiracy first appeared on Mediaite.
dlvr.it
November 10, 2025 at 5:25 PM
I think normal people may not know how totally unmoored Bartiromo has been during the Trump era. A brief thread.
Reposted
Even Trump’s allies are scrutinizing the administration’s relationship with Palantir.
“We’re headed to a surveillance state”: Right-wing figures and podcasters are protesting the Trump administration’s relationship with Palantir
The Trump administration’s deepening ties to data analysis firm Palantir has caused a surge in discontent in the conservative media sphere. Figures ranging from right-leaning podcasters like Theo Von ...
www.mediamatters.org
November 10, 2025 at 8:21 PM
Even Trump’s allies are scrutinizing the administration’s relationship with Palantir.
Reposted
Happy Veterans Day.
One-fourth of federal workers are veterans.
Trump has literally decimated the federal workforce over the last nine months. www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-...
One-fourth of federal workers are veterans.
Trump has literally decimated the federal workforce over the last nine months. www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-...
Trump Has Forced Out An Alarming Number Of Federal Workers — And Now We Have An Exact Number
“The performance of our government across the board is being diminished,” warned Max Stier, CEO of Partnership for Public Service.
www.huffpost.com
November 11, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Happy Veterans Day.
One-fourth of federal workers are veterans.
Trump has literally decimated the federal workforce over the last nine months. www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-...
One-fourth of federal workers are veterans.
Trump has literally decimated the federal workforce over the last nine months. www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-...
Reposted
We’re in the “data-centers-are-stealing-your-water” — tonight, on the local news — part of the AI cycle.
@conorsen.bsky.social
@conorsen.bsky.social
November 11, 2025 at 5:03 PM
We’re in the “data-centers-are-stealing-your-water” — tonight, on the local news — part of the AI cycle.
@conorsen.bsky.social
@conorsen.bsky.social
Reposted
let’s hope it’s finally breaking through to the average viewer/voter
November 11, 2025 at 5:05 PM
let’s hope it’s finally breaking through to the average viewer/voter
Reposted
This a big deal: "China’s carbon dioxide emissions have been flat or falling for 18 months"
China's economy has grown by ~5% in the last year, so this comprehensively debunks the idea (again) that emissions are tied to growth. So yes, faster progress needed, but this is how you turn the corner.
China's economy has grown by ~5% in the last year, so this comprehensively debunks the idea (again) that emissions are tied to growth. So yes, faster progress needed, but this is how you turn the corner.
China’s CO2 emissions have been flat or falling for past 18 months, analysis finds
World’s biggest polluter on track to hit peak emissions target early but miss goal for cutting carbon intensity
www.theguardian.com
November 11, 2025 at 9:20 AM
This a big deal: "China’s carbon dioxide emissions have been flat or falling for 18 months"
China's economy has grown by ~5% in the last year, so this comprehensively debunks the idea (again) that emissions are tied to growth. So yes, faster progress needed, but this is how you turn the corner.
China's economy has grown by ~5% in the last year, so this comprehensively debunks the idea (again) that emissions are tied to growth. So yes, faster progress needed, but this is how you turn the corner.