@donwest84.bsky.social
I wish it were as simple as "do good work and the people will listen." But the Dems have ceded so many states to the GOP and don't invest in a ground game. And for 50 years, the standing assumption has been that DC is corrupt and bad, and the Dems wasteful. We have a national dialog to fix.
November 16, 2025 at 5:30 AM
I wish it were as simple as "do good work and the people will listen." But the Dems have ceded so many states to the GOP and don't invest in a ground game. And for 50 years, the standing assumption has been that DC is corrupt and bad, and the Dems wasteful. We have a national dialog to fix.
I mean that there's a popular narrative casting both sides as essentially reactive to the other party. That assumes a lack of agency, a lack of purpose. There's tribalism in the mix, definitely, but there's more to the story than that.
November 16, 2025 at 3:23 AM
I mean that there's a popular narrative casting both sides as essentially reactive to the other party. That assumes a lack of agency, a lack of purpose. There's tribalism in the mix, definitely, but there's more to the story than that.
I was talking with a very conservative friend who was arguing that we should judge a culture (???) by its educational attainment and wealth. I asked if he felt we should kick out Alabama and Mississippi. He unironically suggested we apply something like reconstruction.
November 16, 2025 at 2:38 AM
I was talking with a very conservative friend who was arguing that we should judge a culture (???) by its educational attainment and wealth. I asked if he felt we should kick out Alabama and Mississippi. He unironically suggested we apply something like reconstruction.
I think there's a both/and. Dems are involved, but their only impact on the MAGA view was in releasing emails. There's an assumption that tribalism will make MAGA oppose anything the Dems support, which i think is reductionist. MAGA is in the GOP coalition, but coalitions splinter.
November 16, 2025 at 2:34 AM
I think there's a both/and. Dems are involved, but their only impact on the MAGA view was in releasing emails. There's an assumption that tribalism will make MAGA oppose anything the Dems support, which i think is reductionist. MAGA is in the GOP coalition, but coalitions splinter.
Insofar as communion as we understand it was invented by splitting the eucharist rite from the Satyr meal in order to give the wealthy cover for not feeding the poor (1 Corinthians 11), I generally assume denying communion is off the table. Unless, of course, the target is socially progressive.
November 16, 2025 at 1:20 AM
Insofar as communion as we understand it was invented by splitting the eucharist rite from the Satyr meal in order to give the wealthy cover for not feeding the poor (1 Corinthians 11), I generally assume denying communion is off the table. Unless, of course, the target is socially progressive.
Corporate media never owned those voters, and they're more anti-establishment than pro-Trump. They saw shenanigans in 2023, the establishment attacking the people's defender. This one, though, is Trump as the establishment in a conspiracy dear to them.
I don't know. That's my read on it.
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I don't know. That's my read on it.
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November 15, 2025 at 10:55 PM
Corporate media never owned those voters, and they're more anti-establishment than pro-Trump. They saw shenanigans in 2023, the establishment attacking the people's defender. This one, though, is Trump as the establishment in a conspiracy dear to them.
I don't know. That's my read on it.
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I don't know. That's my read on it.
2/2
I think it's important to remember where Trump’s base is. In 2021, corporate conservative media briefly swung away from him, but swung back because they needed the 1/3 of the GOP that believed the election was stolen.
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November 15, 2025 at 10:51 PM
I think it's important to remember where Trump’s base is. In 2021, corporate conservative media briefly swung away from him, but swung back because they needed the 1/3 of the GOP that believed the election was stolen.
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I'm not sure that's true. The corporate conservative media are totally silent on this, but far right provocateurs are vocal. That's swinging opinion independent of corporate or democratic efforts.
November 15, 2025 at 10:03 PM
I'm not sure that's true. The corporate conservative media are totally silent on this, but far right provocateurs are vocal. That's swinging opinion independent of corporate or democratic efforts.
I keep coming back to Watergate. Nixon was fine until opinion among the party base shifted. He resigned when enough GOP members of Congress followed the base. How does Trump lose his grip on the party? Hammer away on something that gets the base to turn on him. That seems to be Epstein.
It Took A Long Time For Republicans To Abandon Nixon
On July 23, 1974, Rep. Lawrence Hogan, Sr., a Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, bought airtime on TV networks across his home state of Maryland. He h…
fivethirtyeight.com
November 14, 2025 at 7:23 PM
I keep coming back to Watergate. Nixon was fine until opinion among the party base shifted. He resigned when enough GOP members of Congress followed the base. How does Trump lose his grip on the party? Hammer away on something that gets the base to turn on him. That seems to be Epstein.
I think this also speaks to the race to the bottom and the libertarian threats thereof. Moving a home, a community, or a business requires time and resources. The threat of a race to the bottom guts taxes and regulations before they're instituted. We need to call the bluff.
November 14, 2025 at 5:14 AM
I think this also speaks to the race to the bottom and the libertarian threats thereof. Moving a home, a community, or a business requires time and resources. The threat of a race to the bottom guts taxes and regulations before they're instituted. We need to call the bluff.
This seems like a good place to drop what may be my most controversial yet banal observation of the news.
November 14, 2025 at 5:10 AM
This seems like a good place to drop what may be my most controversial yet banal observation of the news.
The brilliant Man With A Plan is about an elderly man who runs for Congress for the good insurance.
This motivation is mentioned once because in America, mentioning that to get good insurance you need to be in Congress is banal.
This motivation is mentioned once because in America, mentioning that to get good insurance you need to be in Congress is banal.
Man with a Plan (1996) ⭐ 8.2 | Comedy
1h 29m
www.imdb.com
November 14, 2025 at 5:06 AM
The brilliant Man With A Plan is about an elderly man who runs for Congress for the good insurance.
This motivation is mentioned once because in America, mentioning that to get good insurance you need to be in Congress is banal.
This motivation is mentioned once because in America, mentioning that to get good insurance you need to be in Congress is banal.
We allow 10,000 EB-3 construction visas per year (resident, pathway to citizenship), and 66,000 H2-B visas (seasonal non-ag, including but not exclusively construction). We have 10x that working in construction. If we don't want undocumented laborers, we need to give them documents.
November 14, 2025 at 4:57 AM
We allow 10,000 EB-3 construction visas per year (resident, pathway to citizenship), and 66,000 H2-B visas (seasonal non-ag, including but not exclusively construction). We have 10x that working in construction. If we don't want undocumented laborers, we need to give them documents.
The Epstein letters were the top story in every outlet except on the right. Didn't appear on Fox, OAN, Newsmax, Red State, Breitbart.
Nixon fell when unbiased media turned conservative opinion. Right wing media was created to prevent Nixon 2.0. It's doing what it was made to do.
Nixon fell when unbiased media turned conservative opinion. Right wing media was created to prevent Nixon 2.0. It's doing what it was made to do.
November 14, 2025 at 4:45 AM
The Epstein letters were the top story in every outlet except on the right. Didn't appear on Fox, OAN, Newsmax, Red State, Breitbart.
Nixon fell when unbiased media turned conservative opinion. Right wing media was created to prevent Nixon 2.0. It's doing what it was made to do.
Nixon fell when unbiased media turned conservative opinion. Right wing media was created to prevent Nixon 2.0. It's doing what it was made to do.
Who created the conditions for runaway inflation by overheating the economy during a global shutdown that he mismanaged?
Who got that under control with a very rare and well executed soft landing?
Who wandered in to fuck it all up again?
Who got that under control with a very rare and well executed soft landing?
Who wandered in to fuck it all up again?
November 14, 2025 at 4:41 AM
Who created the conditions for runaway inflation by overheating the economy during a global shutdown that he mismanaged?
Who got that under control with a very rare and well executed soft landing?
Who wandered in to fuck it all up again?
Who got that under control with a very rare and well executed soft landing?
Who wandered in to fuck it all up again?
I don't think it's hard to understand that money visibly guides some actors, cruelty others, fear others, etc. What's confusing is how they ones focused on money throw their lot in with short termers instead of pushing harder for long term, predictable returns.
November 14, 2025 at 4:32 AM
I don't think it's hard to understand that money visibly guides some actors, cruelty others, fear others, etc. What's confusing is how they ones focused on money throw their lot in with short termers instead of pushing harder for long term, predictable returns.
Reposted
Honestly if billionaires and diehard MAGA people only cared about making money, we'd probably be in considerably less danger right now.
November 13, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Honestly if billionaires and diehard MAGA people only cared about making money, we'd probably be in considerably less danger right now.
AI can't replace good writing and art, but this is kinda genius. Star Trek's popularity is built on allowing the fan base to freely make fan fiction. It creates a shared sense of ownership and brand loyalty without competition. That's what it looks like Iger is doing with AI and Disney.
November 14, 2025 at 4:15 AM
AI can't replace good writing and art, but this is kinda genius. Star Trek's popularity is built on allowing the fan base to freely make fan fiction. It creates a shared sense of ownership and brand loyalty without competition. That's what it looks like Iger is doing with AI and Disney.
AI can't replace good writing and art, but this is kinda genius. Star Trek's popularity is built on allowing the fan base to freely make fan fiction. It creates a shared sense of ownership and brand loyalty without competition. That's what it looks like Iger is doing with AI and Disney.
November 14, 2025 at 4:11 AM
AI can't replace good writing and art, but this is kinda genius. Star Trek's popularity is built on allowing the fan base to freely make fan fiction. It creates a shared sense of ownership and brand loyalty without competition. That's what it looks like Iger is doing with AI and Disney.
I think it was Billy Joel who said when he finds himself mentally writing a shopping list while playing a song in concert he takes the song off his set list because he's over it and the audience deserves his best.
Or maybe i made it up. Can't find a quote.
Or maybe i made it up. Can't find a quote.
November 14, 2025 at 4:02 AM
I think it was Billy Joel who said when he finds himself mentally writing a shopping list while playing a song in concert he takes the song off his set list because he's over it and the audience deserves his best.
Or maybe i made it up. Can't find a quote.
Or maybe i made it up. Can't find a quote.
Like when Jethro Tull wrote Thick As A Brick as a parody of self-serious concept albums, but humorkess concept album fans thought it was the best example of the genre?
November 14, 2025 at 3:57 AM
Like when Jethro Tull wrote Thick As A Brick as a parody of self-serious concept albums, but humorkess concept album fans thought it was the best example of the genre?
In 1 Corinthians 11, Paul tells the church that because the rich aren't feeding the poor at communal meals, they should stop having communal meals and just do communion so as to stop the poor from being judgmental about it. That's why communion doesn't accompany a meal like the Jewish satyr.
a rainbow with the words " be more you know " and a star
ALT: a rainbow with the words " be more you know " and a star
media.tenor.com
November 14, 2025 at 12:21 AM
In 1 Corinthians 11, Paul tells the church that because the rich aren't feeding the poor at communal meals, they should stop having communal meals and just do communion so as to stop the poor from being judgmental about it. That's why communion doesn't accompany a meal like the Jewish satyr.
Every outlet is reporting on those emails except Fox, Newsmax, and OAN.
Murdoch started Fox News because Nixon was only forced to resign when GOP voters learned about Watergate, and he wanted to build a firewall.
Murdoch started Fox News because Nixon was only forced to resign when GOP voters learned about Watergate, and he wanted to build a firewall.
November 14, 2025 at 12:15 AM
Every outlet is reporting on those emails except Fox, Newsmax, and OAN.
Murdoch started Fox News because Nixon was only forced to resign when GOP voters learned about Watergate, and he wanted to build a firewall.
Murdoch started Fox News because Nixon was only forced to resign when GOP voters learned about Watergate, and he wanted to build a firewall.