Mike Baltar
@mikebaltar.bsky.social
I'm a writer and environmentally minded fellow who doesn't like social media but feel like I have to raise my voice. Bernie Sanders has it right.
Expect a book eventually, but politics, poetry, baking, and video games in the meantime
Expect a book eventually, but politics, poetry, baking, and video games in the meantime
I don't think they're big enough
November 23, 2025 at 3:45 PM
I don't think they're big enough
100% agree. But bluesky should also have this feature.
November 23, 2025 at 3:37 PM
100% agree. But bluesky should also have this feature.
It's funny. But it's also really not. Good on James.
November 20, 2025 at 3:11 PM
It's funny. But it's also really not. Good on James.
It's making them look much worse than clowns.
November 20, 2025 at 2:55 PM
It's making them look much worse than clowns.
I would add exploitation to the list
November 8, 2025 at 2:52 PM
I would add exploitation to the list
A good step, but wake me when the supreme court weighs in.
November 8, 2025 at 1:31 AM
A good step, but wake me when the supreme court weighs in.
SSNs are unfit for all the purposes they've been put to. We need a proper ID system with better safeguards.
November 1, 2025 at 2:41 PM
SSNs are unfit for all the purposes they've been put to. We need a proper ID system with better safeguards.
In other breaking news, water is wet
October 20, 2025 at 11:20 PM
In other breaking news, water is wet
Bit of a leapords eating people's faces moment for any Trump voters who voted for him because they hate politics. Sorry, but you voted for the most political politician of them all.
October 18, 2025 at 2:27 PM
Bit of a leapords eating people's faces moment for any Trump voters who voted for him because they hate politics. Sorry, but you voted for the most political politician of them all.
Trump is not a deeply intelligent man. He is a narrowly intelligent man. He is canny, with an instinct for manipulation. But even that edge is dulling as he deteriorates.
October 5, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Trump is not a deeply intelligent man. He is a narrowly intelligent man. He is canny, with an instinct for manipulation. But even that edge is dulling as he deteriorates.
This isn't about agreeing with Reform. It's reaching out to supporters who are otherwise decent folk fed propaganda that looking the other way on racism is necessary to survive financially
Relate on shared economic pain and show them that the racist tradeoff is false - that the culprits are the 1%
Relate on shared economic pain and show them that the racist tradeoff is false - that the culprits are the 1%
September 30, 2025 at 9:21 PM
This isn't about agreeing with Reform. It's reaching out to supporters who are otherwise decent folk fed propaganda that looking the other way on racism is necessary to survive financially
Relate on shared economic pain and show them that the racist tradeoff is false - that the culprits are the 1%
Relate on shared economic pain and show them that the racist tradeoff is false - that the culprits are the 1%
Per Wikipedia, the French presidential election in 2022 was an instance. The candidate with the broadest support was eliminated early.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Approva...
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Approva...
Approval voting - Wikipedia
en.m.wikipedia.org
September 24, 2025 at 1:43 AM
Per Wikipedia, the French presidential election in 2022 was an instance. The candidate with the broadest support was eliminated early.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Approva...
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Approva...
Ranked choice is better than first past the post, but not as good as approval - ranked choice is more vulnerable to extreme candidates squeezing out moderates. It does have more name recognition, though, and I wouldn't vote against it. Either is better than the current system.
September 23, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Ranked choice is better than first past the post, but not as good as approval - ranked choice is more vulnerable to extreme candidates squeezing out moderates. It does have more name recognition, though, and I wouldn't vote against it. Either is better than the current system.
The fundamental problem of the first-past-the-post voting system is that it trends towards two parties as a stable state. We need approval voting or something similar to have viable alternative parties.
September 23, 2025 at 1:59 PM
The fundamental problem of the first-past-the-post voting system is that it trends towards two parties as a stable state. We need approval voting or something similar to have viable alternative parties.
Spot on. Though I think that in addition to the concentration of wealth, there's also a side of currency devaluation as the money printers continue to go brrr.
September 22, 2025 at 6:39 PM
Spot on. Though I think that in addition to the concentration of wealth, there's also a side of currency devaluation as the money printers continue to go brrr.
Salience is to debating what gerrymandering is to voting. Winning based on positioning rather than merit.
September 7, 2025 at 11:02 PM
Salience is to debating what gerrymandering is to voting. Winning based on positioning rather than merit.
Best are the ones where the cannons fire. I was so disappointed when they made that change.
August 11, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Best are the ones where the cannons fire. I was so disappointed when they made that change.
And yet the market is up. Make it make sense 🤷♂️
August 6, 2025 at 7:04 PM
And yet the market is up. Make it make sense 🤷♂️