Kind: Reads

And other confessions that led to the collapse of my Conservatism

Six Months In: Thoughts On The Current Post-Twitter Diaspora Options by Mike Masnick

Today is six months since Elon took over Twitter and began this bizarre speedrun of the content moderation learning curve in which he seems to repeatedly… not learn a damn thing. Over and over again he makes ridiculous choices that have made the entire platform less welcoming for speech, more willing to obey government demands, […]

It’s Friday, and I’m up early at a conference on the West Coast without a lot of time to explore a big in-depth story before the sessions begin. But a quirky one out of Oregon caught my eye this morning that felt like a perfect Friday piece. It made me both snortle and shake my head in a mix of disbelief and exasperation.

Let’s check the record.

Thoughts From 2012 Seem Relevant in 2023

Everyone wants to get the money out of politics. What this newsletter presupposes is: What if we need to get The People out of politics?

There’s a line somewhere and Clarence Thomas and Harlan Crow are way over it.

The war on books escalates, and the public library system is under assault. The Christian Fascist end goal seems to be church control over information, with Christian Fascists curating what we can read. Libraries are losing funding around the country, with the trend being so popular that Missouri's ...

The right-wing in the U.S. feels they are being drowned out by the dominant culture in the U.S. and they have a term for it: 'woke culture.'

One of the more baffling events of the first quarter of 2023 was the mass protest in Oxford (England, not Mississippi) against the “15-minute city pledge,” a movement to get city councils to strive for cities where each neighborhood is a walkable place, with most amenities (groceries, schools, health care, employers, leisure activities) located within a pleasant 15-minute walk from your door. The 15-minute city is an extremely inoffensive and

Plus: Putin's false flag attack?

Republican Trump boosters like Peter Thiel having 2024 doubts by Charlie Sykes

Billionaires like Peter Thiel are reportedly uncomfortable with 2024's MAGA culture warriors. If only someone could have seen this coming.

In today’s Morning Shots: Alpha Man runs away from debates and testimony. CNN’s tangled web. Overturning elections in Texas. The text that got Tucker fired? Trump’s 26 accusers. Of course he can win. Happy Wednesday. The bravest, most dominant, manliest of alpha males — the man who promises “I am your retribution!” — absolutely does not want to get on the stage with anyone who runs against him.

The invite-only, Jack Dorsey-backed social network Bluesky had a surge of interest and new users last week. But between the appearance of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, harassment scandals, and platform errors, a new community is finding its footing.

If this Bud's for you, it apparently can't also be for me

Disney boycotts are nothing new. Except when they are.

Elon Musk has threatened to reassign NPR's Twitter account to "another company." In a series of emails sent to this reporter, Musk said he would transfer the network's main account on Twitter, under the @NPR handle, to another organization or person. The idea shocked even longtime observers of Musk's spur-of-the-moment and erratic leadership style.

The Florida Art Students Who Want to Take Down DeSantis by Carolina Drake

As the threat of legislation banning critical race and queer theory looms, students and faculty at Florida International University are making their voices heard.

Who gets to decide how “true rape victims” behave, anyway?

Many famous leakers of military and governmental secrets have acted on principle. The alleged Discord leaker, Jack Teixeira, is not among them.