Phil C
@redefineleadership.bsky.social
Corporate and tax attorney. Former fed / program manager / consultant.
I left the federal government in 2018 because I didn’t want my name associated with the first Trump administration’s policies.
I left the federal government in 2018 because I didn’t want my name associated with the first Trump administration’s policies.
This exactly. Quit watching shit on TikTok and do things that make you happy. And treat women like people.
I promise you’ll have more of whatever you want in life than you thought possible, because the men who do these simple things are so rare.
I promise you’ll have more of whatever you want in life than you thought possible, because the men who do these simple things are so rare.
August 15, 2025 at 7:09 PM
This exactly. Quit watching shit on TikTok and do things that make you happy. And treat women like people.
I promise you’ll have more of whatever you want in life than you thought possible, because the men who do these simple things are so rare.
I promise you’ll have more of whatever you want in life than you thought possible, because the men who do these simple things are so rare.
What if every app that’s worth a damn has already been invented?
July 28, 2025 at 7:39 PM
What if every app that’s worth a damn has already been invented?
The winners of the 2025 Nobel Prize in economics, Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson, and James A. Robinson, won for their research into this exact phenomenon. Not only the relationship between inclusive institutions and economic prosperity, but also the speed at which success can be reversed.
July 17, 2025 at 9:39 PM
The winners of the 2025 Nobel Prize in economics, Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson, and James A. Robinson, won for their research into this exact phenomenon. Not only the relationship between inclusive institutions and economic prosperity, but also the speed at which success can be reversed.
Reposted by Phil C
But this line... is just perfect: "The Constitution is like a gym membership for these people: they talk about it constantly, it’s mostly aspirational, and they’re winded after the Preamble."
July 16, 2025 at 3:21 AM
But this line... is just perfect: "The Constitution is like a gym membership for these people: they talk about it constantly, it’s mostly aspirational, and they’re winded after the Preamble."
Yup. Border Patrol was offering five figure bonuses years ago and couldn’t meet the statutory minimum FTE count. Who wants to live in Marfa, Texas?
Either they accept terrible candidates - many of whom who will turn out to be cartel plants - or they get nobody.
Either they accept terrible candidates - many of whom who will turn out to be cartel plants - or they get nobody.
July 2, 2025 at 7:29 PM
Yup. Border Patrol was offering five figure bonuses years ago and couldn’t meet the statutory minimum FTE count. Who wants to live in Marfa, Texas?
Either they accept terrible candidates - many of whom who will turn out to be cartel plants - or they get nobody.
Either they accept terrible candidates - many of whom who will turn out to be cartel plants - or they get nobody.
That $200k is approximately the all-in cost of an FTE federal agent. Roughly half is salary, the rest is benefits, training, etc.
The feds have always paid better than state/local, but that hasn’t been enough to fill federal slots. Other than FBI, the agencies have struggled to hire for years.
The feds have always paid better than state/local, but that hasn’t been enough to fill federal slots. Other than FBI, the agencies have struggled to hire for years.
July 2, 2025 at 7:15 PM
That $200k is approximately the all-in cost of an FTE federal agent. Roughly half is salary, the rest is benefits, training, etc.
The feds have always paid better than state/local, but that hasn’t been enough to fill federal slots. Other than FBI, the agencies have struggled to hire for years.
The feds have always paid better than state/local, but that hasn’t been enough to fill federal slots. Other than FBI, the agencies have struggled to hire for years.
This is competitive authoritarianism by the book. 5/
June 8, 2025 at 10:14 PM
This is competitive authoritarianism by the book. 5/
In this way, immigration is a tool to win elections that would otherwise be unwinnable for an administration that is running the economy into the ground, stripping people of their civil liberties, and destroying the social safety net so many depend upon. 4/
June 8, 2025 at 10:14 PM
In this way, immigration is a tool to win elections that would otherwise be unwinnable for an administration that is running the economy into the ground, stripping people of their civil liberties, and destroying the social safety net so many depend upon. 4/
More broadly: rhetoric about violence builds support for right-wing candidates generally, and will allow the administration to paint Democratic candidates as violent, insurrectionist, etc. 3/
June 8, 2025 at 10:14 PM
More broadly: rhetoric about violence builds support for right-wing candidates generally, and will allow the administration to paint Democratic candidates as violent, insurrectionist, etc. 3/
Examples of those response include: sending national guard to polling places for security, actually to harass and intimidate non-white voters; limiting polling places in cites (blue locations) and hours, or enacting curfews. 2/
June 8, 2025 at 10:14 PM
Examples of those response include: sending national guard to polling places for security, actually to harass and intimidate non-white voters; limiting polling places in cites (blue locations) and hours, or enacting curfews. 2/
That’s what China is counting on. Taking Taiwan becomes easier each day Trump continues down this path.
June 8, 2025 at 2:05 PM
That’s what China is counting on. Taking Taiwan becomes easier each day Trump continues down this path.
The pressure is building. Note that China didn’t let off at all. They know exactly where they have leverage.
U.S. Dependence on China for Rare Earth Magnets Is Causing Shortages
www.nytimes.com
June 2, 2025 at 6:22 PM
The pressure is building. Note that China didn’t let off at all. They know exactly where they have leverage.
BTW, this outright confrontation where China is strongest is exactly what Biden’s attempts to build infrastructure and manufacturing capacity in the US (batteries, chips, etc) was designed to avoid. Biden wanted to win the supply chain race, Trump forfeited. 5/
May 12, 2025 at 3:37 PM
BTW, this outright confrontation where China is strongest is exactly what Biden’s attempts to build infrastructure and manufacturing capacity in the US (batteries, chips, etc) was designed to avoid. Biden wanted to win the supply chain race, Trump forfeited. 5/
In this way, Trump did exactly what Xi wants and planned for when he began this strategy. 4/
May 12, 2025 at 3:37 PM
In this way, Trump did exactly what Xi wants and planned for when he began this strategy. 4/
China will also further consolidate its supply chain leverage, building power in all spheres because the west cares more about stuff than political interests “over there”. 3/
May 12, 2025 at 3:37 PM
China will also further consolidate its supply chain leverage, building power in all spheres because the west cares more about stuff than political interests “over there”. 3/
I said Trump would either fold or WWIII had just started. The answer is that Trump folded, and we therefore avoided WWIII (at least in the intermediate term). China will use its confirmed leverage to take Taiwan in the next few years, likely starting with concessions in these tariff negotiations. 2/
May 12, 2025 at 3:37 PM
I said Trump would either fold or WWIII had just started. The answer is that Trump folded, and we therefore avoided WWIII (at least in the intermediate term). China will use its confirmed leverage to take Taiwan in the next few years, likely starting with concessions in these tariff negotiations. 2/