Ben Smith (he/him/any)
@fishetdek.bsky.social
Personal.
Gamer, reader, cat parent, partner.
When in doubt, ask Hoid.
Be honest with yourself and ask a lot of questions.
Gamer, reader, cat parent, partner.
When in doubt, ask Hoid.
Be honest with yourself and ask a lot of questions.
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
I’ll just say, you are more than welcome to get a paid subscription to Law Dork, where I actually do journalism, rather than paying Lizza to do this shit. www.lawdork.com/blackfriday
the last Lizza post ended on a cliffhanger where Lizza teased a recording of Trump talking about the assassination attempt that would potentially "shatter our understanding of recent history." in the latest drop he reveals that he doesn't know what the recording was and also it has been destroyed.
December 1, 2025 at 9:27 PM
I’ll just say, you are more than welcome to get a paid subscription to Law Dork, where I actually do journalism, rather than paying Lizza to do this shit. www.lawdork.com/blackfriday
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
The guy shot two random people with a gun, I don't think you can say he wasn't assimilating into our culture
Stephen Miller is now arguing that assimilation is fundamentally impossible and that certain cultures are not compatible with Western civilization
November 28, 2025 at 3:23 PM
The guy shot two random people with a gun, I don't think you can say he wasn't assimilating into our culture
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
The DHS account continues to show the Trump regime’s true colors
November 28, 2025 at 9:22 PM
The DHS account continues to show the Trump regime’s true colors
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
JP Morgan analysts calculated "AI products would have to create an additional $650 billion a year, indefinitely, to give investors a reasonable 10% annual return. That’s more than 150% of Apple’s yearly revenue, and a far cry from OpenAI’s current revenue of about $20 billion a year." (🎁)
When AI Hype Meets AI Reality: A Reckoning in 6 Charts
Record capital expenditures and data-center planning are running up against the ground truths of physical infrastructure.
www.wsj.com
November 14, 2025 at 12:25 PM
JP Morgan analysts calculated "AI products would have to create an additional $650 billion a year, indefinitely, to give investors a reasonable 10% annual return. That’s more than 150% of Apple’s yearly revenue, and a far cry from OpenAI’s current revenue of about $20 billion a year." (🎁)
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
We have had enough winning.
by Senate Democrats
by Senate Democrats
November 10, 2025 at 12:47 PM
We have had enough winning.
by Senate Democrats
by Senate Democrats
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Rep. Yassamin Ansari has set up a table and this sign outside Speaker Johnson’s office.
November 6, 2025 at 6:22 PM
Rep. Yassamin Ansari has set up a table and this sign outside Speaker Johnson’s office.
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Mamdani won. All Virginia won. Supreme Court of Pennsylvania won. Tariffs (probably) lost.
I… am very close to having… hope. Which is fucking dangerous.
I… am very close to having… hope. Which is fucking dangerous.
November 5, 2025 at 7:08 PM
Mamdani won. All Virginia won. Supreme Court of Pennsylvania won. Tariffs (probably) lost.
I… am very close to having… hope. Which is fucking dangerous.
I… am very close to having… hope. Which is fucking dangerous.
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
refuse to add context to this
November 5, 2025 at 5:03 PM
refuse to add context to this
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
The factional grifters will hate this, but the Mamdani-Spanberger-Sherrill axis actually suggests the outlines of a broad, emerging Dem coalition organized around both anti-Trump *and* affordability politics, not a party bitterly divided against itself.
These big wins will embolden Dems to take on Trump's lawbreaking and show there's a price for GOP enabling of him. Folks hate to hear this, but normal patterns are asserting themselves: Liberalism isn't dead, Rs are likely to lose in 2026, and Trump is really unpopular, not a magical exception.
November 5, 2025 at 2:48 AM
The factional grifters will hate this, but the Mamdani-Spanberger-Sherrill axis actually suggests the outlines of a broad, emerging Dem coalition organized around both anti-Trump *and* affordability politics, not a party bitterly divided against itself.
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Announcers: "It's the Battle of the Connors here in Edmonton tonight!"
Frankie Nazar:
Frankie Nazar:
a bald man says " i took that personally "
ALT: a bald man says " i took that personally "
media.tenor.com
November 2, 2025 at 2:31 AM
Announcers: "It's the Battle of the Connors here in Edmonton tonight!"
Frankie Nazar:
Frankie Nazar:
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
From @sludge.bsky.social & @moreperfectunion.bsky.social — “TRUMP’S CORPORATE COLLUDERS… corporations circumvent campaign finance laws to buy favors... We analyzed 150+ top donors to Trump's inauguration fund and ballroom to figure out what they got in return.” perfectunion.us/trumps-corpo...
October 29, 2025 at 4:35 PM
From @sludge.bsky.social & @moreperfectunion.bsky.social — “TRUMP’S CORPORATE COLLUDERS… corporations circumvent campaign finance laws to buy favors... We analyzed 150+ top donors to Trump's inauguration fund and ballroom to figure out what they got in return.” perfectunion.us/trumps-corpo...
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Ellis: "If they are using tear gas, they better be able to back it up."
"And if they can't, then they will lose that as something they can use." @wttw.bsky.social
"And if they can't, then they will lose that as something they can use." @wttw.bsky.social
October 28, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Ellis: "If they are using tear gas, they better be able to back it up."
"And if they can't, then they will lose that as something they can use." @wttw.bsky.social
"And if they can't, then they will lose that as something they can use." @wttw.bsky.social
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Thank you, Chicago.
October 25, 2025 at 1:31 AM
Thank you, Chicago.
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Here's a photo of my friend and colleague, Jorge Bautista, getting shot in the face with a flashbang grenade. The ICE Agent is so afraid of Jorge (who was posing no threat) that he has wet himself. Please share this photo. Everyone needs to know what cowards ICE agents are.
October 23, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Here's a photo of my friend and colleague, Jorge Bautista, getting shot in the face with a flashbang grenade. The ICE Agent is so afraid of Jorge (who was posing no threat) that he has wet himself. Please share this photo. Everyone needs to know what cowards ICE agents are.
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
“oh so you think the east wing being demolished is worse than-“ it’s a synecdoche, man. a visual metaphor. there’s a reason the aliens in Independence Day don’t aim a huge laser at SNAP benefits
October 23, 2025 at 6:04 PM
“oh so you think the east wing being demolished is worse than-“ it’s a synecdoche, man. a visual metaphor. there’s a reason the aliens in Independence Day don’t aim a huge laser at SNAP benefits
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Brassica oleracea has entered the chat.
so no one was going to tell me that mountain lions and cougars are the same animal? as are pumas? and panthers?????????
October 13, 2025 at 3:20 AM
Brassica oleracea has entered the chat.
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
There is no need to invoke the 25th Amendment. I was always this way.
by Stephen Miller
by Stephen Miller
October 12, 2025 at 5:15 PM
There is no need to invoke the 25th Amendment. I was always this way.
by Stephen Miller
by Stephen Miller
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
It's interesting seeing the different ways resistance has formed in different cities. Los Angeles Organized, Chicago Radicalized, and Portland Got Weird as Fuck. All 3 have had success unifying their respective cities.
I guess my point is there are multiple paths to ungovernability.
I guess my point is there are multiple paths to ungovernability.
October 8, 2025 at 7:42 PM
It's interesting seeing the different ways resistance has formed in different cities. Los Angeles Organized, Chicago Radicalized, and Portland Got Weird as Fuck. All 3 have had success unifying their respective cities.
I guess my point is there are multiple paths to ungovernability.
I guess my point is there are multiple paths to ungovernability.
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
If you come for my people, you come through me.
October 8, 2025 at 6:00 PM
If you come for my people, you come through me.
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
This is the lesson of 2025
he's going to come after you either way, so you might as well act with integrity
October 9, 2025 at 12:50 AM
This is the lesson of 2025
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Can’t decide what to buy on Prime Day?
Try: absolutely nothing, and then go support indie bookstores instead 📚
Try: absolutely nothing, and then go support indie bookstores instead 📚
October 7, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Can’t decide what to buy on Prime Day?
Try: absolutely nothing, and then go support indie bookstores instead 📚
Try: absolutely nothing, and then go support indie bookstores instead 📚
Reposted by Ben Smith (he/him/any)
Every few months now I re-read this "Who Goes Nazi?" piece from 1941 and am blown away by how it captures the people we are dealing with 80 years later.
harpers.org/archive/1941...
harpers.org/archive/1941...
Who Goes Nazi?, by Dorothy Thompson
harpers.org
October 1, 2025 at 11:59 PM
Every few months now I re-read this "Who Goes Nazi?" piece from 1941 and am blown away by how it captures the people we are dealing with 80 years later.
harpers.org/archive/1941...
harpers.org/archive/1941...