Robin Martinez
banner
robinsmartinez.bsky.social
Robin Martinez
@robinsmartinez.bsky.social
Midwest USA-based lawyer for a hotel company. Interests: public policy, art, ecological/conservation work.

Board member and chair of public policy work group at Heartland Conservation Alliance: https://www.heartlandconservationalliance.org/
Setting up concentration camps is not the way to deal with homelessness.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/29/u...
In Utah, Trump’s Vision for Homelessness Begins to Take Shape
www.nytimes.com
October 29, 2025 at 3:37 PM
“A standing military force, with an overgrown Executive will not long be safe companions to liberty. The means of defence [against] foreign danger, have been always the instruments of tyranny at home.”

James Madison, Address to the Constitutional Convention (1787)
October 12, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Good to know our Secretary of Defense supports honoring soldiers who massacred largely unarmed women and children who were starving while trudging through the snow in the middle of winter. Secretary of War Crimes should be his title perhaps? #WoundedKnee #WarCrimes

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/27/u...
Hegseth Says Honors for Soldiers in Wounded Knee Massacre Will Remain
www.nytimes.com
September 27, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Fascinating story about rats and the increased numbers we're seeing in urban areas around the world. #rats

www.bbc.com/news/article...
Ratmageddon: Why rats are overrunning our cities
Rats are multiplying at speed in urban areas. So, what's really behind the boom - and is it now unstoppable?
www.bbc.com
September 26, 2025 at 12:47 PM
When you hear that the Trump Tariffs are screwing America, there's more to it than you realize. #tariffs

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/22/b...
Trump’s Tariffs Are Damaging America’s Biggest Foreign Source of Screws
www.nytimes.com
September 22, 2025 at 2:44 PM
While families struggle, and farmers face bankruptcy, the Trump family lounges on super yachts enjoying the privileges of power.

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/18/w...
Tiffany Trump Cruised on an Oil Mogul’s Yacht as Her Father-in-Law Talked Oil Deals
www.nytimes.com
September 18, 2025 at 10:51 AM
Yet another wonderful double standard from the administration ... renewable energy's terrible ... unless you're using it for crypto mining! #wind #renewables #energy #climate
President Trump hates wind power. But as his administration halts wind projects around the country, Trump's sons appear to be an exception to their father's war on wind.

And they're getting awfully rich.
Trump's war on wind power has one very big exception
The president's sons are using scarce clean energy to mine for bitcoins.
www.motherjones.com
September 17, 2025 at 1:57 PM
Imagine that. Data shows domestic terrorism/political violence is primarily perpetrated by right-wing extremists. What does the DOJ do? It doesn't fit their narrative, so delete the study, of course!

newrepublic.com/post/200537/...
DOJ Quietly Deletes Study on Politics of Domestic Terrorists
The Justice Department has taken down a study that proves Republicans’ entire narrative wrong about left-wing violence.
newrepublic.com
September 17, 2025 at 11:23 AM
Free speech for me, but not for you, is a hallmark of the right-wing.
I am having a hard time reconciling "Charlie Kirk was a fierce advocate of open dialogue and free expression" with "we must identify and persecute everyone who is insufficiently mournful"
After Charlie Kirk's death, teachers and professors nationwide fired or disciplined over social media posts
At least a dozen faculty and staff have faced fallout over insensitive comments online.
www.nbcnews.com
September 13, 2025 at 1:57 PM
I was going to make some time to day to write an essay about empathy and compassion, but @johnpavlovitz.bsky.social pretty much said what's been rattling around in my brain. His piece is worth a read.
Conservatives' calls for compassion in the face of Charlie Kirk’s assassination were strangely striking, precisely because they (and he) have spent countless hours letting us know that they believe compassion is a character flaw and a cultural danger.

johnpavlovitz.substack.com/p/the-right-...
September 11, 2025 at 2:38 PM
Lest anyone forget, far-right violence has consistently been more lethal and frequent than far-left violence in the USA. Data from 2024 shows a continued trend of right-wing extremists committing the majority of politically-motivated murders. #violence #politics

nij.ojp.gov/topics/artic...
What NIJ Research Tells Us About Domestic Terrorism
Militant, nationalistic, white supremacist violent extremism has increased in the United States. In fact, the number of far-right attacks continues to outpace all other types of terrorism and domestic...
nij.ojp.gov
September 10, 2025 at 9:44 PM
A couple years ago I was pondering the prospect of political violence here in the USA and how we might devolve into what Italy experienced in its Years of Lead. With a right-wingnut killing legislators in MN and now today's events, seems we're on that path.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Years_o...
Years of Lead (Italy) - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
September 10, 2025 at 9:20 PM
Whether JD Vance gives a shit or not, he's complicit in international criminal activity.

www.defenseone.com/ideas/2025/0...
A killing at sea marks America’s descent into lawless power
The peremptory strike on a speedboat is a warning to all who serve. Remember your oath.
www.defenseone.com
September 10, 2025 at 2:52 AM
Given the number of countries the USA has invaded or bombed over the past century, re-branding the US Defense Dept as the "Department of War" pretty much constitutes truth in advertising. #WarDept #DefenseDept #war
September 5, 2025 at 4:51 PM
If I'm a foreign investor/company considering siting a production facility in the USA, I'd be having second thoughts. Will be interesting to see if LG and Hyundai pull back on expanding US plants. #ICE #manufacturing #Hyundai

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Hundreds of workers detained in major Ice raid at US Hyundai factory
South Korea concerned after at least 450 were arrested at Georgia work site making batteries for Hyundai and Kia cars
www.theguardian.com
September 5, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Interesting use of AI ... turning the tables?

futurism.com/ai-identify-...
Activists Are Using AI to Identify Masked ICE Agents
An activist in the Netherlands is using AI and facial recognition to identify masked ICE agents from viral arrest videos.
futurism.com
September 3, 2025 at 10:13 PM
Irony appears to be lost on Florida officials. That said, they're making it rather unappealing to travel there. #Florida #vaccines
September 3, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Wonderful satirical op-ed from the Military Times.

www.militarytimes.com/off-duty/mil...
The National Guard, DC landscaping and the great pursuit of lethality
Few training methods guarantee a better fighting force than boredom-induced annoyance.
www.militarytimes.com
August 29, 2025 at 11:40 AM
I find it interesting that grand juries are pushing back on DOJ overreach. We may have to dispense with the old adage that a grand jury would indict a ham sandwich. Apparently not. This is a good thing, and a sign that citizens may be getting fed up. #sandwich

www.nbcnews.com/politics/pol...
Grand jury declines to indict man who threw a sandwich at federal officer in D.C.
The former Justice Department attorney who threw a sub at federal officers in Washington, and came to be known as "Sandwich Guy," was not indicted on a federal felony charge.
www.nbcnews.com
August 27, 2025 at 4:04 PM
Interesting argument in this article. It mirrors discussions many of us have had about the USA splintering. "Soft secession" seems like an interesting and perhaps inevitable next step.

It’s Time for Americans to Start Talking About “Soft Secession”
open.substack.com/pub/cmarmita...
It’s Time for Americans to Start Talking About “Soft Secession”
Blue states are finally learning what red states have known all along: you don’t need federal permission to govern.
open.substack.com
August 26, 2025 at 5:23 PM
I know how high my electricity bills get during the summer. It bites, but at least I'm privileged enough to afford it. Yet many can't, and we have an administration whose policies are increasing energy costs by trying to kill cheaper renewables. #energy #climate 🌎

bbc.com/future/artic...
Overheating in heatwaves: How cool air is becoming a luxury many Americans can't afford
Sweltering summers are making an AC a lifesaving device. But despite the heatwaves, millions of Americans simply can't afford it.
bbc.com
August 26, 2025 at 1:17 PM
I think South Park should add the Ghost of Jeffrey Epstein as a new character. I can see all sorts of possibilities with that, including a Christmas special where his ghost shows up to haunt Trump. #SouthPark #Epstein
Through a spectacularly ham-handed series of moves, the Trump administration has ensured that Epstein conspiracy theories will never really end.
Now it’s Epstein forever
The Trump administration's ham-handed moves have ensured that Epstein conspiracy theories will never really end.
www.motherjones.com
August 25, 2025 at 5:47 PM
I don't think many people understand how profoundly climate change will affect agriculture and our food supply. I know I don't. #agriculture #climate 🌎

www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘We cannot do it the way our fathers did’: farmers across Europe struggle to adapt to the climate crisis
As wildfires rage in southern Europe and crop losses only set to increase in the coming years, producers are getting creative to beat the heat
www.theguardian.com
August 25, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Zohran Mamdani has some of the best political messaging I've seen in years. Fellow Democrats should take some lessons.
August 23, 2025 at 5:28 PM