Tom Benthin
@tbenthin.bsky.social
Graphic facilitator, French-Intensive Biodynamic gardener, activist. California Grassroots Alliance, Indivisible Sonoma County.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
"Awareness carries a high cost these days. It’s exhausting. It’s meant to be exhausting, I think. This is how supremacy works. The costs of reparation are very high, and the cost of awareness comes first of all."
...yes.
...yes.
"Say I tell you 'My father is choking my brother.' What do you say to that?
"How does a culture of abuse end?
"What is our part in ending it?"
www.the-reframe.com/cult-ure-of-...
"How does a culture of abuse end?
"What is our part in ending it?"
www.the-reframe.com/cult-ure-of-...
Cult(ure) of Abuse
How do we deal with a culture of abuse? What is our part in ending it? How do we deal with an abusive cult of millions?
www.the-reframe.com
December 9, 2025 at 4:58 PM
"Awareness carries a high cost these days. It’s exhausting. It’s meant to be exhausting, I think. This is how supremacy works. The costs of reparation are very high, and the cost of awareness comes first of all."
...yes.
...yes.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
Can’t believe he’s going to demean the Inaugural FIFA Peace Prize like this…
It gets worse. Trump also says straight out that an invasion of Venezuela "on land" is coming and says he'd expand all this to Mexico and Colombia. Incredibly, no one even bothers pointing out anymore that he is claiming authority to do all of this without Congress:
newrepublic.com/article/2041...
newrepublic.com/article/2041...
December 9, 2025 at 5:25 PM
Can’t believe he’s going to demean the Inaugural FIFA Peace Prize like this…
Reposted by Tom Benthin
They're using the confinement box, one of the most horrific methods of CIA torture in the post-9/11 black sites, against migrants now. This is the direct result of the lack of consequences for the architects of the torture program. Either there will be criminal penalties for this or it will expand.
Torture Techniques from CIA Black Sites Were Used at Alligator Alcatraz
Amnesty International, interviewing migrant detainees, identifies use of the confinement box. There can be no denying it is a torture prison
www.forever-wars.com
December 8, 2025 at 9:40 PM
They're using the confinement box, one of the most horrific methods of CIA torture in the post-9/11 black sites, against migrants now. This is the direct result of the lack of consequences for the architects of the torture program. Either there will be criminal penalties for this or it will expand.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
Yes but it is not enough.
You need to push for the people giving orders to do this to be thrown in prison.
You need to push for the people giving orders to do this to be thrown in prison.
You can hear Jose scream in excruciating pain as an ICE vehicle runs over his foot while he's being detained.
His family says Jose is a good man, with no criminal record, who works in roofing.
He needs to be released from detention to receive appropriate medical care.
His family says Jose is a good man, with no criminal record, who works in roofing.
He needs to be released from detention to receive appropriate medical care.
December 6, 2025 at 11:54 PM
Yes but it is not enough.
You need to push for the people giving orders to do this to be thrown in prison.
You need to push for the people giving orders to do this to be thrown in prison.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
"Purity test' ....Party standard-bearers still use the phrase as a slur to trivialize legitimate questions from the left. It’s a petty and defensive move, and it comes across as a refusal to engage with the most obvious and urgent questions facing the country." newrepublic.com/article/2039...
No, Progressives Don’t Want “Purity.” They Just Want Some Courage.
When left-leaning Democrats complain about corporate influence, it’s not a “purity test.” It’s a demand for a better politics.
newrepublic.com
December 5, 2025 at 2:18 PM
"Purity test' ....Party standard-bearers still use the phrase as a slur to trivialize legitimate questions from the left. It’s a petty and defensive move, and it comes across as a refusal to engage with the most obvious and urgent questions facing the country." newrepublic.com/article/2039...
Reposted by Tom Benthin
Democrats need to lay the groundwork for reform by attacking the villains on the Supreme Court - loudly, angrily, personally, relentlessly. And they should start now.
paulwaldman.substack.com/p/democrats-...
paulwaldman.substack.com/p/democrats-...
Democrats Need to Treat the Supreme Court Like the Villain It Is
The Court is out of control, and we'll never see reform unless we build the case for it. Starting now.
paulwaldman.substack.com
December 5, 2025 at 6:54 PM
Democrats need to lay the groundwork for reform by attacking the villains on the Supreme Court - loudly, angrily, personally, relentlessly. And they should start now.
paulwaldman.substack.com/p/democrats-...
paulwaldman.substack.com/p/democrats-...
Reposted by Tom Benthin
In my world (energy policy), to a first approximation, *everyone* underestimated how bad Republicans would be this time around.
So my basic question is: has anyone updated their priors? Revised their analytical categories? Learned anything from this? Will do things differently next time? Anyone?
So my basic question is: has anyone updated their priors? Revised their analytical categories? Learned anything from this? Will do things differently next time? Anyone?
December 3, 2025 at 7:09 PM
In my world (energy policy), to a first approximation, *everyone* underestimated how bad Republicans would be this time around.
So my basic question is: has anyone updated their priors? Revised their analytical categories? Learned anything from this? Will do things differently next time? Anyone?
So my basic question is: has anyone updated their priors? Revised their analytical categories? Learned anything from this? Will do things differently next time? Anyone?
Reposted by Tom Benthin
My previous lead fell through, so...
Does anyone in Western Washington have an electric piano with weighted keys that they no longer use and would be willing to give away?
I have a ten year old ADHD kid whose heart is set on one for Christmas but it's not in our budget this year.
Does anyone in Western Washington have an electric piano with weighted keys that they no longer use and would be willing to give away?
I have a ten year old ADHD kid whose heart is set on one for Christmas but it's not in our budget this year.
December 4, 2025 at 4:30 AM
My previous lead fell through, so...
Does anyone in Western Washington have an electric piano with weighted keys that they no longer use and would be willing to give away?
I have a ten year old ADHD kid whose heart is set on one for Christmas but it's not in our budget this year.
Does anyone in Western Washington have an electric piano with weighted keys that they no longer use and would be willing to give away?
I have a ten year old ADHD kid whose heart is set on one for Christmas but it's not in our budget this year.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
So far the worst I can manage is “Make America Trickle Down Again”
I could have spent a year and would never have come up with a worse slogan than “Strong Floor, No Ceiling.”
December 2, 2025 at 10:43 PM
So far the worst I can manage is “Make America Trickle Down Again”
Reposted by Tom Benthin
“Strong Floor No Ceiling!” chant all the people who say they can’t support Defund the Police or Black Lives Matter because “they’re bad slogans that nobody understands.”
December 2, 2025 at 2:28 AM
“Strong Floor No Ceiling!” chant all the people who say they can’t support Defund the Police or Black Lives Matter because “they’re bad slogans that nobody understands.”
Reposted by Tom Benthin
No Change, Just Credit
Smiles Across Aisles
Now Isn’t The Time For That
Caution Before Safety
Smiles Across Aisles
Now Isn’t The Time For That
Caution Before Safety
December 2, 2025 at 10:47 PM
No Change, Just Credit
Smiles Across Aisles
Now Isn’t The Time For That
Caution Before Safety
Smiles Across Aisles
Now Isn’t The Time For That
Caution Before Safety
Reposted by Tom Benthin
I could have spent a year and would never have come up with a worse slogan than “Strong Floor, No Ceiling.”
December 2, 2025 at 2:26 AM
I could have spent a year and would never have come up with a worse slogan than “Strong Floor, No Ceiling.”
Reposted by Tom Benthin
Exactly this.
Very This Town to characterize a +14 shift in your party's favor as a loss, then blame it on the highly effective grassroots organizing in a politically hostile state that earned you the 14-pt shift.
Y’all talked too much about the TN-7 race, turned it high salience, juiced turnout, and wrecked Dems’ chances of sneaking in a win.
December 3, 2025 at 3:48 AM
Exactly this.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
A recap of tonight's special election in TN-07 (plus a WAY-TOO-EARLY model of the 2026 midterms).
A swing of 13 points would put Dems over 250 seats in the U.S. House. A more reasonable scenario—say, D+6—still gives them the House, and maybe the Senate.
www.gelliottmorris.com/p/what-the-s...
A swing of 13 points would put Dems over 250 seats in the U.S. House. A more reasonable scenario—say, D+6—still gives them the House, and maybe the Senate.
www.gelliottmorris.com/p/what-the-s...
What the special election in Tennessee's Seventh District means for the 2026 midterms
Republicans held a Trump +22 seat — but by only 9 points. A swing half as large would give Democrats the U.S. House in 2026, and put the Senate clearly in play
www.gelliottmorris.com
December 3, 2025 at 3:56 AM
A recap of tonight's special election in TN-07 (plus a WAY-TOO-EARLY model of the 2026 midterms).
A swing of 13 points would put Dems over 250 seats in the U.S. House. A more reasonable scenario—say, D+6—still gives them the House, and maybe the Senate.
www.gelliottmorris.com/p/what-the-s...
A swing of 13 points would put Dems over 250 seats in the U.S. House. A more reasonable scenario—say, D+6—still gives them the House, and maybe the Senate.
www.gelliottmorris.com/p/what-the-s...
Reposted by Tom Benthin
I named my fists “Strong Floor” and “No Ceiling” because they are not ready to win any important fights.
December 2, 2025 at 6:37 PM
I named my fists “Strong Floor” and “No Ceiling” because they are not ready to win any important fights.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
Statehood for D.C. is an ethical obligation at this point, required to protect the rights of our residents to govern ourselves against such out-of-state troops being sent to patrol our city.
NEW: Republican-led states, in a new filing at the D.C. Circuit, say D.C. residents are irrelevant, D.C. belongs to everyone else. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
The filing is led by the South Carolina and West Virginia attorneys general. Both states sent troops to DC.
The filing is led by the South Carolina and West Virginia attorneys general. Both states sent troops to DC.
December 2, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Statehood for D.C. is an ethical obligation at this point, required to protect the rights of our residents to govern ourselves against such out-of-state troops being sent to patrol our city.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
I was reading a Q & A issue of @sarahkendzior.bsky.social's newsletter from October and was struck by this: no other nation has allowed a seditionist to run again for public office without punishment.
Historians and political scientists, thoughts?
Also, subscribe to her newsletter! With cash!
Historians and political scientists, thoughts?
Also, subscribe to her newsletter! With cash!
December 2, 2025 at 10:03 PM
I was reading a Q & A issue of @sarahkendzior.bsky.social's newsletter from October and was struck by this: no other nation has allowed a seditionist to run again for public office without punishment.
Historians and political scientists, thoughts?
Also, subscribe to her newsletter! With cash!
Historians and political scientists, thoughts?
Also, subscribe to her newsletter! With cash!
Reposted by Tom Benthin
Area man (who makes his living claiming expertise in the subject) stumped by fact that politics is actually about power and money, not about delivering what proves popular in polling.
I'm sorry. I shouldn't. But it's too rich to pass up.
The centrist faction's biggest fossil-fuel promoter "genuinely" does "not understand" why Trump is gearing up to invade the sovereign nation that has the biggest oil reserves on the planet.
😂
The centrist faction's biggest fossil-fuel promoter "genuinely" does "not understand" why Trump is gearing up to invade the sovereign nation that has the biggest oil reserves on the planet.
😂
November 25, 2025 at 8:19 PM
Area man (who makes his living claiming expertise in the subject) stumped by fact that politics is actually about power and money, not about delivering what proves popular in polling.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
The party establishment types still fear normal adversarial politics, still fear their own grassroots, still fear challenges to status quo. Now they're all hiding behind "affordability."
November 15, 2025 at 9:59 PM
The party establishment types still fear normal adversarial politics, still fear their own grassroots, still fear challenges to status quo. Now they're all hiding behind "affordability."
Reposted by Tom Benthin
"Affordability" has become the new identity politics refuge of the Dem powers-that-be.
The usual suspects are telling Dems that Epstein won’t win elections, get back to “affordability” and I think my head might explode. www.offmessage.net/p/force-a-re...
Force A Referendum On The Epstein Coverup
It divides Republicans much more than "affordability" or any other economic issue.
www.offmessage.net
November 15, 2025 at 9:54 PM
"Affordability" has become the new identity politics refuge of the Dem powers-that-be.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
This is a story about how America’s world-leading cancer and dementia research system was destroyed by frauds and naifs who broke the law.
There must be consequences.
There must be consequences.
Some incredible details in this piece
*one DOGE faction was planning the future of the US government at a venture capital firm
*illegally communicating on Signal to avoid transparency laws was deeply embedded into organizational culture to be taken for granted
*one DOGE faction was planning the future of the US government at a venture capital firm
*illegally communicating on Signal to avoid transparency laws was deeply embedded into organizational culture to be taken for granted
November 22, 2025 at 10:12 PM
This is a story about how America’s world-leading cancer and dementia research system was destroyed by frauds and naifs who broke the law.
There must be consequences.
There must be consequences.
Reposted by Tom Benthin
You ever just sit down and realize that the rise of 21st century fascism is capital's answer to climate change?
November 21, 2025 at 9:25 AM
You ever just sit down and realize that the rise of 21st century fascism is capital's answer to climate change?
Reposted by Tom Benthin
The Republican Party is a Nazi party, exhibit whatever out of infinity.
Exclusive: The U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify the swastika, nooses and the Confederate flag as hate symbols.
The military service drafted a new policy that classifies them as “potentially divisive.”
The military service drafted a new policy that classifies them as “potentially divisive.”
U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify swastikas, nooses as hate symbols
The military service, which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, has drafted a new policy that classifies such items “potentially divisive.”
www.washingtonpost.com
November 21, 2025 at 11:45 AM
The Republican Party is a Nazi party, exhibit whatever out of infinity.
Good people of Virginia, who are you nurturing now to rid yourselves of Kaine in 2030? (Unless you can make his life so miserable that he leaves before then, in which case, more power to you).
Heaven forbid the Republicans get rid of the filibuster…
November 12, 2025 at 11:38 PM
Good people of Virginia, who are you nurturing now to rid yourselves of Kaine in 2030? (Unless you can make his life so miserable that he leaves before then, in which case, more power to you).
Reposted by Tom Benthin
LOL they caved because they thought Republicans would actually end the filibuster and that was the scariest thing of all to that institution
Heaven forbid the Republicans get rid of the filibuster…
November 12, 2025 at 11:31 PM
LOL they caved because they thought Republicans would actually end the filibuster and that was the scariest thing of all to that institution