Andrew Blum
@ablum.bsky.social
Project Director at the Burnham Center for Community Advancement, burnhamcenter.org. Leading the OneSD initiative, www.onesd.org. E Pluribus Unum.
Fan of 🚴♀️, ⚾️ and good 🥃.
Fan of 🚴♀️, ⚾️ and good 🥃.
Pinned
E Pluribus Unum
Reposted by Andrew Blum
Sure make this the enemy. See how that goes…
January 10, 2026 at 12:51 AM
Sure make this the enemy. See how that goes…
Reposted by Andrew Blum
For San Diego folks who are looking for an e-bike, just want to give a shout out to Electric Bike Central on San Diego Ave. Small shop that only sells quality bikes and 100% takes care of their customers.
January 9, 2026 at 8:59 PM
For San Diego folks who are looking for an e-bike, just want to give a shout out to Electric Bike Central on San Diego Ave. Small shop that only sells quality bikes and 100% takes care of their customers.
🧵
Iran updates.
Thread.
1/
Thread.
1/
Iran Protests | Fuladshahr, Isfahan
www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8-x...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8-x...
January 10, 2026 at 2:08 PM
🧵
Keep feeling this weird duality where the World Cup/Olympics can’t not happen but can’t happen.
www.tallahassee.com/story/sports...
www.tallahassee.com/story/sports...
Visa woes block top world cross country runners from competing in Florida
A significant number of Ethiopian athletes were denied visas to travel to the United States for the event scheduled in Tallahassee, Florida.
www.tallahassee.com
January 10, 2026 at 1:23 PM
Keep feeling this weird duality where the World Cup/Olympics can’t not happen but can’t happen.
www.tallahassee.com/story/sports...
www.tallahassee.com/story/sports...
Do you know how politically savvy you have to be to rise to power in a place like Congo or Venezuela? Expect Trump admin officials to continue getting boat raced.
January 10, 2026 at 1:48 AM
Do you know how politically savvy you have to be to rise to power in a place like Congo or Venezuela? Expect Trump admin officials to continue getting boat raced.
Reposted by Andrew Blum
So how's the historic Congo peace deal going?
US scolds Rwanda for breaking peace deal as M23 rebels seize key Congo city
Mike Waltz warns ‘spoilers’ will be held to account as rebel fighters escalate offensive in South Kivu province
www.theguardian.com
January 10, 2026 at 1:30 AM
So how's the historic Congo peace deal going?
Reposted by Andrew Blum
When I’m walking on the street my favorite dog facial expression is “I see you and I’d like to come say hi but I’m ver busy. Working. Working. Very busy.”
January 8, 2026 at 7:56 PM
When I’m walking on the street my favorite dog facial expression is “I see you and I’d like to come say hi but I’m ver busy. Working. Working. Very busy.”
Reposted by Andrew Blum
The less I drive the more I hate it.
January 8, 2026 at 10:57 PM
The less I drive the more I hate it.
Reposted by Andrew Blum
This is a very good piece that indirectly demonstrates how absurd Rubio dashed off demands for the central government are, eg “Deal with the ELN.”
‘We can’t take it any more’: thousands flee guerrilla clashes on Colombia-Venezuela border
Caracas shake-up could intensify violence in Catatumbo in Colombia, an area rich with coca crops, cocaine laboratories and a porous border with Venezuela
www.theguardian.com
January 9, 2026 at 1:06 PM
This is a very good piece that indirectly demonstrates how absurd Rubio dashed off demands for the central government are, eg “Deal with the ELN.”
Reposted by Andrew Blum
The two remaining senior Iran experts sitting with briefing folders on a bench in a hallway on the 7th floor of the State Department waiting until Rubio stops playing with a map of Greenland.
January 9, 2026 at 1:32 PM
The two remaining senior Iran experts sitting with briefing folders on a bench in a hallway on the 7th floor of the State Department waiting until Rubio stops playing with a map of Greenland.
Reposted by Andrew Blum
ICE has militarized our cities and caused chaos across the country to an extent we've never seen. Congress can't wait around for the next tragedy. That's why I introduced a bill to rein in their use of excessive and unnecessary force. We can't let our communities live in fear like this.
Fatal ICE shooting in Minneapolis reflects pattern of armed confrontations nationwide
A 37-year-old woman was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis Wednesday, the most recent armed confrontation between immigration agents and civilians across the country.
www.latimes.com
January 9, 2026 at 9:26 PM
ICE has militarized our cities and caused chaos across the country to an extent we've never seen. Congress can't wait around for the next tragedy. That's why I introduced a bill to rein in their use of excessive and unnecessary force. We can't let our communities live in fear like this.
For San Diego folks who are looking for an e-bike, just want to give a shout out to Electric Bike Central on San Diego Ave. Small shop that only sells quality bikes and 100% takes care of their customers.
January 9, 2026 at 8:59 PM
For San Diego folks who are looking for an e-bike, just want to give a shout out to Electric Bike Central on San Diego Ave. Small shop that only sells quality bikes and 100% takes care of their customers.
“I’m not mad at you.”
January 9, 2026 at 7:40 PM
“I’m not mad at you.”
Reposted by Andrew Blum
So to return to this: Mussolini had 200,000 blackshirts for the March on Rome in a country of ~35m. Hitler had 400,000 brownshirts in 1932 in Germany for a population of ~60m.
So around 0.6% of the population.
0.6% of 340m Americans is just over 2 million.
They do not have enough goons.
So around 0.6% of the population.
0.6% of 340m Americans is just over 2 million.
They do not have enough goons.
In 1932, on the eve of seizing power, the Nazi goon army - the Sturmabteiling or SA - numbered 400,000 members. By 1933, it was over two *million.*
DHS has 240,00 employees and lot of those are non-goons who have, you know, real jobs.
DHS has 240,00 employees and lot of those are non-goons who have, you know, real jobs.
January 9, 2026 at 6:45 PM
So to return to this: Mussolini had 200,000 blackshirts for the March on Rome in a country of ~35m. Hitler had 400,000 brownshirts in 1932 in Germany for a population of ~60m.
So around 0.6% of the population.
0.6% of 340m Americans is just over 2 million.
They do not have enough goons.
So around 0.6% of the population.
0.6% of 340m Americans is just over 2 million.
They do not have enough goons.
🧵
🧵 Trump foreign-policy is overwhelmingly reality-television optics. More sound and fury than shock and awe.
It doesn't put in the work. The deals it negotiates? Mostly vaporware. It announces "☮️ in our time" based on ceasefires. I'd bet good 💰 that 🇻🇪 will not be a vassal state for all that long.
It doesn't put in the work. The deals it negotiates? Mostly vaporware. It announces "☮️ in our time" based on ceasefires. I'd bet good 💰 that 🇻🇪 will not be a vassal state for all that long.
A Mercosur-EU shared market is post-American Transatlanticism
January 9, 2026 at 6:40 PM
🧵
The two remaining senior Iran experts sitting with briefing folders on a bench in a hallway on the 7th floor of the State Department waiting until Rubio stops playing with a map of Greenland.
January 9, 2026 at 1:32 PM
The two remaining senior Iran experts sitting with briefing folders on a bench in a hallway on the 7th floor of the State Department waiting until Rubio stops playing with a map of Greenland.
This is a very good piece that indirectly demonstrates how absurd Rubio dashed off demands for the central government are, eg “Deal with the ELN.”
‘We can’t take it any more’: thousands flee guerrilla clashes on Colombia-Venezuela border
Caracas shake-up could intensify violence in Catatumbo in Colombia, an area rich with coca crops, cocaine laboratories and a porous border with Venezuela
www.theguardian.com
January 9, 2026 at 1:06 PM
This is a very good piece that indirectly demonstrates how absurd Rubio dashed off demands for the central government are, eg “Deal with the ELN.”
🧵
Expect to see a surge of proud ignorance and proplawganda about what you can say about ICE agent Jonathan Ross, identified by local media as the person who shot and killed Renee Good.
In particular, expect a repeat of Rittenhouse-era “accusing him of murder is defamation” rhetoric.
It’s not.
/1
In particular, expect a repeat of Rittenhouse-era “accusing him of murder is defamation” rhetoric.
It’s not.
/1
January 9, 2026 at 3:10 AM
🧵
Reposted by Andrew Blum
We all saw the video with our own eyes. We won’t be gaslit by this cruel and violent Administration or its propaganda machine.
Rest in power, Renee Nicole Good.
Rest in power, Renee Nicole Good.
DHS says woman attempted to run over ICE officers before being shot in Minneapolis. Here’s what the videos show. | CNN
Three videos taken of the scene and reviewed by CNN show nuance. What took place prior to the shooting remains unclear.
www.cnn.com
January 9, 2026 at 3:06 AM
We all saw the video with our own eyes. We won’t be gaslit by this cruel and violent Administration or its propaganda machine.
Rest in power, Renee Nicole Good.
Rest in power, Renee Nicole Good.
Re my last repost on Gestapo numbers. This is one of the things that ironically gave me hope after a recent visit to the Holocaust Museum. Hitler’s consolidation of power was brutal and comprehensive.
The ICE stories are horrific but they are a few pins on a map in vast metropolises.
The ICE stories are horrific but they are a few pins on a map in vast metropolises.
January 9, 2026 at 2:58 AM
Re my last repost on Gestapo numbers. This is one of the things that ironically gave me hope after a recent visit to the Holocaust Museum. Hitler’s consolidation of power was brutal and comprehensive.
The ICE stories are horrific but they are a few pins on a map in vast metropolises.
The ICE stories are horrific but they are a few pins on a map in vast metropolises.
Reposted by Andrew Blum
The number of Gestapo in Germany was 32,000. The population was 70 million. That's one Gestapo for every 2200 citizens.
The number of ICE agents is 20,000. The population of the US is 348 million. That's one ICE agent for every 17,000 citizens.
There are more of us.
The number of ICE agents is 20,000. The population of the US is 348 million. That's one ICE agent for every 17,000 citizens.
There are more of us.
January 9, 2026 at 1:44 AM
The number of Gestapo in Germany was 32,000. The population was 70 million. That's one Gestapo for every 2200 citizens.
The number of ICE agents is 20,000. The population of the US is 348 million. That's one ICE agent for every 17,000 citizens.
There are more of us.
The number of ICE agents is 20,000. The population of the US is 348 million. That's one ICE agent for every 17,000 citizens.
There are more of us.
The less I drive the more I hate it.
January 8, 2026 at 10:57 PM
The less I drive the more I hate it.
When I’m walking on the street my favorite dog facial expression is “I see you and I’d like to come say hi but I’m ver busy. Working. Working. Very busy.”
January 8, 2026 at 7:56 PM
When I’m walking on the street my favorite dog facial expression is “I see you and I’d like to come say hi but I’m ver busy. Working. Working. Very busy.”
Reposted by Andrew Blum
Yes absolutely. There’s an interesting kind of American exceptionalism at work in the flip arguments about this being a bad question when, as @ablum.bsky.social points out, lots of places have faced this problem, including our southern neighbors in post-authoritarian years
bsky.app/profile/ablu...
bsky.app/profile/ablu...
Want to de-up this because there’s more discussion on here today about what do you do with all the agents once ICE is abolished. Lots of places around the world have had to deal with this problem.
bsky.app/profile/anja...
bsky.app/profile/anja...
the question of what to do with a violent organized group after you’ve decommissioned them is a serious one that a lot of policy and scholarly work explores, and we can’t treat the question as illegitimate. If your call to dismantle ICE is serious then it also implies that plan made seriously.
January 8, 2026 at 6:49 PM
Yes absolutely. There’s an interesting kind of American exceptionalism at work in the flip arguments about this being a bad question when, as @ablum.bsky.social points out, lots of places have faced this problem, including our southern neighbors in post-authoritarian years
bsky.app/profile/ablu...
bsky.app/profile/ablu...
Reposted by Andrew Blum
We’re going to need DDR and a future government that knows it will need expert help from transitional justice specialists
January 7, 2026 at 9:06 PM
We’re going to need DDR and a future government that knows it will need expert help from transitional justice specialists