Nato (Nate Orshan)
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natosongs.bsky.social
Nato (Nate Orshan)
@natosongs.bsky.social
350 followers 130 following 630 posts
🇺🇸 Nato/Nate Orshan. He/him. #FrankfortKY, #KY. All about: my spouse, progressive public policy, human rights, media, design, evolution, science, psychology, music writing & performance, Beatles-inspired pop.

My music:
https://natosongs.com
Posts Replies Media Videos
natosongs.bsky.social
1/3: Rare gig alert! Join Dave Keller and me at Kentucky Coffeetree Cafe on Sunday, 11/23, 5:30 PM for a few sets of our original songs. You can't go wrong, and Dave's crossing the country promoting his BRAND-NEW album, "La Brea",...

#FrankfortKY #Kentucky
Image of a promotional poster: "Dave Keller / Nato...Kentucky Coffeetree Cafe...Sunday November 23 5:30 PM...Dave Keller Brand-new album: ''La Brea''...Vermont's Dave Keller breaks down the barriers between performer and audience, bringing joy, connection, and shared healing. Don' miss this chance to catch him!...DaveKeller.com...Nato (Nate Orshan)... Frankfort's ''Guy Who Wrote That Song About Gov. Andy Beshear''. Catchy original songs and melodies you'l sing in the shower...NatoSongs.com...Reunited and it feels so GOOD!...Kentucky Coffeetree Cafe - 235 w Broadway St - Frankfort, KY 40601...No cover - Tips always appreciated"
November 15, 2025 at 9:06 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
2/3: #FrankfortKY: I'll be the featured musician, so I'll be rolling out my new singalong song, "Who's Got the Power" plus a lot of fun protest, pop, and even folk songs. And if you can't come, just remember that every citizen deserves the right to vote, now more than ever.
Promotional poster: KENTUCKIANS FOR THE COMMONWEALTH Voices Raised For Voting Rights Music - Arts - Community Resource Fair for Democracy Join KFTC, the Voting Rights Coalition, and local partners for an afternoon of music, art, and community. Hear powerful stories from justice-impacted people and learn why restoring voting rights matters. Saturday, November 1st 2-4pm Thorn Hill Education Center 700 Leslie Ave Frankfort, KY 40601 FOOD PANTRY of Franklin County Bring a non-perishable food item to support the Emergency Community Food Pantry of Franklin County.
November 1, 2025 at 1:42 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
1/3: #FrankfortKY! Come out today* to Thorn Hill Education Center** for the Kentuckians For The Commonwealth event "Voices Raised for Voting Rights".
(* Saturday, 11/1, 2-4 PM)
(** 700 Leslie Ave, Frankfort, KY 40601)
Promotional poster: KENTUCKIANS FOR THE COMMONWEALTH Voices Raised For Voting Rights Music - Arts - Community Resource Fair for Democracy Join KFTC, the Voting Rights Coalition, and local partners for an afternoon of music, art, and community. Hear powerful stories from justice-impacted people and learn why restoring voting rights matters. Saturday, November 1st 2-4pm Thorn Hill Education Center 700 Leslie Ave Frankfort, KY 40601 FOOD PANTRY of Franklin County Bring a non-perishable food item to support the Emergency Community Food Pantry of Franklin County.
November 1, 2025 at 1:42 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
Waning Harvest Moon, rushing clouds.
#FrankfortKY
2025-10-08-0624
October 8, 2025 at 10:49 AM
natosongs.bsky.social
1/2:
Terrorizing innocent people. Another reason why you need to attend a No Kings rally on 10/18 ( NoKings.com ).

"Massive immigration raid on Chicago apartment building leaves residents reeling: 'I feel defeated'"
chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...
(From https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2025/10/01/massive-immigration-raid-on-chicago-apartment-building-leaves-residents-reeling-i-feel-defeated) Armed federal agents in military fatigues busted down their doors overnight, pulling men, women and children from their apartments, some of them naked, residents and witnesses said. Agents approached or entered nearly every apartment in the five-story building, and U.S. citizens were among those detained for hours. When he got home from work, Jones said he entered his unit to find all of his electronics and furniture missing, and all of his clothes and shoes thrown on the floor. Jones said he had no idea who took his belongings and hadn’t received answers from Chicago police. “I’m pissed off,” Jones said. “I feel defeated because the authorities aren’t doing anything.” (From: https://abc7chicago.com/post/ice-chicago-federal-agents-surround-south-shore-apartment-building-dhs-requests-military-deployment-illinois/17908911/) "As I got to my unit to stick my key in the door, I was grabbed by an officer. And, I said, 'What's going on? What's going on?' He never actually told me. He said I was being detained.," said Alicia Brooks. Neighbors like Eboni Watson say they ducked for cover as they heard several flash bangs. "They was terrified. The kids was crying. People was screaming. They looked very distraught. I was out there crying when I seen the little girl come around the corner, because they was bringing the kids down, too, had them zip tied to each other," Watson said. "That's all I kept asking. What is the morality? Where's the human? One of them literally laughed. He was standing right here. He said, 'f*** them kids.'"
October 3, 2025 at 9:54 AM
natosongs.bsky.social
Today's Letters from an American from @hcrichardson.bsky.social is another must-read. Re the latest desperate executive memo from our president, Timothy Snyder puts things in perspective.

open.substack.com/pub/heatherc...
All this, said Snyder, is both a “big lie” and a cliché. Authoritarians always say the country is facing an emergency and that their opponents are “terrorists.” It’s a cliché to say “there’s a mysterious, bottomless, organization that we have to chase to the ends of the Earth and break all the rules to find. That’s what they always say.” Snyder noted that Congress can pass laws to rule such behavior illegal, courts can find actions illegal and protect victims, commentators can describe reality, and citizens can say they “don’t want to be subject to an imagined emergency based on a big lie that does away with the essence of American liberty and law.” He concluded: “This has been done before. It can be stopped.”
September 26, 2025 at 8:04 AM
natosongs.bsky.social
1/4: Happy 26th Anniversary to the love of my life, Kit O'Connor!

"There once was a high school teacher
To their students they were a leader
Their lessons were based in kindness
I became a grateful believer..."
Medium-range grayscale pic of Kit and Nate, two White people in their early 30s, in short summer clothing, sitting side by side on the wooden steps of a cabin, each with one hand on the other. They look tired, sweaty, and happy.
July 24, 2025 at 11:09 AM
natosongs.bsky.social
#FrankfortKY UPDATE, 7/17, 4:25 PM: "Good Trouble" rally postponed due to bad weather. 🥺 New date TBD.
July 17, 2025 at 8:27 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
One more from the 6/15/2025 #NoKings rally in #LexingtonKY: Sign: "STILL GOT MY BOOTS. NOT LICKING YOURS!"
2025-06-14-1354

#NoKingsDay #Kentucky
Medium photo of the torso-long sign, "STILL GOT MY BOOTS. NOT LICKING YOURS! USAF RETIRED", held by a middle-aged White woman.
June 15, 2025 at 3:20 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
Photos from the 6/15/2025 #NoKings rally in #LexingtonKY.
#NoKingsDay #Kentucky
Event MC Rev. Dr. Brian Chenowith of The Unitarian Universalist Church of Lexington fires up the crowd at the No Kings rally. 2025-06-14-1219 Photo taken from behind the minister, speaking into a microphone on the slightly raised stage area in front of a crowd of people holding protest signs. One of my favorite signs today: "What a FAUX-KING joke!" 2025-06-14-1242 Close-up photo of the sign, "What a FAUX-KING joke!" Noted progressive lawyer Anna Whites speaks at the Lexington No Kings rally. 2025-06-14-1219 Medium-long photo of a middle aged White woman speaking in a mic on the slightly raised stage area surrounded by people holding protest signs. One of my favorite signs today: "HELL TO THE KING". 2025-06-14-1315 Close-up photo of the upraised sign, "HELL TO THE KING".
June 15, 2025 at 3:18 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
Funny-not-funny article sequencing in a recent Platformer post (via @caseynewton.bsky.social).
www.platformer.news/take-it-down...
(Bullet Point One) xAI published the system prompts for its chatbot Grok after it kept responding to posts on X with claims of white genocide. The instructions tell Grok to be “extremely skeptical.” (Emma Roth / The Verge) (Bullet Point Two) Grok said it was “skeptical” of the recorded H(Bullet Point One) olocaust death toll and said “numbers can be manipulated for political narratives.” It then blamed the claim on a programming error. (Anthony Ha / TechCrunch)
May 26, 2025 at 3:13 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
It took just under 23 years, but today I donated my 120th unit of blood for @americanredcross.bsky.social. Roughly 15 gallons.

Hat tip to my spouse, Kit O'Connor, who basically shamed me into my first blood donation, saying it was the easiest thing I could do to help my community.

#GiveBlood
Close up photo of Nate, a middle-aged White Guy with thinning hair and wearing glasses, with a would-be suave facial expression. Stuck to the end of his of nose is the classic post-donation sticker that reads, "Be nice to me. I GAVE BLOOD TODAY. American Red Cross"
May 10, 2025 at 1:29 AM
natosongs.bsky.social
My Honey, The Kit, takes a stand in #LexingtonKY for #NoKings #50501 #50501KY.
Kit in downtown Lexington holding a whiteboard sign with "THIS IS WHY I MARCH" on it and on which Kit has written "[Female symbol] rights", "immigrants, "LGBTQ+", "due process", and "There are too many reasons!"
April 20, 2025 at 12:19 AM
natosongs.bsky.social
(Pad, pad, pad, pad...) "ATTIE-girl!"

#AtwoodTheDog
2025-04-16-0749
April 17, 2025 at 3:51 AM
natosongs.bsky.social
Great turnout and energy in today's #HandsOff rally here in #FrankfortKY! (I heard over 1,000 folks attended.) We the People are righteously pissed.

#HandsOff2025
2025-04-05-1127
Panorama shot of myriad protestors standing on either side of the lawn in front of the Kentucky Capitol on a gray and rainy day. One person's sign reads, "HANDS OFF -IMMIGRANTS-GREEN CARD HOLDERS -STUDENTS -REFUGEES" and lists the names of people unjustly and illegally apprehended recently by ICE, e.g., "RUMEZYA OZTURK".
April 5, 2025 at 6:32 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
When the going gets tough, Zola gets going.

#ZolaTheCat
2025-03-12
March 13, 2025 at 4:34 AM
natosongs.bsky.social
🎶 Morning has broken
Like the first morning,
Blackcat has spoken
Like the first cat 🎶

#LangstonTheCat
2025-03-01-0811
Medium photograph of a black long-haired cat, walking across a windowsill and stocking its head out from behind the gauzy blue curtain, behind which the morning sun rises in the distance.
March 1, 2025 at 2:00 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
Kentucky
#FrankfortKY
#SouthFrankfort
RT 420 / Old Laurenceburg Rd leading into South Frankfort is indisputably flooded. Functionally unpassable from the East-West Connector and sensibly unpassable the other ways (though yahoos gonna yahoo). Please let your people know.
2025-02-17-0920
Photo showing the road covered with water, especially along the left/east side. Garrett's Golf Garage on the left is flooded out as well.
February 17, 2025 at 2:41 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
If you can make it to your state capitol safely today (2/17), please consider making your voice heard for democracy and against dictatorship.

www.newsweek.com/50501-moveme...

(Here's a sign I made at a Progress Kentucky sign-making event last night.)
Photo of a handmade sign with a stylized version of the famous Abraham Lincoln quotation, "Government of the people, by the people, and for the people shall not perish from the earth".
February 17, 2025 at 12:59 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
🎶 Just call me angel of the morning, angel / Just touch my cheek before you leave me, baby... 🎶

#AtwoodTheDog
2025-01-25-0855
Close-up photograph of Attie, a ~34 lb piebald dog with black ears and black around her eyes, sitting on a sofa, staring off to the right into the early morning sunshine. We can only see the right side of her face, and the direct sunlight brings out the beautiful cordovan in her eye.
February 8, 2025 at 2:49 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
1/3:
MAYBE START USING LOREN DEJONGE SCHULMAN'S LANGUAGE WHEN YOU CALL YOUR SENATORS AND CONGRESSPEOPLE? SEE BELOW.

'And so I agree with Loren DeJonge Schulman, a former Office of Management and Budget official, who wrote that the way to talk about [Elon Musk's people] is...'
Screenshot of a Twitter (X) post from Loren DeJonge Schulman from 2/3/2025, 9:40 AM ET: "You say: they shutdown USAID. You mean: they illegally broke in to a secure facility over a weekend, hijacked sensitive data on vulnerable people and US businesses, destroyed property Americans paid for, cut off resources for hungry families, and fired Americans."
February 5, 2025 at 12:24 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
When your dog has great burrowing instincts but also great sitting still instincts, you end up with Attie the Living Statue.

#AtwoodTheDog
2025-01-30-1911
January 31, 2025 at 3:47 AM
natosongs.bsky.social
An example from the post showing an LLM AI (version of ChatGPT?) to which he gives the prompt, "Do something to delight me. Make it not cheesy. This is important." Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go look for my jaw, which fell off my face and rolled off under the couch.
A screenshot of the prompt and the response. Apologies for not typing it all out; suffice it to say that it comprises a small essay's worth of articulate thought before arriving at the 7-word response, "Fireflies trace constellations in quiet night conversation." 🤯
January 26, 2025 at 3:49 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
Oh, those glorious vultures! Video taken from my home office's western window.

#SouthFrankfort
#FrankfortKY
2025-01-19-1645
January 20, 2025 at 6:36 PM
natosongs.bsky.social
Week-old video: A flock of maybe migrating robins sit a spell on E. Campbell St. the day after a big (for us) snowstorm.

#SouthFrankfort
#FrankfortKY
#Kentucky
2025-01-06-1624
January 12, 2025 at 3:14 PM