@riparian-dreams.bsky.social
We need a paradigm shift. Viruses like COVID are more than a one-time "get sick and recover." They can have long-term negative impacts on the body that medical science is just beginning to fully understand. Clean air to prevent virus spread is a basic human right just like clean water.
November 15, 2025 at 12:04 AM
We need a paradigm shift. Viruses like COVID are more than a one-time "get sick and recover." They can have long-term negative impacts on the body that medical science is just beginning to fully understand. Clean air to prevent virus spread is a basic human right just like clean water.
What a deep betrayal. One Dreamer I go to know was brought to the U.S. when she was 3-months-old. She was a brilliant student, incredibly hard-working, a community leader. Until DACA there was literally no way for her to gain legal status in the only country she'd ever known. Such a loss for the US.
November 12, 2025 at 3:58 AM
What a deep betrayal. One Dreamer I go to know was brought to the U.S. when she was 3-months-old. She was a brilliant student, incredibly hard-working, a community leader. Until DACA there was literally no way for her to gain legal status in the only country she'd ever known. Such a loss for the US.
Healthcare is a basic human right. RW frames it as an individual "consumer choice" like buying a cell phone. This ignores: 1) complexity & lack of transparency in products offered; 2) the unpredictability & urgency of health needs; 3) & that healthcare is necessary for survival. It's not optional.
November 11, 2025 at 12:36 AM
Healthcare is a basic human right. RW frames it as an individual "consumer choice" like buying a cell phone. This ignores: 1) complexity & lack of transparency in products offered; 2) the unpredictability & urgency of health needs; 3) & that healthcare is necessary for survival. It's not optional.
Lots of respect for Whitehouse's long-term campaign against elite corruption. But this was a huge strategic blunder by the Dem caucus. Flight disruptions & bad PR over holidays was our last chance to pressure MAGA to make ACA concessions. But Dems were afraid to go there. MAGA only respects power.
November 10, 2025 at 11:19 PM
Lots of respect for Whitehouse's long-term campaign against elite corruption. But this was a huge strategic blunder by the Dem caucus. Flight disruptions & bad PR over holidays was our last chance to pressure MAGA to make ACA concessions. But Dems were afraid to go there. MAGA only respects power.
Horrific. War crimes in the age of aerial surveillance--can't say we didn't know. "Governments such as those of the United States and the United Kingdom have prioritized maintaining economic and security relationships with the United Arab Emirates over the lives of the Sudanese people."
November 1, 2025 at 2:18 AM
Horrific. War crimes in the age of aerial surveillance--can't say we didn't know. "Governments such as those of the United States and the United Kingdom have prioritized maintaining economic and security relationships with the United Arab Emirates over the lives of the Sudanese people."
Scary. It's the poorest Haitians who are forced to build their homes on the dangerous, deforested mountain slopes, because they can't access any other land. Climate change is very much about inequality. Wealthy classes/countries contribute disproportionately to CC. The poorest pay the price.
October 26, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Scary. It's the poorest Haitians who are forced to build their homes on the dangerous, deforested mountain slopes, because they can't access any other land. Climate change is very much about inequality. Wealthy classes/countries contribute disproportionately to CC. The poorest pay the price.
The NYT is trying to play it both ways. They want the aura of authority/expertise that comes from using quantitative analysis to support their opinions. Yet they reject rigorous critiques of their methods as "statistical complexities that are difficult for most people to follow."
October 24, 2025 at 10:47 PM
The NYT is trying to play it both ways. They want the aura of authority/expertise that comes from using quantitative analysis to support their opinions. Yet they reject rigorous critiques of their methods as "statistical complexities that are difficult for most people to follow."
RW discourse works hard to confuse things. A $15/hr Latina health aide trying to unionize in Los Angeles is part of the "coastal elite." An abrasive white guy from Texas who drives a $60,000 pickup and spends thousands of $$ on his gun hobby is the real "working class."
October 24, 2025 at 9:25 PM
RW discourse works hard to confuse things. A $15/hr Latina health aide trying to unionize in Los Angeles is part of the "coastal elite." An abrasive white guy from Texas who drives a $60,000 pickup and spends thousands of $$ on his gun hobby is the real "working class."
In Thiel's upside-down worldview, the real threats aren't the tiny set of ultra-billionaires (like Thiel) and tech corporations who wield enormous global power or accelerating climate change. The real "antichrists" are those who would dare to limit the former's power/wealth, eg the ICC, AOC, Greta
October 11, 2025 at 8:06 PM
In Thiel's upside-down worldview, the real threats aren't the tiny set of ultra-billionaires (like Thiel) and tech corporations who wield enormous global power or accelerating climate change. The real "antichrists" are those who would dare to limit the former's power/wealth, eg the ICC, AOC, Greta
I witnessed a RW take over of a non-profit space. Though outnumbered, they out-organized their opponents w/a long-term vision to gain control of $$ and hiring (vs. helping people). They recruited new followers & coopted opponents by offering them $$, jobs, & access to a powerful patronage network.
October 10, 2025 at 11:03 PM
I witnessed a RW take over of a non-profit space. Though outnumbered, they out-organized their opponents w/a long-term vision to gain control of $$ and hiring (vs. helping people). They recruited new followers & coopted opponents by offering them $$, jobs, & access to a powerful patronage network.
The SC is legitimate, but specific judges may not be if they're protected by political allies (no impeachment) & abuse their power to subvert the SC. Expansion is a democratic means to weaken the power of corrupt judges and restore the Court to its role of impartiality & upholding the Constitution.
October 9, 2025 at 5:18 AM
The SC is legitimate, but specific judges may not be if they're protected by political allies (no impeachment) & abuse their power to subvert the SC. Expansion is a democratic means to weaken the power of corrupt judges and restore the Court to its role of impartiality & upholding the Constitution.
Yep. Proponents of the "Washington consensus" try to present free market economic policies as a timeless truth "above" politics & class interests. In fact, they've always been a terrain of political & ideological struggle & have often been imposed on Global South nations in not democratic ways.
October 8, 2025 at 5:18 AM
Yep. Proponents of the "Washington consensus" try to present free market economic policies as a timeless truth "above" politics & class interests. In fact, they've always been a terrain of political & ideological struggle & have often been imposed on Global South nations in not democratic ways.
Interesting new trend. Historically, women have provided a lot of the unpaid labor to maintain religious communities, even as men were in charge and got the glory. Anecdotally. I've heard from Catholic nuns who feel they've been treated like the servants who cook/clean for the priests.
October 7, 2025 at 8:11 PM
Interesting new trend. Historically, women have provided a lot of the unpaid labor to maintain religious communities, even as men were in charge and got the glory. Anecdotally. I've heard from Catholic nuns who feel they've been treated like the servants who cook/clean for the priests.
Global South authoritarian regimes often use selective repression against high profile opponents to maintain control. The majority learn that if they play by the regime's rules of speech & action, (not the same as the laws on paper), they can lead fairly normal lives. Fear is always there though.
October 7, 2025 at 7:46 AM
Global South authoritarian regimes often use selective repression against high profile opponents to maintain control. The majority learn that if they play by the regime's rules of speech & action, (not the same as the laws on paper), they can lead fairly normal lives. Fear is always there though.
A brave letter. It's such a painful and confusing gut punch when loved ones fall into conspiracy theories, or in this case, choose to walk towards evil.
October 6, 2025 at 1:58 AM
A brave letter. It's such a painful and confusing gut punch when loved ones fall into conspiracy theories, or in this case, choose to walk towards evil.
RW populism tries to link ultimate status & power to those fields--military & law enforcement--that have historically excluded women & privileged men. W/in fields, the emphasis isn't on powerful new death tech like drones (maybe more gender equal), but on old school muscled, masculinized bodies.
October 4, 2025 at 5:36 PM
RW populism tries to link ultimate status & power to those fields--military & law enforcement--that have historically excluded women & privileged men. W/in fields, the emphasis isn't on powerful new death tech like drones (maybe more gender equal), but on old school muscled, masculinized bodies.
Great chart. Asking follow-up questions requires 1) in-depth knowledge of the topic to be able to recognize the lie/distortion in real time; 2) skills in active listening and response, not just following a script. Journalists & congresspeople in hearings really need these skills right now.
October 3, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Great chart. Asking follow-up questions requires 1) in-depth knowledge of the topic to be able to recognize the lie/distortion in real time; 2) skills in active listening and response, not just following a script. Journalists & congresspeople in hearings really need these skills right now.
The RW project targets women, directly taking away rights, pressuring women to voluntarily submit to a gender hierarchy. It also targets men by normalizing a specific type of domineering, aggressive, even violent masculinity as the "ideal standard" men will be judged by & punished for not meeting.
October 3, 2025 at 6:10 PM
The RW project targets women, directly taking away rights, pressuring women to voluntarily submit to a gender hierarchy. It also targets men by normalizing a specific type of domineering, aggressive, even violent masculinity as the "ideal standard" men will be judged by & punished for not meeting.
As a non-wealthy person, I always thought having $$ opened up so many opportunities to explore the world. But it can be a prison too. Once in a Big City, a daughter of millionaires gave me a ride home. She got so anxious just driving thru my neighborhood, like she was a stranger to her own country.
October 1, 2025 at 6:27 PM
As a non-wealthy person, I always thought having $$ opened up so many opportunities to explore the world. But it can be a prison too. Once in a Big City, a daughter of millionaires gave me a ride home. She got so anxious just driving thru my neighborhood, like she was a stranger to her own country.
Would love to see U.S. public health policy more fully acknowledge the importance of Covid airborne transmission and monitor & fund better indoor air quality in spaces like schools. Like clean water, clean air is a basic human right. It can't be solved only at the individual behavior level.
September 30, 2025 at 11:36 PM
Would love to see U.S. public health policy more fully acknowledge the importance of Covid airborne transmission and monitor & fund better indoor air quality in spaces like schools. Like clean water, clean air is a basic human right. It can't be solved only at the individual behavior level.
Coal has been coopted by RW populism as a symbol of nostalgic white masculinity. These are the elite-sanitized "authentic people." The long history of exploitation and brutal worker struggles against wealthy bosses for safety, healthcare, and living wages is stripped away.
September 29, 2025 at 11:38 PM
Coal has been coopted by RW populism as a symbol of nostalgic white masculinity. These are the elite-sanitized "authentic people." The long history of exploitation and brutal worker struggles against wealthy bosses for safety, healthcare, and living wages is stripped away.
Those coding criteria are a mess. Eg conflating "environmentalism" & the "extreme left" when environmentalism runs the gamut from corporate greenwashing to structural challenges. "Opposition to government authority" is found across the political spectrum. Reductive, issues of validity & in/exclusion
September 29, 2025 at 8:23 PM
Those coding criteria are a mess. Eg conflating "environmentalism" & the "extreme left" when environmentalism runs the gamut from corporate greenwashing to structural challenges. "Opposition to government authority" is found across the political spectrum. Reductive, issues of validity & in/exclusion
Great reporting on "how the industry’s attempt to create a 'deportation-proof workforce' enabled the brutal exploitation of refugee labor while also exposing the nation’s most vulnerable immigrants to virulent racism and religious discrimination."
September 28, 2025 at 1:59 AM
Great reporting on "how the industry’s attempt to create a 'deportation-proof workforce' enabled the brutal exploitation of refugee labor while also exposing the nation’s most vulnerable immigrants to virulent racism and religious discrimination."
This statement reinforces RW framing that their goal is "protection" and the debate is over what to protect. Instead, mock sending troops into Portland as a vain, dangerous power grab that wastes $1 million a day, money that could be used for healthcare and making people's lives better.
September 28, 2025 at 1:54 AM
This statement reinforces RW framing that their goal is "protection" and the debate is over what to protect. Instead, mock sending troops into Portland as a vain, dangerous power grab that wastes $1 million a day, money that could be used for healthcare and making people's lives better.
RW media are effective at endlessly repeating outlier cases as outrageous & entertaining & as "representative" of democrats from top to bottom. Repeat footage of a few 2020 incidents has people I know convinced that Portland in 2025 is still a fiery violent hellhole & only the RW can restore order.
September 26, 2025 at 5:12 PM
RW media are effective at endlessly repeating outlier cases as outrageous & entertaining & as "representative" of democrats from top to bottom. Repeat footage of a few 2020 incidents has people I know convinced that Portland in 2025 is still a fiery violent hellhole & only the RW can restore order.