Author | Lightnews

Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 3h

However many ICE guys they manage to hire, by far the most consequential decisions they've made are variants of "destroy state capacity." Armed goons are necessary but they're not exactly sufficient for regime consolidation. And they know this, which is why they keep trying to just poast through it.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 4h

Price of Jefferies’ endorsement?

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 7h

*interviewer whipping out the calipers* “What did you think we meant by ‘Heritage?’”

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 10h

Lmao this literally made me realize that when I first mentioned to my (extremely offline) spouse that Kirk had gotten shot and got the response “who?” I’d also accidentally referred to him as “you know, the ‘change my mind’ guy who became a meme.”

Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 11h

I keep saying this is why they’re moving heaven and earth (literally) to do the ballroom so fast. It’s the only thing he really cares about getting done before he kicks it.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 17h

Me, sowing: “the tree of liberty must be refreshed with blood”

Me, reaping: “please, I’m just a smol bean. I’m just a little birthday boy.”

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 1d

The ur-example of the CT wannabe WASP phenomenon is Robert Moses (born in New Haven): from a family embarrassed by poor Eastern European Jews that came over after they did, determined to assimilate but still couldn’t get into the Yale frats, so compensated with extreme anti-Black/anti-Latino racism.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 1d

Inshallah we get Blulaska.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 1d

Roberts took one look at last night’s results and was like “time to save the Republicans from themselves.” Unfortunately this also probably means the VRA is *dead* dead.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 2d

General Sherman: *slaps roof of Georgia* this bad boy can fit so much fucking fire in it

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 3d

There’s pretty solid circumstantial support for “Trump only knows about 10 people” theory.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 7d

Per tale: sculptor’s muse. Weather worn.

Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 7d

There once was a king, Ozymand
Who bragged about all he’d command.
Trying to fill his foes with fright he
Said “Look on my works, ye mighty!”
But now it’s all trunkless legs and sand.

Pete Smith @reddite.bsky.social · 8d

I heard there was a statue tall
That sneered at folk and commanded all
But you don't really care for symbols do ya
It goes like this the feet the fist
The head that fell the aim that missed
The long lost king whose name was Ozymandias
Ozymandias
Ozymandias
Ozymandias
Ozymaaaaandias

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 7d

Funnily enough, this specific guy messed up the natural experiment in my undergrad thesis by being a gigantic partisan hack even before polarization swallowed everything.

ProPublica @propublica.org · 7d

NEW: Paul Newby, a born-again Christian, has turned his perch atop North Carolina’s Supreme Court into an instrument of political power.

Over two decades, he’s driven changes that have reverberated well beyond the borders of his state.

By @dougbockclark.bsky.social

“Biblical Justice, Equal Justice, for All”: How North Carolina’s Chief Justice Transformed His State and America

Paul Newby, a born-again Christian, has turned his perch atop North Carolina’s Supreme Court into an instrument of political power. Over two decades, he’s driven changes that have reverberated well be...

www.propublica.org

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 8d

He doesn’t need the 30% of the city that votes R, which is an arguably much broader coalition. He needs the half of those Rs that are, in fact, the racists in SI and the whitest parts of Queens. Will that be the difference? Depends on how close of a race it was to begin with.

Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 8d

I mean I think he’s betting the latest polls are right and he can close a 10% gap by getting Sliwa voters (derogatory) to break for him.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 10d

I assumed they don’t want to take it off the table as a cudgel to threaten Ds with? Likewise for “minting the coin” to end a debt ceiling standoff.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 10d

True or not, it visibly pisses Trump off when people publicly speculate about his health so everyone should do it regardless.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 10d

My main reaction to the ballroom thing was kicking my “he’s dying” conspiracism into overdrive.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 11d

In conclusion, New York City is a land of contrasts.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 12d

The people who think this don’t make this argument about any other essential good. I’ve never heard a left-NIMBY argue that we need to collectivize all farms before improving food security because otherwise big ag is going to keep making money. And food should be as much of a human right as housing!

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Reposted by Ban Cars

Starfish Who Can’t Think Something Witty @irhottakes.bsky.social · 12d

LEWIS: Then the children meet Santa. The jolly old elf-

TOLKIEN: Disgusting. Elves should be autistic war criminals who set off an apocalyptic chain of events that end with a moody twink stabbing Satan at the end of time.

LEWIS: So you say.

TOLKIEN: But my editor said to stick to hobbits.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 14d

Lmao I just had a real Remember Some Guys moment recalling that dude

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 14d

Key is figuring out how to thread the needle to get Democratic Tea Party (laudatory) without Democratic Tea Party (derogatory).

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 14d

It is pretty wild that “go all in on racism” is their closing argument in one of the country’s most diverse places, where the “all racism” strategy completely flopped with a primary electorate that’s not *that* different than this one’s going to be.

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Ban Cars @carabolitionist.bsky.social · 14d

Thinking about how Robert Moses would get construction crews to start building stuff that hadn’t been approved yet or fully funded, & dare everyone to look like a moron telling him no & leaving a open construction site, & how Trump came up in the NYC building world that Moses had only recently left.

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