The Decline of Journalism and the Rise of the "Journalist"
When a journalist is killed in a war zone, the reaction is immediate and predictable: condemnation from press-freedom groups, statements from the UN, headlines about “attacks on the…
H.R. 5967 Strategic Task Force and on Scam Prevention ct
October 16, 2026 – Cost Estimate. As ordered reported by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on September 16, 2026 At a Glance Continue reading
Ocean Spray Paint
Last month I observed that “it seems only a matter of time before Trump ‘renames’ either the Pacific or the […]
Crime data is being manipulated. Mainstream media is silent.
The news media are reluctant to discuss race, ethnicity or immigration status when it comes to crimes, except in instances where the offender is Caucasian and victim is non-white. The supposed reason…
Policy timelines
If you need evaluation findings sooner than the time it takes (1) to recruit enough participants for adequate statistical power, plus (2) the time for the final participant to complete the programme…
Divine Power
Since I wrote it, I have been thinking of how to follow up my (unfortunately) eerily prescient 2023 post, The Defenestration of Twitter . In the post, I referenced project REDMAP and how its success…
New York Post: Bitter Pills – Trump Takes Americans Like Me Hostage for Big Pharma
Online text at New York Post and below New York Post, October 18, 2026 Trump’s new rule on prescriptions will send the cost of my drugs through the roof — and maybe yours too by James Bovard…
I Built an AI Bot to Fact-Check the Midterms. Here's What I've Learned.
Many websites hate bots, consensus has its limits, and the six AI notewriters dominating Community Notes are run by X itself.With the midterms approaching, I've been spending most of my time on…
The Poor, The Personal, and the Proletariat
Just a short kvetch about something that I feel often causes confusion among online left wing people and where I feel we could do better if we all were just a bit clearer and more honest with…
The mean streets of the information superhighway
Over the last week we’ve seen Meta suppress the US’s No Kings protests, and Lula won his case in Brazil proving that Meta had, indeed, amplified the messages of his rival, Bolsonaro, to the level of…
Urgent: Stop jailing children in deportation prisons
US citizens: call on your congresscritter and senators to stop jailing children in deportation prisons. I edited the sample letter to avoid associating myself or my views with religion, and to reject…
Urgent: Youth Voting Rights Act
US citizens: call on Congress to pass the Youth Voting Rights Act, which would eliminate obstacles to registering and voting by young voters who are of voting age but lack experience. US citizens:…
Let's Kill Domestic Spam/Scam Texters
I hate scammers. And I hate spammers. I know, controversial opinion. But seriously, I do think I harbor an outsized rage towards them, at least for someone who's never been a victim of a serious scam…
First Look at the Upgraded Type 051C Destroyer Shenyang (DDG 115)
Here is a recently surfaced photo of upgraded Type 051C destroyer Shenyang (DDG 115) at sea. As rumored for quite some time, the Russian S-300F "Rif-M" system appears to be gone. The distinctive…
Robin's ballot — 2026 general election edition
Ballots are here! I'm on medical leave so I'm keeping this simple — links to voter guides, and a rundown of how I am voting, or would vote if I were in adjacent districts.
Saturday’s Etobicoke Bloor Street Love-In
This past week has been brutal for Toronto’s cycling community, but also encouraging to see so many come out to protest the removal of the Bloor bike lanes in Etobicoke. While I couldn’t make it out…
SFO “elected” to pay for DHS facial recognition system
We’ll be back at the San Francisco Airport Commission on Tuesday, October 20th (9 a.m., S.F. City Hall, Room 400) to renew our demands for the airport to end its illegal funding of facial…
Rocket Powered
They waited in line for the first flying cars. The waiting list had been full for months, but still they came, queuing around the block since 3am for the chance to be one of the special ones, the…
How to save France
Every democratic political system is retarded and your only job as a citizen is to exploit it more effectively than your opponents will. France’s system [...]
High Court: secret trial collapses due to confidentiality breaches
On 7 October 2026, I submitted an application withdrawing the secret legal document served on Nigel Farage's Reform UK party/company. Specifically, I lost any remaining confidence in the procedure…
Selected Cases From Justia, Week Ending October 16, 2026
During the week ending October 16, 2026, we have received listings of 21 Government and Administrative Law Summaries, 32 Constitutional Law summaries, 51 Criminal Law Summaries, 1 Intellectual…
[UPDATED] KOSMOS 2612 and ICEYE-X36: a worrisome cat-and-mouse-game in Space
click diagram to enlarge (update at end of post) A worrisome cat-and-mouse-game is happening in Space as we speak. The Russian military satellite KOSMOS 2612 (2026-083H) which was launched from…
Update
Je suis allé au Mans ce weekend pour manifester en soutien du mouvement lycéen. Voilà quelques photos. Mention spéciale pour la pancarte Porco Rosso. Si vous pouvez, sortez, soutenez, manifestez.…
How to Make the Political Flyers Stop
This morning, I shoveled today's batch of political flyers out of my mailbox and into the recycling bin. I'd had enough, so I took action to make them stop. I walked back to my apartment, finished…
Big Lies Make Big Losers
The Civil War and MAGA are losers By Dave Read, Lenox, MA, Oct. 17, 2026 – The canard of States Rights is the Big Lie that made the Confederacy a losing proposition. Human nature is such that…
When Veterans Took Up Arms for the Ballot Box
The Battle of Athens, Tennessee, remains a powerful reminder of what can happen when elected officials forget whom they serve. This is a true story about American veterans who returned home from…
A Story the World Must Hear: Ramzy Baroud on Gaza at the Left Coast Forum
Ramzy Baroud addresses Israel’s genocide in Gaza, Palestinian steadfastness, and global solidarity’s urgent responsibilities at the 2026 Left Coast Forum. The post A Story the World Must Hear: Ramzy…
As Trump Sabotages the ICC With Sanctions, There Are Many Ways to Fight Back
Trump officials now face a temporary restraining order for violating the First Amendment by sanctioning US groups. he U.S. government has long sought to incapacitate the International Criminal Court…
Air Pollution in Thailand
Thailand: Comprehensive National Policy Framework: PM2.5 and PM10 Suppression 1. Actual Impact of Particulate Matter Pollution Particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) represents one of Thailand’s most…
The anarchic administration
About two weeks ago, I read Regime Change , the account by Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swann of Trump's first year in office. I did not take any notes, and my brain, as usual, has far too many…
Henry Ford was a socialist?
Henry Ford was a socialist?
Sovereignty isn't a place
Sovereignty is everywhere. But what the hell do we mean by it?
Nanny State Newsletter #5
The latest Nanny State Newsletter has gone out to all the subscribers to my Substack and you can read it here .
BICIOS@S
La especulación inmobiliaria no afecta solo a la vivienda; muchos espacios sociales, autogestionados y independientes también se encuentran bajo amenaza de desalojo. Uno de ellos es Bicios@s, taller…
Despite his recent success in grabbing the headlines, Rahul is still the BJP's biggest political asset
Is Rahul Gandhi the BJP’s biggest political asset? Most BJP supporters think so, using the derisive “Pappu” nickname to dismiss him as a political threat. Shekhar Gupta, editor-in-chief of The Print…
The Special Investigatory Committee Reports
The Special Investigatory Committee has filed its report. It is available as a link. The report is 34 pages single-spaced of type. It goes on in vast detail about prior actions of LNC Regional…
Requiring Local Government Candidates To Declare Party Membership
As you're voting in the Tasmanian council elections there's a fair chance that some of the non-Greens candidates on your ballot are also members of a party. You might have a good idea who some of…
A New Record Set in the White House
The fourth “K” (see last post) was fired today after only five days in the job of White House Press Secretary. Katie Zacharia was offered the job just a week ago. Per the New York Times:…
Why Italian politics is “a bit of a mess”
One chart to explain why, as an Italian voter, I struggle to find a side I can stand behind.
What Political Promises Are Worth
As I started off my day with a quick look at the AP headlines, one article caught my attention and nearly made me spit my latte through my nose. Members of Congress were expressing outrage over…
Vaxxed and Voted
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Master of Chaos
    Trump storms Wasilla Could politics get any stranger than they are now in these un-United States of Trump? Okay, narcissistic President Donald J. could still take a shot at trying…
What is so ecstatic unknowable cutthroat glad as the walls of the flesh of the voice of betrayal —yet all the while lapped in talk more dull than the tick of a clock. A puppy learns to listen this way
L, formerly known here as Earthgirl (that's new Shakey), asked me to again go to No Kings with her tomorrow and of course I said yes. Unlike the previous two, the nearest one won't be on the…
Six Meta Problems That Should Be Issues in the Election, But Are Not
I have not blogged for a while but recently I have allowed all the election advertising to get under my skin. The solution sets being discussed -- to the extent any solutions are discussed rather…
This is why you need to turn out tomorrow for No Kings
This is why you need to turn out tomorrow for No Kings: He’s been meeting with these people, and top level MAGA have been wanting him to declare himself dictator for years. Remember that post I…
Where in the world are the FY ’27 HRSA SAC NOFOs?
When my kids were young, they watched, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? Now I must ask, where in the world are the 2027 HRSA SAC NOFOs? There was a time not that long ago when HRSA was a…
Katie Zacharia fired after five days as White House press secretary – reports | Trump administration | The Guardian
Katie Zacharia fired after five days as White House press secretary: Zacharia had a rocky start to her tenure as press secretary, hosting a widely panned first briefing on Tuesday. She had also faced…
Scottish Independence Vote 2.0
The political landscape in the UK is in such disarray at the moment it's very hard to pick where the country is going.... The Country.... Even that is a loaded term. When I say "The Country" I mean…