Lynn Gazis-Sax
@empressnorton.bsky.social
1.3K followers 4.8K following 3K posts
DevOps Engineer, speculative fiction writer in my spare time, Quaker. I enjoy singing in several languages. Used to be in Katie Porter's district till I got redistricted to Young Kim's district. She/they.
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Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
aelkus.bsky.social
"it is necessary to have a sane conservative party for a democracy to survive" should not be an controversial opinion
golikehellmachine.com
you can just read the interview, you know.
So I see this election as very critical to who we are as a nation - the character of America, democracy. And they may not like hearing that, but I don't like what they're saying either. And what they're - the assault that they are making on - no one is above the law. That's been what America has been about, except if you're Donald Trump.

KELLY: When you say they, you're talking about who? Republicans?

PELOSI: Yeah. I'm talking...

KELLY: People who support Trump?

PELOSI: ...About the cult that the Republican Party has become - a cult to a thug. And that thug would be Donald Trump. So I wish they'd take back their part of - the country needs a strong Republican Party. It has had a strong Republican Party with great leaders for America. And that is really not what we're seeing there. It's up to them, though.
empressnorton.bsky.social
... is that it got changed at Ellis Island. But that may be shorthand for "got changed somewhere along the line"; I don't know exactly when and where my uncle became Anthony Apostolos instead of Apostolos Antoniou. /end
empressnorton.bsky.social
I think the debate is not about whether people's names changed when they immigrated but about whether Ellis Island was the location of the change. My father's uncle, who came to the US before my father, absolutely had a name change - from Apostolos Antoniou to Anthony Apostolos. Our family story ...
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
effies.bsky.social
If you can, go peacefully protest at a 10/18 #NoKings event.
Or, there'll be at least one virtual protest at 2:30pm PDT, I'll post the zoom link when I have it.

Can't do either? That's ok too. Support a protesting friend by being their safe contact, or offer childcare, or whatever. It all helps!
gregpak.net
I frequently say you don't need to protest. You don't! There are a thousand other ways to push back on fascism if protesting doesn't feel comfortable or safe for you!

But if you CAN go, this 10/18 #NoKings thing is really a key protest to participate in. Be part of it, friends.
gregpak.net
NO KINGS, y'all! October 18! Find a rally near you and GO!

nokings.org
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
jeremyszal.bsky.social
Writers should be able to write and publish in any genre, or change genre, at will.

The idea, often held by publishing sales teams, that an author must stay in one genre lane for the duration of their career, is the height of lunacy.
rachelfeder.bsky.social
Tell me your most unhinged literary opinion, as a little treat
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
ryanmarino.bsky.social
Chikungunya is difficult to test for & has no treatment. It has exploded globally in the past 20 yrs bc of climate change, w/ outbreaks in areas it wasn’t previously found. First detected in the W Hemisphere in 2015, local transmission now occurs in the US. This administration suspended the vaccine…
drianweissman.bsky.social
The world's largest factory that produces mosquitoes that can prevent dengue, Zika and chikungunya viruses from reproducing has opened in Curitiba, Brazil, aiming to boost protection in 40 municipalities with high infection rates.
www.upi.com/Health_News/...
Brazil opens world’s largest mosquito biofactory to fight disease - UPI.com
The world's largest factory that produces mosquitoes that can prevent dengue, Zika and chikungunya viruses from reproducing has opened in Curitiba, Brazil.
www.upi.com
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
danahoule.bsky.social
..for ICE is they don’t want to show their faces.

Literally.

Watch these videos. Four federal agents drew their weapons & pointed them at a man who threatened them by..telling them to remove their masks.

The federal agents are afraid to show their faces…/5

bsky.app/profile/dans...
dansinker.com
One continuous scene of two separate run-ins with ICE from an alley in Rogers Park this morning, from three entirely different POVs.

1. www.instagram.com/reel/DPt0Roi...

2. bsky.app/profile/roya...

3. bsky.app/profile/juri...
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
danahoule.bsky.social
…thing—besides inspiring local organizing in places like Albany Park (where ICE gassed people this weekend) & my old neighborhood of Rogers Park, where this weekend hundreds & hundreds of people were on the streets of the 1.8 sq mi home to +50K people protecting their neighbors—the other problem…/4
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
danahoule.bsky.social
…participating in immigration enforcement. Last weekend there was video of a 15 y/o grave’s in her yard that showed local cops involved. But that’s been rare. For the most part federalism & local control have been dunes worth of sand in gears.

But the other thing…/3

bsky.app/profile/chic...
chicagotrans-plant.bsky.social
Evanston votes on banning ICE officers from using city property as staging areas and strengthening it's welcoming cities ordinance.

Unanimously passes.

Biss says staff will begin implementing it immediately.
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
danahoule.bsky.social
…all that they’ve thrown at us. Part of it is people around here just aren’t as upset about living w brown people like you find in other parts of the country. You also have the results of activists who lobbied legislators, & Dems who passed laws, that prohibit state/county/local police from…/2
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
danahoule.bsky.social
This is an important thread. There are probably several hundred Federal agents who were sent to Chicagoland last month. They have inflicted cruelty & misery, they’ve gassed, & even shot & killed people. Every person they kidnap is a tragedy

But they actually haven’t got man people considering…/1
johnpfaff.bsky.social
What Trump is doing is very bad. But I want to push back against some of the numbers here.

ICE did not hire 10,000 agents. It WANTS to. That it keeps running ads suggests it is struggling. And when it does, it seems to cannibalize local police, who don't like that.

More significantly:
petersterne.com
"(Officers) refuse to recognize local or court authority. A judge says you can’t arrest journalists. Watch us. A judge says we have to wear badges. No. State law says we can’t drive around in unmarked vans? Too bad. Elected officials who want to see what is going on should prepare to be arrested."
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
emilylhauser.bsky.social
*10/13/2025 noncooperation thread*

"In another victory... a beloved Muslim faith leader & hospital chaplain who's brought immense comfort to families of dying children has also won his release after 2+ mos in ICE detention."

So many ppl refusing to comply, every day, to secure these releases.
10/
tusk81.bsky.social
“I’m overwhelmed w/joy and relief,” said Alejandra following the release of her #DACA recipient husband. “Paulo belongs w/our family, not in a detention center. This has been the most difficult time of our lives, but we never lost hope that justice would prevail.” open.substack.com/pub/americas...
Unjustly Detained Immigrants Win Freedom Following Legal Action And Community Pushback: ‘I Am Beyond Grateful’
There’s power in standing up for each other.
open.substack.com
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
thebulwark.com
"Those who study the law and are experts on the balance of power warn that unless Congress reasserts its authority soon, we may end up unable to repair the guardrails that have held our government together for centuries." www.thebulwark.com/p/the-other-...
The OTHER Democratic Demand for Reopening the Government
It’s about stopping Donald Trump and Russ Vought—and it can’t happen soon enough.
www.thebulwark.com
empressnorton.bsky.social
Depends - if it's fun to write, however bad it may be, the effort isn't wasted.
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
lagunabeachdems.bsky.social
Let’s build a better Orange County together. Join a local Democratic Club—learn, meet neighbors, act. Click the link or email any club shown—we’ll see you at the next meeting.
JOIN A LOCAL
Democratic Club
Democratic Party of Orange County - info@ocdemocrats.org
• Aliso Niguel Democratic Club - AlisoNiguelDemocrats@gmail.com
• Canyon Democrats - chair@canyondems.org
• Central Orange County Democratic Club - CentralOCDems@gmail.com
• Costa Mesa Democratic Club - cmdemclub@gmail.com
• Democrats of Greater Irvine - demsofirvine@gmail.com
• Democratic Club of Seal Beach - DemocraticClubofSealBeach@gmail.com
• Democratic Club of West Orange County - dcwoc@demclubofwestoc.com
• Democrats for Israel OC - dfiorangecounty@gmail.com
• Democrats of North OC - info@dnoc.org
• Democratic Women of South OC - info@dwsoc.org
• Irvine Democratic Club - IrvineDemClub@gmail.com
• Laguna Beach Democratic Club - LBDC@TheLBDems.com
• Laguna Woods Democratic Club - info@LagunaWoodsDemocrats.org
• Lavender Democrats of OC - lavenderdemsoc@gmail.com
• Newport Beach Women's Democratic Club - info@NBWDC.org
• Orange County Young Democrats- ocyoungdemocrats@gmail.com
• Seal Beach Leisure World Democratic Club - lwsbdemocraticclub@gmail.com
• Supporters of Public Education OC - sopeoc@gmail.com
•Westminster Democratic Club - WestminsterDemClub@gmail.com
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
unraveledpress.com
Yes, you should be surprised and horrified by secret federal police running around our city kidnapping immigrants, crashing cars, launching chemical weapons and shooting and killing people. This is a thing you should be *perpetually* shocked by. We lose when we become numb to it.
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
gregpak.net
I frequently say you don't need to protest. You don't! There are a thousand other ways to push back on fascism if protesting doesn't feel comfortable or safe for you!

But if you CAN go, this 10/18 #NoKings thing is really a key protest to participate in. Be part of it, friends.
gregpak.net
NO KINGS, y'all! October 18! Find a rally near you and GO!

nokings.org
Graphic with a cartoon bald eagle carrying an upside-down crown over a banner reading "NO KINGS." Now in glorious color with a bit of 35mm film clouds at sunset as the background. NO KINGS logo and nokings.org URL at bottom right.
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
dabenner.bsky.social
Serious answer, Gino Bartali. He hid passport documents for Jews and messages to the Italian resistance inside the tubes of his bicycle when he was training for the Tour and Giro.
katelynburns.com
name an italian more worthy of an american holiday than columbus
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
jamellebouie.net
"The liberty and security of our fellow citizens is our great object, and not the prompt execution of the laws. Indecision, delay, blunders, nay villainous actions in the administration of government, are trifles compared to legalizing the full exertion of a tyrannical disposition."
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
beijingpalmer.bsky.social
a lot of people want to read Trump and team's fossil fuel obsession as being about *money* but while there is of course a corruption element, it's primarily pure culture war stuff. even many of the big fossil fuel companies want to get into renewables because it's so obviously the future.
brandontbishop.bsky.social
Coal production and employment in Wyoming has steadily been declining, much like the rest of the industry in the US.

Coal is a dead industry.

(Chart from here: www.uwyo.edu/cbea/wyoming... )
Graphs showing coal production (left) and employment in coal (right) for the state of Wyoming from 1983 to 2020 from the linked website. Coal production was rapidly increasing until 2008 and has more or less steadily decreased since. Employment in coal likewise rapidly increased until 2009, was stable until 2012 and has rapidly decreased since.
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
stephenwest.bsky.social
How W. E. B. Du Bois responded to government policing of "anti-American" sentiment during the 1910s:

"I took great satisfaction in being able to sit back in my chair and answer blandly, 'We are seeking to have the Constitution of the United States thoroughly and completely enforced.' ”
Federal agents invaded even the offices of The Crisis and the National Association for the advancement of colored people and asked searching questions: " just what, after all, were our objects and activities?” I took great satisfaction in being able to sit back in my chair and answer blandly, “We are seeking to have the constitution of the United states thoroughly and completely enforced.” It took some ingenuity, even for Southerners, to make treason out of that.
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
reichlinmelnick.bsky.social
In the case of Mr. Cruz, we have a very literal "show me your papers" arrest.

He was chilling with a friend when ICE officers demanded to see his papers. He didn't have them on him, so they detained him and interrogated him. He was eventually released — but with the ticket.
Rueben Antonio Cruz was sitting with a friend in Rogers Park when ICE agents pulled up onto the street.
The immigration officers stopped their truck and went straight after them on Oct. 9, Cruz told the Tribune.
“They asked us if we have papers. I said I do but I don’t have them on me,” Cruz, a 60-year old man with heart problems originally from El Salvador, recalled in Spanish.
The agents stood Cruz up, put him in their truck, drove around in circles, and asked questions, he said.
Where was he born? What is his name? Who is his mother? Who is his father?
“I told them, they are dead,” Cruz said. The agents said they needed the information anyway so they could look him up in their databases. Eventually, the agents verified that he is, in fact, legally in the country. And they let him go.
But not before writing him a $130 ticket for not having his papers. Cruz’s friend, who is homeless, did not have legal status and was taken away by the feds.
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
reichlinmelnick.bsky.social
Since the Alien Registration Act of 1940, every noncitizen has been required to carry their documents with them at ALL times. That applies to every green card holder, every tourist, every foreign student, etc...

No admin in the modern era has EVER tried to enforce this law.
(e)Personal possession of registration or receipt card; penalties
Every alien, eighteen years of age and over, shall at all times carry with him and have in his personal possession any certificate of alien registration or alien registration receipt card issued to him pursuant to subsection (d). Any alien who fails to comply with the provisions of this subsection shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall upon conviction for each offense be fined not to exceed $100 or be imprisoned not more than thirty days, or both.
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
reichlinmelnick.bsky.social
Wow, wow, wow. This has always been legally possible but the law has virtually never been enforced — and now this is the SECOND case I've heard of in the last month (first involving a person with a green card) of a noncitizen being charged for failure to carry their papers.
royalpratt.bsky.social
NEWS: ICE gave a Rogers Park man a $130 ticket for not having his papers on him. They rounded him up last week and eventually let him go, but not without a fine that some critics say is un-American. Trump admin enforcing little-used law
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/13/i...
ICE tickets Chicago man with legal residency $130 for not having his papers on him: ‘It’s not fair…I’m a resident’
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement fined Rueben Antonio Cruz $130 for not having his papers with him.
www.chicagotribune.com
Reposted by Lynn Gazis-Sax
emptywheel.bsky.social
It's not the best strategy for the next 2-4 years (or rather, 2-4 years is medium term).

The best strategy for the short term is:
1) Get 3.5% of the population in the streets protesting
2) Peel off 4 Senators and 8 Congresspeople
jonmladd.bsky.social
This is an essential. "Democrats need to beat the Trumpists in elections that we ensure are free" is the best strategy for the next 2-4 years. But it is not a long-term strategy! The only possible long-term strategy is that someone else needs to defeat the Trumpists for control of the Repub Party.
jakemgrumbach.bsky.social
“Win every election” is not a viable strategy for preventing authoritarianism