Alan Wessman
@alanwessman.bsky.social
Former candidate for Utah County commissioner in 2024, United Utah Party. Politically moderate. Former Utah House candidate, district 64 (Spanish Fork). Husband, dad, hiker, misplacer of common household items.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
President Hernandez was responsible for smuggling 500 TONS of cocaine into the United States! He was the top dog; the Pablo Escobar figure! He wasn’t just “selling drugs in that country.”
Reporter: You have made so clear how you want to keep drugs out of the US—
Trump: Right
Reporter: Can you explain why you would pardon a notorious drug trafficker?
Trump: If somebody sells drugs in that country, that doesn’t mean you arrest the president
Trump: Right
Reporter: Can you explain why you would pardon a notorious drug trafficker?
Trump: If somebody sells drugs in that country, that doesn’t mean you arrest the president
December 1, 2025 at 1:02 AM
President Hernandez was responsible for smuggling 500 TONS of cocaine into the United States! He was the top dog; the Pablo Escobar figure! He wasn’t just “selling drugs in that country.”
Reposted by Alan Wessman
It’s useful to think about things like this in numbers of tenure track professors.
$33M is 358 assistant professors. Or about fourteen percent of the total number of full-time faculty at Michigan State.
$33M is 358 assistant professors. Or about fourteen percent of the total number of full-time faculty at Michigan State.
SOURCES: Michigan State is firing head coach Jonathan Smith, @theathletic.com has learned.
He went 9-15 in two seasons, including 1-8 in the Big Ten this year. (ESPN first reported).
MSU players meeting called for 2:45. Smith has a $33 million buyout (with offset).
He went 9-15 in two seasons, including 1-8 in the Big Ten this year. (ESPN first reported).
MSU players meeting called for 2:45. Smith has a $33 million buyout (with offset).
December 1, 2025 at 12:05 AM
It’s useful to think about things like this in numbers of tenure track professors.
$33M is 358 assistant professors. Or about fourteen percent of the total number of full-time faculty at Michigan State.
$33M is 358 assistant professors. Or about fourteen percent of the total number of full-time faculty at Michigan State.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
If the Venezuelan sailors were enemy combatants, then the 2nd strike is a war crime.
If the Venezuelan sailors weren’t enemy combatants, then both strikes are criminal murder.
It’s that simple.
If the Venezuelan sailors weren’t enemy combatants, then both strikes are criminal murder.
It’s that simple.
November 30, 2025 at 8:42 PM
If the Venezuelan sailors were enemy combatants, then the 2nd strike is a war crime.
If the Venezuelan sailors weren’t enemy combatants, then both strikes are criminal murder.
It’s that simple.
If the Venezuelan sailors weren’t enemy combatants, then both strikes are criminal murder.
It’s that simple.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
Senator Kelly is correct.
Plus a Public Service Announcement:
KEY section of Department of Defense's Law of War Manual is 18.3.2.1.
The VERY rule on the "requirement" to refuse illegal orders gives as its paradigmatic example of what is "clearly illegal:
"orders to fire upon the shipwrecked."
Plus a Public Service Announcement:
KEY section of Department of Defense's Law of War Manual is 18.3.2.1.
The VERY rule on the "requirement" to refuse illegal orders gives as its paradigmatic example of what is "clearly illegal:
"orders to fire upon the shipwrecked."
November 30, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Senator Kelly is correct.
Plus a Public Service Announcement:
KEY section of Department of Defense's Law of War Manual is 18.3.2.1.
The VERY rule on the "requirement" to refuse illegal orders gives as its paradigmatic example of what is "clearly illegal:
"orders to fire upon the shipwrecked."
Plus a Public Service Announcement:
KEY section of Department of Defense's Law of War Manual is 18.3.2.1.
The VERY rule on the "requirement" to refuse illegal orders gives as its paradigmatic example of what is "clearly illegal:
"orders to fire upon the shipwrecked."
Reposted by Alan Wessman
Commander White is one of the very few people involved in family separation from the inside who acquitted himself well. He raised alarm bells, pushed back, and got ORR to start tracking separations long before DHS did, so that it was possible later to reunite kids and know the scale.
He reunited families separated under Trump. Now he’s running for Congress. wapo.st/3KdDBQ1
He reunited families separated under Trump. Now he’s running for Congress.
Jonathan White, a longtime civil servant who fought Trump officials’ efforts to separate migrant families, says Democrats must do more to combat the president.
wapo.st
November 30, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Commander White is one of the very few people involved in family separation from the inside who acquitted himself well. He raised alarm bells, pushed back, and got ORR to start tracking separations long before DHS did, so that it was possible later to reunite kids and know the scale.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
SCOOP: David Gentile reported to prison on Nov. 14 to begin a 7-year sentence for what prosecutors described as a $1.6B scheme that defrauded thousands of victims.
Trump commuted Gentile's sentence 12 days later, freeing him from prison.
Trump commuted Gentile's sentence 12 days later, freeing him from prison.
Trump Frees Fraudster Just Days Into Seven-Year Prison Sentence
www.nytimes.com
November 30, 2025 at 2:51 AM
SCOOP: David Gentile reported to prison on Nov. 14 to begin a 7-year sentence for what prosecutors described as a $1.6B scheme that defrauded thousands of victims.
Trump commuted Gentile's sentence 12 days later, freeing him from prison.
Trump commuted Gentile's sentence 12 days later, freeing him from prison.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
They're not hiding it, folks—straight up neo-Nazi advertising, from the font to the language to the 11 stars for the Confederacy. Then you have the DHS openly using white nationalist language of "remigrate", which means ethnic cleansing.
This is who MAGA is now.
This is who MAGA is now.
November 30, 2025 at 6:43 AM
They're not hiding it, folks—straight up neo-Nazi advertising, from the font to the language to the 11 stars for the Confederacy. Then you have the DHS openly using white nationalist language of "remigrate", which means ethnic cleansing.
This is who MAGA is now.
This is who MAGA is now.
We need a few Republican senators to leave the party and go independent. Just a few to decide enough is enough.
November 30, 2025 at 7:52 AM
We need a few Republican senators to leave the party and go independent. Just a few to decide enough is enough.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
Thing is, we DID hear about it at his confirmation hearing.
Every single senator who voted to confirm Hegseth knew he held these views about the laws of war.
They voted to confirm him anyway.
Every single senator who voted to confirm Hegseth knew he held these views about the laws of war.
They voted to confirm him anyway.
Everyone should read this terrifying thread about Hegseth’s published views wrt war crimes. It’s pretty fucking radical …. We needed to hear about this in his confirmation hearing.
A chapter in Hegseth’s book is literally titled “More Lethality, Less Lawyers.”
It’s almost as if there were signs!
It’s almost as if there were signs!
November 29, 2025 at 6:01 PM
Thing is, we DID hear about it at his confirmation hearing.
Every single senator who voted to confirm Hegseth knew he held these views about the laws of war.
They voted to confirm him anyway.
Every single senator who voted to confirm Hegseth knew he held these views about the laws of war.
They voted to confirm him anyway.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
Remember, too, that Hegseth would have been rejected if a single additional Republican senator — or, JD Vance — had joined Sen. Collins, McConnell, and Murkowski in voting no with the Democrats. See: www.senate.gov/legislative/...
November 29, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Remember, too, that Hegseth would have been rejected if a single additional Republican senator — or, JD Vance — had joined Sen. Collins, McConnell, and Murkowski in voting no with the Democrats. See: www.senate.gov/legislative/...
Reposted by Alan Wessman
2/2 link:
Statement of the “Former JAGs Working Group” on Media Reports of Pentagon “No Quarter” Orders in Caribbean Boat Strikes
www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/u...
Statement of the “Former JAGs Working Group” on Media Reports of Pentagon “No Quarter” Orders in Caribbean Boat Strikes
www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/u...
November 29, 2025 at 8:11 PM
2/2 link:
Statement of the “Former JAGs Working Group” on Media Reports of Pentagon “No Quarter” Orders in Caribbean Boat Strikes
www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/u...
Statement of the “Former JAGs Working Group” on Media Reports of Pentagon “No Quarter” Orders in Caribbean Boat Strikes
www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/u...
Reposted by Alan Wessman
Former US military lawyers speak out:
"The Former JAGs Working Group unanimously considers both the giving and the execution of these orders, if true, to constitute war crimes, murder, or both."
Statement on Media Reports of Pentagon “No Quarter” Orders in Caribbean Boat Strikes
1/2
"The Former JAGs Working Group unanimously considers both the giving and the execution of these orders, if true, to constitute war crimes, murder, or both."
Statement on Media Reports of Pentagon “No Quarter” Orders in Caribbean Boat Strikes
1/2
November 29, 2025 at 8:10 PM
Former US military lawyers speak out:
"The Former JAGs Working Group unanimously considers both the giving and the execution of these orders, if true, to constitute war crimes, murder, or both."
Statement on Media Reports of Pentagon “No Quarter” Orders in Caribbean Boat Strikes
1/2
"The Former JAGs Working Group unanimously considers both the giving and the execution of these orders, if true, to constitute war crimes, murder, or both."
Statement on Media Reports of Pentagon “No Quarter” Orders in Caribbean Boat Strikes
1/2
Reposted by Alan Wessman
This is one of the most important exposés published in WSJ in several years, and it derives from intercepts and analyses by foreign intelligence services studying the conduct of Trump and his inner team. It's first and foremost a wake up call to the people of the United States.
Make Money Not War: Trump’s Real Plan for Peace in Ukraine
The Kremlin pitched the White House on peace through business. To Europe’s dismay, the president and his envoy are on board.
www.wsj.com
November 29, 2025 at 2:44 PM
This is one of the most important exposés published in WSJ in several years, and it derives from intercepts and analyses by foreign intelligence services studying the conduct of Trump and his inner team. It's first and foremost a wake up call to the people of the United States.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
The U.S.’s proposed Russia-Ukraine peace plan is this: Russia cuts Trump and his buddies in on the spoils of war.
"By dangling multibillion-dollar rare-earth and energy deals, Moscow could reshape the economic map of Europe—while driving a wedge between America and its traditional allies"
Read this excellent @wsj.com account of the business deals behind the "peace"negotiations
www.wsj.com/world/russia...
Read this excellent @wsj.com account of the business deals behind the "peace"negotiations
www.wsj.com/world/russia...
Make Money Not War: Trump’s Real Plan for Peace in Ukraine
The Kremlin pitched the White House on peace through business. To Europe’s dismay, the president and his envoy are on board.
www.wsj.com
November 29, 2025 at 2:13 PM
The U.S.’s proposed Russia-Ukraine peace plan is this: Russia cuts Trump and his buddies in on the spoils of war.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
I cannot even begin to express my rage at this lie
reading this through me back into my pandemic EMT life, attempting to resuscitate a child experiencing a cardiac arrest secondary to COVID while a father says “we heard that the vaccine was riskier than COVID for kids” and a mother wails in agony
reading this through me back into my pandemic EMT life, attempting to resuscitate a child experiencing a cardiac arrest secondary to COVID while a father says “we heard that the vaccine was riskier than COVID for kids” and a mother wails in agony
NEW: The F.D.A. announced in an internal memo that 10 children died "because of" the Covid shot. Other experts want to see proof.
“This is a profound revelation,” Dr. Prasad's memo said. “For the first time, the U.S. F.D.A. will acknowledge that Covid-19 vaccines have killed American children.”
“This is a profound revelation,” Dr. Prasad's memo said. “For the first time, the U.S. F.D.A. will acknowledge that Covid-19 vaccines have killed American children.”
F.D.A. Attributes 10 Children’s Deaths to Covid Vaccines
www.nytimes.com
November 29, 2025 at 12:27 PM
I cannot even begin to express my rage at this lie
reading this through me back into my pandemic EMT life, attempting to resuscitate a child experiencing a cardiac arrest secondary to COVID while a father says “we heard that the vaccine was riskier than COVID for kids” and a mother wails in agony
reading this through me back into my pandemic EMT life, attempting to resuscitate a child experiencing a cardiac arrest secondary to COVID while a father says “we heard that the vaccine was riskier than COVID for kids” and a mother wails in agony
Reposted by Alan Wessman
"The DOD Manual is clear because the law here is clear: 'Persons who have been incapacitated by . . . shipwreck are in a helpless state, and it would be dishonorable and inhumane to make them the object of attack.'"
A Dishonorable Strike
Indulging all assumptions in favor of the administration’s boat strikes, killing helpless men is murder
www.execfunctions.org
November 29, 2025 at 4:43 AM
"The DOD Manual is clear because the law here is clear: 'Persons who have been incapacitated by . . . shipwreck are in a helpless state, and it would be dishonorable and inhumane to make them the object of attack.'"
Reposted by Alan Wessman
You're not seeing the defense and international conflict experts disagreeing because if the facts are true, it's one of the most basic things in the law of armed conflict: You cannot kill people who are "hors de combat," taken out of the game by injury or attack. This is Geneva 101 stuff.
I follower a few defense experts.
Seeing them all straight-up declare this a war crime without any him-and-hawing is uhm
Disconcerting.
Pete Hegseth must resign, as does Stephen Miller. Donald Trump should be subpoenaed before Congress to answer for HIS policy.
Seeing them all straight-up declare this a war crime without any him-and-hawing is uhm
Disconcerting.
Pete Hegseth must resign, as does Stephen Miller. Donald Trump should be subpoenaed before Congress to answer for HIS policy.
November 29, 2025 at 2:01 AM
You're not seeing the defense and international conflict experts disagreeing because if the facts are true, it's one of the most basic things in the law of armed conflict: You cannot kill people who are "hors de combat," taken out of the game by injury or attack. This is Geneva 101 stuff.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
Sarah Beckstrom should be enjoying this weekend at home with her family. Bless them.
Rest in peace, Sarah Beckstrom (2005–2025). A young life taken far too soon in Washington, D.C. Her future was stolen, her story cut short, and our nation is poorer for it.
November 29, 2025 at 1:51 AM
Sarah Beckstrom should be enjoying this weekend at home with her family. Bless them.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
Thread about an actual drug smuggler who’s about to be pardoned by Trump
Juan Orlando Hernandez was convicted by a jury of conspiring to traffic 400 tons of cocaine into the United States.
November 28, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Thread about an actual drug smuggler who’s about to be pardoned by Trump
Reposted by Alan Wessman
So the order for the US military to launch these deadly Caribbean boat strikes was straightforwardly illegal under US and international law, immoral under long established standards, and on top of that, terrible strategy.
Not maybe. Not got to check with a lawyer. Unambiguous. Blatant. Deliberate.
Not maybe. Not got to check with a lawyer. Unambiguous. Blatant. Deliberate.
Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: Kill them all
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a verbal order to kill all crew members in the Sept. 2 strike on a suspected drug boat. Navy SEALs fired a second missile.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 28, 2025 at 6:08 PM
So the order for the US military to launch these deadly Caribbean boat strikes was straightforwardly illegal under US and international law, immoral under long established standards, and on top of that, terrible strategy.
Not maybe. Not got to check with a lawyer. Unambiguous. Blatant. Deliberate.
Not maybe. Not got to check with a lawyer. Unambiguous. Blatant. Deliberate.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
Criminal liability attaches for following an order "which a man of ordinary sense and understanding would, under the circumstances, know to be unlawful, or if the order in question is actually known to the accused to be unlawful." U.S. v. Calley (1974)
So the order for the US military to launch these deadly Caribbean boat strikes was straightforwardly illegal under US and international law, immoral under long established standards, and on top of that, terrible strategy.
Not maybe. Not got to check with a lawyer. Unambiguous. Blatant. Deliberate.
Not maybe. Not got to check with a lawyer. Unambiguous. Blatant. Deliberate.
Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: Kill them all
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a verbal order to kill all crew members in the Sept. 2 strike on a suspected drug boat. Navy SEALs fired a second missile.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 28, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Criminal liability attaches for following an order "which a man of ordinary sense and understanding would, under the circumstances, know to be unlawful, or if the order in question is actually known to the accused to be unlawful." U.S. v. Calley (1974)
Reposted by Alan Wessman
This is murder. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
November 28, 2025 at 6:16 PM
This is murder. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
Hegseth is a criminal for giving the illegal order to commit premeditated murder.
The commander and those under him who obeyed that illegal order are also criminals for carrying it out instead of refusing as their oaths demanded.
The commander and those under him who obeyed that illegal order are also criminals for carrying it out instead of refusing as their oaths demanded.
This isn't a military strike. This is premeditated murder and Pete Hegseth is going to spend the rest of his fucking life rotting away in the deepest hole in Leavenworth once America is liberated from this illegitimate, illegal regime.
November 28, 2025 at 6:25 PM
Hegseth is a criminal for giving the illegal order to commit premeditated murder.
The commander and those under him who obeyed that illegal order are also criminals for carrying it out instead of refusing as their oaths demanded.
The commander and those under him who obeyed that illegal order are also criminals for carrying it out instead of refusing as their oaths demanded.
Reposted by Alan Wessman
The Trump DOJ played down the risk of deploying the National Guard to DC, despite warnings, and now one of them is dead. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
November 28, 2025 at 3:59 PM
The Trump DOJ played down the risk of deploying the National Guard to DC, despite warnings, and now one of them is dead. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
Reposted by Alan Wessman
In 1945, the US Army put out a training manual designed to equip rank and file soldiers with the tools to spot and combat incipient fascism were it to emerge in post-war America. Those lessons are just as American as Miller's illiberal bigotry, and worth remembering today. bsky.app/profile/seth...
The first fascistic tactic to look out for is a hate campaign against a particular religious, racial, or ethnic group. Like, for example, let's say a candidate emerges who calls all people of one nationality "rapists" and "criminals," while promising to ban immigrants from only one religious group.
November 28, 2025 at 2:41 PM
In 1945, the US Army put out a training manual designed to equip rank and file soldiers with the tools to spot and combat incipient fascism were it to emerge in post-war America. Those lessons are just as American as Miller's illiberal bigotry, and worth remembering today. bsky.app/profile/seth...