Bill Shea
@billshea19.bsky.social
Ex-journalist writing a shitty novel. Key West literary beach bum. Anti-fascist Leftist. Cleveland guy in Detroit. Filled with japery, rage, soup. Libertine degenerate descended from Welsh coal miners. Unhinged. No gods, no kings. Essays: Billshea.com
Pinned
Final thoughts on the Edmund Fitzgerald (and the Titanic)
I attended the memorial service (at the Mariner’s Church of Detroit – the “musty old hall” from the song) to mark the 50th anniversary of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sinking. As an o…
billshea.com
I attended the memorial service (at the Mariner’s Church of Detroit - the "musty old hall" from the song) to mark the 50th anniversary of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sinking on Monday. As an old-head Titanic buff and a Great Lakes kid, it was moving. Free essay:
billshea.com/2025/11/12/f...
billshea.com/2025/11/12/f...
Reposted by Bill Shea
It's funny how this isn't identifiable as a Conservative Opinion but is absolutely the sort of thing that runs on conservative opinion pages. An even split between "the traffic is so bad now" and "Mr. Trump, please exterminate the brutes." A perfectly American intellectual movement in that sense.
At this point, the Washpost edit page is just trolling its readers.
This is today's actual house editorial.
This is today's actual house editorial.
November 25, 2025 at 3:11 PM
It's funny how this isn't identifiable as a Conservative Opinion but is absolutely the sort of thing that runs on conservative opinion pages. An even split between "the traffic is so bad now" and "Mr. Trump, please exterminate the brutes." A perfectly American intellectual movement in that sense.
Anyone who has ever served has known more than a few Pete Hegseth types: Malevolent, incompetent, loud, dim, brutish, vindictive, deeply insecure, held in contempt by everyone, and an ass kisser to those higher in rank.
November 25, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Anyone who has ever served has known more than a few Pete Hegseth types: Malevolent, incompetent, loud, dim, brutish, vindictive, deeply insecure, held in contempt by everyone, and an ass kisser to those higher in rank.
Republicans: We hate democracy because we know people are sick of our cruel, greedy Nazi shit. So no voting for you!
🚨BREAKING: The Republican National Committee (RNC) has filed a sweeping new lawsuit in Michigan that seeks to eliminate a state law that protects voting access for U.S. citizens living abroad. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
Republicans Launch Major New Attack on Michigan-Based Overseas Voters
Read more here.
www.democracydocket.com
November 25, 2025 at 2:10 PM
Republicans: We hate democracy because we know people are sick of our cruel, greedy Nazi shit. So no voting for you!
Reposted by Bill Shea
First Secretary of Defense you could defeat by painting a tunnel on the side of a boulder.
November 25, 2025 at 1:55 PM
First Secretary of Defense you could defeat by painting a tunnel on the side of a boulder.
Reposted by Bill Shea
New twists in the Phoenix Suns ownership legal battle, as two minority owners suing Mat Ishbia say he engaged in financial mismanagement, including bad trades and leaving revenue on the table by putting games on free TV.
Interesting case, but I see some flaws. My take for @sportico.bsky.social:
Interesting case, but I see some flaws. My take for @sportico.bsky.social:
Suns Ownership Battle Takes Aim at Mat Ishbia’s Decisions
Minority owners suing Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury owner Mat Ishbia accuse him of mismanagement, but expect his attorneys to offer key defenses.
www.sportico.com
November 25, 2025 at 2:04 PM
New twists in the Phoenix Suns ownership legal battle, as two minority owners suing Mat Ishbia say he engaged in financial mismanagement, including bad trades and leaving revenue on the table by putting games on free TV.
Interesting case, but I see some flaws. My take for @sportico.bsky.social:
Interesting case, but I see some flaws. My take for @sportico.bsky.social:
Reposted by Bill Shea
Siri: tell me what happened to the previous CEO of UnitedHealth.
United Health wants its ‘swagger back’.
How? By dropping a million seniors from Medicare Advantage
Why? America's largest insurer wants to improve its profit margins, medical costs are skyrocketing because the GOP cut Medicaid and ACA subsidies.
How? By dropping a million seniors from Medicare Advantage
Why? America's largest insurer wants to improve its profit margins, medical costs are skyrocketing because the GOP cut Medicaid and ACA subsidies.
November 25, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Siri: tell me what happened to the previous CEO of UnitedHealth.
"A PLEDGE PIN, ON YOUR UNIFORM?!?!?!"
November 25, 2025 at 1:57 PM
"A PLEDGE PIN, ON YOUR UNIFORM?!?!?!"
Worth it:
Unpopular Front is having a holiday sale!
www.unpopularfront.news/p/join-the-u...
www.unpopularfront.news/p/join-the-u...
Join the Unpopular Front
A Not Quite Lost Cause
www.unpopularfront.news
November 25, 2025 at 1:49 PM
Worth it:
Bari gonna open the door to a Dersh redemption arc effort. Obscene.
The new editor of CBS News thinks that Alan Dershowitz and Dana Loesch debating the 2nd Amendment is “news.”
So, pour one out tonight for the actual journalists at CBS who have to listen to this drivel in the am news meeting
(She also says Dersh is “charismatic,” but that’s the lesser horror)
1/2
So, pour one out tonight for the actual journalists at CBS who have to listen to this drivel in the am news meeting
(She also says Dersh is “charismatic,” but that’s the lesser horror)
1/2
November 25, 2025 at 7:10 AM
Bari gonna open the door to a Dersh redemption arc effort. Obscene.
In a few months, Ben Smith is going to get an email from Chotiner asking if he has time for an interview, which is like HR summoning you and telling you to bring your company phone, laptop, and ID. Or being told to go see the coach and to bring your playbook.
A new kind of rapid Chotining. Please appreciate the alt-text.
November 25, 2025 at 2:50 AM
In a few months, Ben Smith is going to get an email from Chotiner asking if he has time for an interview, which is like HR summoning you and telling you to bring your company phone, laptop, and ID. Or being told to go see the coach and to bring your playbook.
Reposted by Bill Shea
Coming for chotiner is like invading Russia in winter
November 25, 2025 at 2:39 AM
Coming for chotiner is like invading Russia in winter
Reposted by Bill Shea
A new kind of rapid Chotining. Please appreciate the alt-text.
November 25, 2025 at 1:09 AM
A new kind of rapid Chotining. Please appreciate the alt-text.
DOGE was a Libertarian wet dream that's murdered hundreds of thousands of people, mostly children, and severely damaged America.
November 25, 2025 at 2:42 AM
DOGE was a Libertarian wet dream that's murdered hundreds of thousands of people, mostly children, and severely damaged America.
Republicans are angry because -- and this isn't even an exaggeration -- they want these people to die. The poor, struggling, sickly, minorities are all subhuman to the evangelical white nationalist party that serves only the ruling class. Sickly serfs are a drain on capital.
President Trump was all set to unveil his health care plan to the public TODAY, but now plans to delay it after backlash from Republicans in Congress.
“I wasn’t expecting the proposal to be Obamacare-lite. Absolutely not supportive of extending ACA subsidies," one anonymously said. trib.al/aZs15zP
“I wasn’t expecting the proposal to be Obamacare-lite. Absolutely not supportive of extending ACA subsidies," one anonymously said. trib.al/aZs15zP
Trump Delays His Health Care Plan After Revolt From Republicans
Republican members of Congress are pissed about the health care plan Donald Trump came up with.
trib.al
November 25, 2025 at 12:35 AM
Republicans are angry because -- and this isn't even an exaggeration -- they want these people to die. The poor, struggling, sickly, minorities are all subhuman to the evangelical white nationalist party that serves only the ruling class. Sickly serfs are a drain on capital.
Bullshit. Enlisted personnel are instructed not to follow illegal orders and learn the UCMJ. And American troops are taught to think under pressure, which includes deciding not to follow illegal or insane orders. Just as the Joint Chiefs won't launch nukes just because Trump feels like ordering it.
BLITZER: I want to be precise. Should members of the US military obey clearly illegal orders?
McCLAIN: You're asking an enlisted person for their opinion on what they think is legal. That's a pretty slippery slope. Follow your commander in chief. That's the oath that you took
(Not a no!)
McCLAIN: You're asking an enlisted person for their opinion on what they think is legal. That's a pretty slippery slope. Follow your commander in chief. That's the oath that you took
(Not a no!)
November 25, 2025 at 12:31 AM
Bullshit. Enlisted personnel are instructed not to follow illegal orders and learn the UCMJ. And American troops are taught to think under pressure, which includes deciding not to follow illegal or insane orders. Just as the Joint Chiefs won't launch nukes just because Trump feels like ordering it.
History of authoritarianism
American obsession with football
Global soccer obsession
Climate change
Edmund Fitzgerald/Titanic
History of the internet
John Brown
Hip-hop/rap
French Revolution
Space exploration
Beat Generation
History of toys
He has two docs in production: kenburns.com/the-films/
American obsession with football
Global soccer obsession
Climate change
Edmund Fitzgerald/Titanic
History of the internet
John Brown
Hip-hop/rap
French Revolution
Space exploration
Beat Generation
History of toys
He has two docs in production: kenburns.com/the-films/
November 25, 2025 at 12:27 AM
History of authoritarianism
American obsession with football
Global soccer obsession
Climate change
Edmund Fitzgerald/Titanic
History of the internet
John Brown
Hip-hop/rap
French Revolution
Space exploration
Beat Generation
History of toys
He has two docs in production: kenburns.com/the-films/
American obsession with football
Global soccer obsession
Climate change
Edmund Fitzgerald/Titanic
History of the internet
John Brown
Hip-hop/rap
French Revolution
Space exploration
Beat Generation
History of toys
He has two docs in production: kenburns.com/the-films/
It speaks ugly, humiliating volumes about America that it elects a genuine, legitimately stupid bigot like Tommy Tuberville to the U.S. Senate. We vote for overpaid gym teachers that would have eager joined the Confederacy in 1861, and would again today. He also sucked as a coach.
Jones' announcement likely sets up a rematch with Tommy Tuberville, who defeated Jones for U.S. Senate in 2020. Jones said Alabamians "want their next governor to be someone who treats this state with grace and dignity, and not just like a rest stop on the way to the Florida beach."
Via @annabjournalist.bsky.social: Former Democratic U.S. Sen. Doug Jones officially entered Alabama's 2026 gubernatorial race Monday, saying Alabamians "deserve a governor who is going to fight for them."
November 24, 2025 at 9:33 PM
It speaks ugly, humiliating volumes about America that it elects a genuine, legitimately stupid bigot like Tommy Tuberville to the U.S. Senate. We vote for overpaid gym teachers that would have eager joined the Confederacy in 1861, and would again today. He also sucked as a coach.
Like the murders Trump is illegally ordering the military to commit in the Caribbean, military action against nebulous "threats" in Venezuela will be the test run for the same justification to use force against critics of the Trump regime at home, where opposing fascism is now a crime. We're fucked.
Rep. Salazar: "We're gonna be doing a favor to us, to our children, to our economy, to our oil companies to be able to liberate. And to Venezuelans who wants to be free."
November 24, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Like the murders Trump is illegally ordering the military to commit in the Caribbean, military action against nebulous "threats" in Venezuela will be the test run for the same justification to use force against critics of the Trump regime at home, where opposing fascism is now a crime. We're fucked.
Trump gonna get a doctor's note for his bone spurs again just in case
Really looks like the United States is about to launch a regime change war against Venezuela with:
-No casus belli
-No authorization from Congress
-No allies or international support
-No plan for a post-Maduro Venezuela
-No preparation for any sort of stabilization or containment of the fallout
-No casus belli
-No authorization from Congress
-No allies or international support
-No plan for a post-Maduro Venezuela
-No preparation for any sort of stabilization or containment of the fallout
November 24, 2025 at 9:25 PM
Trump gonna get a doctor's note for his bone spurs again just in case
Reposted by Bill Shea
May Viola Ford Fletcher’s memory be a blessing to her loved ones & a lesson to us all.
Ms Fletcher did not get the justice for her community that she sought (reparations for Greenwood), and she had nightmares for the rest of her life.
I hope she rests in the peace she never quite found in life.
Ms Fletcher did not get the justice for her community that she sought (reparations for Greenwood), and she had nightmares for the rest of her life.
I hope she rests in the peace she never quite found in life.
Breaking: Viola Ford Fletcher, the oldest living survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died. She was 111 years old
Viola Ford Fletcher, the oldest living survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died
Viola Ford Fletcher, the oldest living survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has died. She was 111 years old.
www.whatimreading.net
November 24, 2025 at 9:04 PM
May Viola Ford Fletcher’s memory be a blessing to her loved ones & a lesson to us all.
Ms Fletcher did not get the justice for her community that she sought (reparations for Greenwood), and she had nightmares for the rest of her life.
I hope she rests in the peace she never quite found in life.
Ms Fletcher did not get the justice for her community that she sought (reparations for Greenwood), and she had nightmares for the rest of her life.
I hope she rests in the peace she never quite found in life.
Just full-on classic 15th-20th century white Christian nationalist colonialism on full display. Your children must die overseas to boost oil company profits.
Rep. Salazar: "We're gonna be doing a favor to us, to our children, to our economy, to our oil companies to be able to liberate. And to Venezuelans who wants to be free."
November 24, 2025 at 9:21 PM
Just full-on classic 15th-20th century white Christian nationalist colonialism on full display. Your children must die overseas to boost oil company profits.
Reposted by Bill Shea
Utterly ludicrous framing from @nytimes.com here, treating Pete Hegseth's arguments as if they're legitimate. The casual reader will be left with no inkling whatsoever of how unusual and corrupt an abuse of the process this truly is:
November 24, 2025 at 9:19 PM
Utterly ludicrous framing from @nytimes.com here, treating Pete Hegseth's arguments as if they're legitimate. The casual reader will be left with no inkling whatsoever of how unusual and corrupt an abuse of the process this truly is:
Hegseth eagerly following an illegal order
Let me sum it up for non-military folks:
Senator Mark Kelly didn’t violate any military laws. None.
Hegseth’s little bitch ass has been ordered by Trump to retaliate against Sen. Kelly for speaking out, and Hegseth does what Daddy tells him to do.
That’s all this is.
Senator Mark Kelly didn’t violate any military laws. None.
Hegseth’s little bitch ass has been ordered by Trump to retaliate against Sen. Kelly for speaking out, and Hegseth does what Daddy tells him to do.
That’s all this is.
November 24, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Hegseth eagerly following an illegal order
Reposted by Bill Shea
Illegal orders ...
Breaking: Judge just dismissed prosecutions of James Comey and Letitia James on grounds that Trump stooge prosecutor was unlawfully appointed.
This has relevance for the whole debate over Trump giving "illegal orders." Very possible that Trump's commands for prosecutions are unlawful ones.
This has relevance for the whole debate over Trump giving "illegal orders." Very possible that Trump's commands for prosecutions are unlawful ones.
What about Trump's corrupt orders to DOJ to prosecute his enemies? Here it's complex, but there are scenarios in which these orders could be illegal. His lackeys might be breaking the law in carrying them out.
Legal expert @kristyparker.bsky.social explains here:
newrepublic.com/article/2035...
Legal expert @kristyparker.bsky.social explains here:
newrepublic.com/article/2035...
November 24, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Illegal orders ...